The most effective way from a psychologist to feed a reluctant and a baby. Works 100%, but only suitable for staunch parents
The foundations of eating behavior are laid in childhood. It is at an early age that the child gets acquainted with new products, determines his taste preferences and learns to the correct diet. It is good if the mother manages to lay this regime even at the stage of complementary feeding. Then, in the future, the baby will not have health problems, overweight or, on the contrary, underweight. But what about those mothers who are growing reluctant and small? You cannot force a child to eat, otherwise you can "knock down" nutritional settings and the baby will never learn to determine the feeling of satiety on his own. Leaving hungry is also not recommended - little ones often hammer hunger with snacks, and this can easily turn into a bad eating habit. Conclusion: the child should want to eat himself. An effective way to achieve such a miracle is suggested by a psychologist. Ekaterina Murashova.
You don't need to paint for this method. pictures of food, start up locomotives from spoons with porridge or feed the baby for mom, dad and a whole series of close and distant relatives. All you need is strict control and well-coordinated work of all household members. And also the iron restraint of parents, grandmothers, grandfathers and everyone else who has direct or indirect access to feeding a child. The result will not be long in coming: as a rule, already on the third day, the child learns to recognize hunger and put this feeling much higher than his "I do not want" and "I will not."
Step 1. We organize a clear daily routine
Sit down at the table all at the same time / istockphoto.com
Whether you have a specific meal plan or eat at will, this method requires a well-organized schedule. From now on, the whole family must eat strictly on time (plus or minus an hour) and at least 4 times a day (breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner). It is extremely important not to give anything to your child between meals. Nothing at all except water. It is not difficult to do this with young children - you just need to rearrange the food out of the child's reach and endure a day of tantrums. With older children, who themselves can go and take a piece of bread or get a tomato from the refrigerator, you will have to invent something.
We emphasize once again: in the intervals between meals, the child should not be given anything. Even if he agrees to healthy snack such as an apple or vegetable salad. Remember that you need to train your child to eat, not snack.
Step 2. We offer, but we do not persuade
Don't beg your child to eat / istockphoto.com
When it's time to eat, we inform the child about this and sit down at the table. It is highly desirable that the child also sat down at the table with everyone else. However, if he does not want to, we do not force him to do so. He may skip breakfast, but he will definitely come for lunch - at least to see what will be on the plate. We put food in front of the child and eat ourselves. At the same time, it is important not to focus on food (like “look how delicious”, “mom tried for you”, “well, at least try it”, “this is your favorite”). Refrain from any emotions as much as possible. Remember, you just eat to satisfy your hunger.
Step 3. Throwing the half-eaten in the trash
Throw away uneaten things mercilessly / istockphoto.com
After everyone has eaten and you clear the table, ask your child if he has finished eating (even if he has not touched it). If the child says no and continues to poke around on the plate, give him some more time. If the child says yes, warn him, then I throw it away. Take the plate and in front of him, throw everything that has not been eaten into the trash. Ekaterina Murashova emphasizes that this stage is very important for the restoration of normal eating behavior. Therefore, your hand should not tremble here. Throw away absolutely everything, even if the child has not touched the food at all. Food cannot be finished by itself, hidden in the refrigerator, given to a dog or cat.
Why This Method Works
There are two main difficulties in this method for parents. The first is to endure the "torture of hunger" when the child spends a couple of days on bread and water. The second is to regularly throw fresh, tasty, unspoiled food into the trash can. Morally it is very difficult for an adult. And believe me, in combination with the feeling of hunger in a couple of days it will become just as hard for the child. A primitive biological instinct will work, and after a few days of the experiment, the baby will not allow you to destroy food that can be satiated.
An important nuance: after the first "advances" do not stop working with this technique. A child needs an average of three weeks to form a habit of eating right. During this time, you yourself will enter the regime and you will not even notice how the era of persuasion, talking about food, fighting snacks, long "meetings" at the table and picking at the plate will become a thing of the past.
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