Parents of picky eaters told to relax and let their children get ‘messy’ at the dinner table

FUSSY eaters should be allowed to play with their food if it is the only way their parents can get them to eat, according to the latest NHS guidance.

The advice from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) urges parents to make mealtimes “relaxed” and to try not to “coerce” children, even if there are concerns that they are failing to gain weight.

It suggests eating together as a fam- ily and avoiding “punitive” approaches to bad behaviour at the table are key to helping children who reject the food put in front of them, while “allowing young children to be ‘messy’ with their food” is better than trying to cajole them into eating nicely.

While parents are told not to rush children, the guidance also suggests mealtimes should not become long, drawn-out battles, and eating times kept consistent. Young children should be encouraged to feed themselves – even if that means more of it ends up decorating the table. GPS and health visitors should take a detailed eating history from families if problems persist, and consider sending healthcare professionals in to observe.

Prof Gillian Leng, the deputy chief executive at Nice, said: “Having a child with faltering growth can be distressing. However, simple things such as encouraging relaxed and enjoyable feeding and mealtimes, eating together as a family, or even allowing young children to be ‘messy’ with their food, can help encourage them to eat.”

According to data collected from primary schools in England, in 2015-16, just one per cent of children starting school were underweight.

♦ A school’s ban on sausage rolls, pork pies and fruit squash from children’s lunch boxes has provoked a backlash among parents.

The policy, introduced this term at Shirley Manor Primary Academy, in Wyke, near Bradford, W Yorks, is part of a healthy eating drive.

Parents have criticised the policy, describing it as “ridiculous”. Steve Fryer, 52, whose son allegedly had his sausage roll confiscated, described his son as a fussy eater and said: “Teachers are there to teach them. You send your kids to school to learn.”

Another parent said: “I wish it was more relaxed. It is hard for us parents who have picky children.”