HEALTH
The Pain of Picky Eaters
By Farhan Shah
Picky eating is the bane
of many parents and can
result in temper tantrums
and shouting matches
during mealtimes. We sit
down with the people from
Abbott and Dr William
MacLean to discuss the
probable cause of picky
eating – inappropriate
feeding styles.
Power struggles happen everywhere –
in the office; within political discussions;
even during a child’s mealtime. As any
parent would attest to, mealtimes can
be a stressful, hair-pulling experience
for both caregiver and child. In fact,
according to a study conducted
by National University Hospital in
Singapore, nearly one out of every two
Singaporean parents say that their child
is a picky eater. Within this group, 33
percent have also consulted a doctor
regarding the problem of picky eating.
While picky eating behaviour is usually
a phase that the child is going through
and can be overcome with a few simple
corrective measures, it can transform
into a major issue if you let the
behaviour go unchecked.
One of the most important factors
that affect a child’s eating behaviour
(and thus, his or her pickiness) is
the feeding style you employ during
mealtimes. Often neglected yet hugely
critical, the idea of feeding styles is
slowly coming to the forefront of most
parents’ discussions.
Dr William MacLean, president of the
Life Science Research Organization and
International Fund for Infant Nutrition,
explains that there are four types of
feeding styles.
THE FOUR TYPES
OF FEEDING STYLES
• AUTHORITARIAN
Perhaps the most common feeding
style that parents use, an authoritarian
or controlling feeding method is when
the caregiver creates and enforces
rules revolving around food and eating.
Usually, it involves the child having
to finish the vegetables before
getting dessert or finishing
whatever is on the plate
and disregarding
the child’s
exhortations that
he or she
is full.
The authoritarian feeding style is
perhaps one of the most common
reasons why the table turns into
a battleground during mealtimes
because it is so often used by wellmeaning parents.
In 1987, Leann Birch, director of the
Center for Childhood Obesity Research
at Penn State, examined the effects of
telling children to clean their plates and
found out that those who were told to
finish the food given to them tended to
eat more food after a high-calorie meal,
compared to children who relied more
on their own internal cues.
• PERMISSIVE
On the other end of the feeding style
spectrum is the permissive method,
in which parents let their child eat
whatever they want, whenever they
please. Predictably, children who grew
up in this environment tended to eat
more sweets and processed food,
thus having problems with weight
management and self-regulation. These
problems are then compounded in
adulthood, not just in their health but
also in their interaction with others.
• NEGLECTFUL
As the name implies, a neglectful
feeding style is when the child is unsure
when the next meal will be, if at all. This
does not mean that there is no food
around; rather, the caregiver has not
set any mealtime routine and tends to
serve whatever is available in the fridge
at any time of the day. Therefore, the
child will usually either over- or undereat and will have difficulty trusting the
caregiver when it comes to food.
• AUTHORITATIVE
An authoritative feeding style, while
sounding similar to the first style
mentioned at the top of this list, is not
about enforcing your food choices on
your child. Rather, it is about structured
mealtimes and letting your child decide
the order they want to eat the food on the
plate as well as when he or she is finished
with the meal, regardless whether he or
she has cleaned up the plate.
It is a style that Dr MacLean highly
recommends parents to adopt because
it teaches the child to listen to their own
internal cues instead of bowing down to
external social pressure. Also,
multiple research studies
have indicated that children
who were raised with an
authoritative feeding style grew
up to have a healthier body mass
index and had lower instances of
eating disorders.
22
Family & Life • Jul 2014
FAQ ON
AUTHORITATIVE
FEEDING STYLES
How do I get my children to eat
greens if they can choose what
to eat?
There’s a difference between
letting them decide what to eat
for meals versus letting them
decide what to eat on the plate.
The authoritative feeding style
means that parents choose the
menu but let the children decide
the order that they want to eat
the meal as well as whether they
would like to complete the meal
or not.
So, you should ensure that
every meal served is nutritious
and balanced, which means
having vegetables alongside
other healthy choices! While
children most likely won’t eat
every serving of vegetable at
each meal, you should continue
plugging away and introduce
different types of vegetables,
preferably with multiple colours,
while gently informing your
children the benefits of eating
greens. Soon enough, your
children will be telling you the
vegetables they would like to see!
What are a few guidelines for
parents who want to adopt an
authoritative feeding style?
Abbott and Dr MacLean have put
together a list of tips when using
an authoritative feeding style.
Here are some of them:
• Avoid distractions
during mealtimes
• Eat at set times and avoid
grazing or snacking
• Limit how long
meals last
• Serve age- and
texture- appropriate food
• Tolerate age-appropriate
messes
• Encourage self-feeding
• Maintain a neutral
attitude during meals
• Consistently
offer new
foods