Parents should always encourage toddler to eat and let them learn to feed themselves. Of course learning to feed themselves is often a messy business and if you don’t like mess, put a big feeder or bib on your toddler and put a feeding carpet or newspaper on the floor. Practice make perfect and the more practice they get in doing it for themselves, the quicker they will learn to feed themselves well.

The children’s stomach is as small as their fist and here are some tips to encourage toddlers to have the meal.
- This is parent’s duty to provide a range of nutritious food and let them have a choice.
- Avoid snack foods like soft drinks, biscuits and sweets in the house and don’t let them have it before the meals.
- Try not to fill your child up on milk or fruit juice before the meal too.
- Too much of fruit juice or cordials would take away the appetite for the meal.
- To encourage your child’s interest in the food, let them participate in preparing the meal.
- Encourage your toddler to ask for more during the meal time and remove uneaten food without scolding.
- It’s not good to use dessert as a bribe to finish the meal. This makes dessert too special and toddler would pay more attention on the dessert rather than the meal.
- Nutrious desserts such as fruit or puddings are allowed but do give them small serve.
- Always fix the meal time for your toddler so that he knows that is the time for meal and he would expect to have meal before the time arrives.
- Don’t force your toddler to eat. Even adults would not like to be forced to eat food that they don’t like. It would make your child dislike the food if try to force him to eat.
- Keep the eating environment relax and leave the eating up to your toddler.

Drinks that can give your toddler
- Always give your child plenty of water because water is the best drink for thirst.
- Be your toddler’s role model and show them that you enjoy drinking water too.
- Avoid fruit juices that contain a lot of sugar.
- Don’t offer them cordial and soft drinks and save them only for special occasions.
- Children are not suitable for tea, coffee, sport or energy drinks.

Important
- Don’t leave your kid alone to feed himself. They will put all the food into their mouth which could cause coking or vomiting.
- Make sure they swallowed the food before the next mouthful.
- Always prepare soft and easy to chew foods and in small serves.
- Prepare your toddler warm foods or drinks. Cold foods or drinks could damage the stomach and intestines, inhibiting the capacity to digest.
- It’s not good to give kids cold drinks with their meals.
- Fizzy drinks would also cause too much gas in the stomach and it’s not a good idea to give your child drink coke.
- Don’t let your child eat in front of television. It’s not a good habit.
- All the foods you prepare should be yummy and always be your child’s role model in eating.

Lastly, don’t let meal times become a battlefield because food is to be enjoyed. Don’t try to force your toddler to eat or punish them for not eating. If you find meal times very stressful with them you might need to try a different approach. Let your toddler master the skill of feeding himself and let him be independent. He will not want you to feed him anymore once he is able to feed himself.