One of the biggest frustrations for many parents is when kids refuse to eat a variety of healthful foods. While this is a normal stage of development – kids generally start out being willing to eat anything between about 6 months and 2 years of age, and then suddenly, frustratingly become unwilling to try new foods between the age of 2-3.
For many parents, attempts at negotiation (“eat [this], and I’ll give you [that]) and coercion (“eat your vegetables or no dessert”) often give way to throwing hands in the air and just giving the kids what they like, so at least they’ll eat something.
Here I introduce an alternate strategy which I call the 10 “rules” of picky-free parenting.
These ‘rules’ offer an approach based on the best science around the most effective parenting practices in helping to raise healthy eaters. They also take out a lot of mealtime stress and frustration.