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Strategies for introducing new foods to your child – how to make healthy foods appealing to children.

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Hello everyone! Do you ever feel like mealtime turns into a battleground when trying to introduce new foods to your kids? Let’s share some creative and fun strategies to make mealtimes more adventurous and less stressful for both us and our little ones!”

Let’s try to comprehend their special relationship with food. Let’s explore how you might approach the process with patience and creativity. By approaching mealtime with empathy and an open mind, you can empower your children. Your kids might grow up to have a broad palate and a lifelong love of healthful food.

As parents, you want to give your children the greatest start in life. Ensuring they eat balanced and nourishing food is an essential part of it. It is well-known that kids are picky eaters It might be difficult to encourage your child to try new foods, but doing so is crucial to helping them in forming healthy eating habits. This blog will provide you with practical strategies for gradually introducing new meals to children and developing a taste for healthy, nutritious foods by including them in meal planning and preparation, setting a positive example, offering new foods in a familiar way, offering a variety of foods, and not making them eat anything they don’t want to. 

Kids are picky eaters; they love some foods that are generally well-liked among kids including pizza and chicken fingers. However, when it comes to other foods, they often don’t want to eat. Kids often decide they don’t like food even though they have never tried it. 

Before you start using any new food introduction strategies, it’s important to understand your child’s opinion. Kids are naturally cautious of strange food at this age. For security and comfort, they largely rely on well-known flavours and textures. They could be reluctant to try new foods since their small taste receptors could be sensitive to strong flavours.

It’s crucial to handle situations involving a child who refuses to try new meals with kindness and tolerance.

Here are some simple suggestions to help your child gradually expand their culinary horizons:

  1. Set an example: Children often mimic the eating habits of those around them. If you encourage your toddler to try different foods, they might do the same. set a positive example for your children by eating different foods. Kids pick upon cues from their parents. your child is more likely to imitate you if they witness you experimenting with and enjoying various foods.
  2. Offer new foods in a familiar manner; kids could be unwilling to try new foods if they are offered in a unique way to have an unusual appearance. To make new meals seem more approachable, try serving them with or in a food that you are already familiar with. Try topping their plate with a small bit of mashed cauliflower if they are a big fan of mashed potatoes, for instance.
  3. Offer a variety of food: At very meal, provide a range of wholesome foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein. By doing this, you may introduce your child to a wider range of flavours and textures and raise the likelihood that they will discover new foods they enjoy.
  4. Make it fun: Add games, storytelling, or themed dishes to make mealtimes an enjoyable journey. Adding a little imagination to the process can transform trying new meals from a terrifying activity to an exciting exploration.
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Ms. Vibha Hasija
Contributor
MSc (Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics);
P.G. Diploma in Dietetics and Applied Nutrition;
Registered Dietitian

 

A strong believer in the power of preventive and therapeutic nutrition, the role of holistic healing and the integration of Body, Mind and the Soul, Ms. Vibha Hasija is an academician (Department of Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics, College of Home Science, Nirmala Niketan, University of Mumbai) since 23 years. An expert in Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics and Nutritional Meal Planning, she is known for her powerful and highly effective teaching techniques in the field of Nutrition and Dietetics. She believes firmly in that – All changes happen first in the mind and this has been the guiding principle in her life as well as in applications in the field of Nutrition. Vibha has worked with her mentees in researching and creating Nutrition Communication Solutions and Educational Aids in the field of Clinical Nutrition which has won multiple awards including a National Award for Excellence in Innovation in Clinical Nutrition. She is a resource person for academic nutritional events and for talks on Health and Well Being. Associated with the Registered Dietitian Board of the Indian Dietetic Association as well as part of the executive committee of the Indian Association of Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition (Mumbai Chapter), she drives various nutrition education initiatives. An ardent poet and a prolific writer, she works to create a Health Mindset and make good health, good nutrition and lifestyle a human value. Through her Blog – Nutrition with Vibha, she is involved in making a positive difference to the nutritional and lifestyle choices of the community. With her mind on the multifaceted and multidisciplinary aspects of health and life, she brings her unique ideas to create a wave of Holistic Dietetic Choices. Through her unmistakable communication style of words and verses blended with evidence-based research, practicality and spiritual wisdom she dedicates herself to bettering the health of our Nation

Dr. Anuradha Mitra
Associate
MSc (Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics);
Ph. D (Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics).

Dr. Anuradha Mitra (Head of the Department of Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics, College of Home Science, Nirmala Niketan) holds more than three decades of experience in the field of Foods, Nutrition and Dietetics both as an academician as well as in the field of Community Nutrition. She has been the Chairperson of the Adhoc Board of Studies of Home Science and the Research Recognition Committee of the University of Mumbai and is highly appreciated as a wonderful and wise teacher who opens up minds to the varied aspects of Nutrition and builds up a desire in her students to better the community with their contributions at the grassroot level especially to the vulnerable and marginalized. Her pioneering work in the field of Adolescent Nutrition as part of her Doctoral Thesis, wherein she has made a detailed study of over 2000 adolescent girls in Mumbai has won the Mumbai University Gold Medal for exemplary research in ‘Avishkar’, the Inter-university Research Fest.

Her special passion and forte lies in Product development; creative recipes that are a blend of the delicious, and the nourishing… Her unique recipe conceptions, adaptations and innovations have made her a sought-out expert by various top brands like Kelloggs, Tata’s Heinz and so on as well as by Government Organisations like Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) for the underprivileged. Along with being a resource person for academic events she has presented papers both at national and international level, and judged a number of Recipe competitions.

Dr. Anuradha Mitra enriches this venture with her special magic of being able to formulate recipes for the varied needs of individuals, keeping in mind the nutritional requirements, albeit laced with her special practical approach and her own brand of life and nutrition wisdom. She dedicates her expertise to empower the world to revel in the joys of nourishing and love filled cooking. She envisions creating homes with a bustling kitchen where all members of the family fall in love with food that nourishes and rise into good health and nutrition; it is this aim that pushes her to create more treasures of recipes that will both satiate the palate as well as nourish the body.

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Reputed for cutting through marketing clutter with fresh business approaches, he founded YOUNG (www.weareyoung.in) in 2010. His vision of and initiatives for an ongoing growth business momentum keeps his media venture YOUNG out of the league of its contemporaries.
This dynamic founder of YOUNG recognised the power and reach of the digital medium and collaborated in creating huge waves of change and empowerment in the community as well as business opportunities. He has thus upscaled and endeavours to launch several digital initiatives
His deep interest in Health, Wellness, Fitness and Sports has led to this confluence of credible nutrition content and a well thought of platform giving birth to old.nutritionwithvibha.com