by Elaine M. Gibson

• "My child never eats real food. How can I make him eat the food that's good for him?"
• "My child never eats when I prepare a meal. All she wants to do is snack all day long."
• "I have to give the kids a snack before dinner or they just can't make it. Then they sit at the dinner table and push their peas and carrots around their plates without actually eating anything. What can I do?"

Dreading Meals

Questions like these seem to be a major concern for parents with young children. Meal time should be a pleasant experience but in many families with anxious parents and picky eaters, eating is far from enjoyable. Parents naturally want their children to eat the foods that provide nutrition. Kids prefer junk. Parents worry about their kids' eating habits. Kids prefer junk.

Children will eat when they are hungry unless there is a problem. If a parent has become preoccupied by a child's eating, the child can learn to control the parent through eating (or not eating). Often the first sign of illness is a loss of appetite. But under normal physical and emotional conditions, children will eat when they are hungry and stop when they have had enough.

The first worry comes some where between the ages of one and two when children dramatically curtail the amount of food they eat. For many parents used to a big eater, this sudden drop off in appetite causes concern. This is perfectly natural however and

In addition, children do not eat the same amounts from day to day. Their activity level, the weather, excitement or fatigue, and personal food preferences all play a part in what and how much a child eats.

Parents need to remember the bottom line: except for a medical problem, if a child is hungry, he will eat. One mother was concerned over the seeming disinterest her child had in food. The child "never ate." With some questioning, this mother revealed that her two year old daughter didn't like water and was drinking apple juice all day long.

A child of that age needs only about 1,100 calories a day. One cup of apple juice supplies 90 calories. This childÍs six to eight glasses a day was supplying half the calories she needed. With a few crackers and some peanut butter, the child was simply never hungry. When the mother eliminated the apple juice, her daughter decided to eat.

Most children stop eating when they have had enough. When they have consumed enough calories, regardless of the source, they are no longer interested in food. A child of 4 to 6 needs only 1,600 calories a day, a 7 - 10 year old needs about 2,200 calories, and an 11 to 14 year old needs 2,300 calories. Keep in mind that three brownies supply almost 1,000 calories.

Cookies average 50 calories a piece. One cup of chocolate pudding has 385 calories. An 8 ounce cup of fruit flavored drink has 110 calories. A 12 ounce soft drink has about 140 calories. Kids don't care if the calories are nutritious or empty. Calories supply energy and keep you from feeling hungry.

If one looks carefully at the snacking habits of the family, it may be quite obvious why children do not eat at family meals. For children to be hungry enough to eat a meal, they should not have eaten for the previous two to three hours. Do not allow snacks within this time frame and children will be hungry enough to eat a nutritious dinner. Put good food in front of a hungry child and donÍt worry about how much or how little the child eats.

To remedy the starving child before dinner syndrome, make sure the child has a high-protein snack with complex carbohydrates three hours before the dinner hour. No one can go from noon till six without a nutritious snack and still be civil by dinner time.

Remember, prevent over-eating and poor eating and serve nutritious foods to hungry kids. If a child fails to gain weight over a period of time under these conditions, see a doctor.