Should children be forced to eat "quality" food in order for them to "learn" good eating habits"

Question

Well not literally shoving it down on their throats, but just being strict with eating habits!

Answer 1

Children shouldn't be forced to eat anything. They should be offered a variety of healthy foods and encouraged to try them. If they are only offered healthy foods, that is all they will eat. Therefore they will learn to like the healthy foods and as a result develop healthy eating habits. If children are brought up on unhealthy foods, that is what they become accustomed to and develop bad eating habits.

Answer 2

I heard, years ago, that kids will "instinctively" seek out healthy foods when given free-range---that they WILL eventually gravitate towards milk, fruits, etc. in time. (Sorry, I can't recollect the source and do NOT advise that you consider this to be "gospel truth"---you'd better do a *lot* of cross-checking.) But judging from the growing problem (no pun intended!) of obesity in the Western world, I'd be extremely hesitant about letting kids feed at will. There seems to be **something** in us that's just conditioned towards concentrated sweets and fats....

When we were growing up, Mom and Dad had a simple rule: you had to TRY the new food---something on the order of a serving tablespoonful. It wasn't so much as to really intimidate anyone, even the pickiest eater. If it turned out to be absolutely inedible (Dad found out that Mom was perfectly right when she said I **couldn't** eat liver; he cleaned up the mess), well, that item came off the individual's dietary. (So I ate fish sticks, and everybody else had liver....end of problem.)

We eventually learned to like a lot of different foods (sometimes a vegetable was so-so one way, but a hit prepared another fashion)---and to be adventurous---and mealtimes weren't a battle.

Answer 3

Children, just like adults, like to have choices. I have a picky eater and I give him choices- 2 choices of healthy options. My family is overweight so I am specifically attentive to my kids dietary choices. Over concentration on food creates an obsession. Stress the benefits of a specific food that they have chosen and it will reinforce the desire to do thier bodies good.

Both of my boys are at healthy weights despite my familys history and neither have any complex about thier bodies or food (thank goodness). They often make healthy requests instead of a McDonald or Pizza Hut meal.

Try salad (Not iceburg, but more Romaine or Leafy ones) and give them a choice.
My Boys like Chicken, Oranges, Jicama, Dried Cranberries, etc...
The colors are fun, and choosing what to put on it thrills them.

We can all sit down knowing we have had a good fun benefical meal together.

Answer 4

Well, I don't think that there should be a need to force children to eat healthy foods. If parents give their children nutritious foods from the start there would be no need to force them to eat healthy once they are older.

Answer 5

i would use the word encourage rather than the word forced.....as a parent, if you serve the good food, hopefully children will eat it......most kids are good and respect their parents and if the parents tell them this is good for you, most will accept it....at times let them have the junk for a treat

Answer 6

no not really but that would be nice but they don't have to if you be nice to them the will learn good eating habits rather than forcing them

Answer 7

add- for quality of lifetime in the quantity of time available with parents:
My answer is yes.
Make sure u encourage them to eat a balanced diet.

Answer 8

Absolutely...