There is often a great deal of anxiety about what children eat, how much they eat, and in what order they eat their food. While some concerns may be valid, it is also undeniable that a heavy focus on policing children’s food intake can create unnecessary pressure and anxiety.
So, does it really matter what order children eat their food in?
Some might argue that insisting children eat the “healthy” food first teaches good eating habits. Yet I often wonder whether the same rules would apply in the staff room during lunch or when pizza is ordered for a staff meeting in the name of healthy choices. (For the record, I do love pizza.)
What I personally do not love, as an adult, is feeling pressured about what to eat, how much to eat, or the order in which I should eat my food. This kind of policing can contribute to an unhealthy relationship with food that may last well into adulthood.
If our genuine concern is supporting children to develop healthy relationships with food, then perhaps we need to think about different ways of engaging children with food rather than simply seeking compliance.
Maybe this means moving away from phrases such as “please eat this first” or “you can’t eat that until you finish this.”
Just a little food for thought.
