Kidshealth.org put together a great list of rules that parents should try to abide by when it comes feeding time at the house. Our daughter (3 yrs.old) has been a challenge with food because she loves it. However, to this day she has not had any soda and we really limit her sugar intake.
It’s funny because the in-laws (and my parents) bring candy and garbage food over EVERY single time they visit and Bella actually knows that this stuff is bad for her. Here is the list from Kidshealth.org (which is summarized in greater detail at Yahoo)
- Parents control the supply lines
- From the foods you offer, kids get to choose what they will eat or whether to eat at all.
- Quit the “clean-plate club.”
- Start them young. Food preferences are developed early in life, so offer a variety of foods
- Rewrite the kids’ menu
- Drink calories count
- Put sweets in their place.
- Food is not love.