The Recipe of Mealtime Success

The Recipe of Mealtime Success is taught to parents, carers and professionals in our workshops.   In our workshops parents and carers come to understand the complexity of eating and determine underlying factors that may cause their child to display fussy eating behaviours such as mealtime meltdowns, refusal to come to the table and throwing food.  Parents and carers can then use The Recipe of Mealtime Success to develop a personalised plan, including 1-2 goals that can support their child’s feeding behaviour and build trust at mealtimes.  For some families, these goals will make the difference they seek, for others they will need further support to meet their goals. If concerns arise during the workshop and parents are seeking further 1:1 support, we discuss how to access appropriate feeding support from a feeding team.

The Recipe of Mealtime Success includes 4 research-driven ingredients that encourage children to explore and eat a wider range of food by feeling safe and happy at mealtimes.

Ingredients

The 4 ingredients of the Recipe of Mealtime Success are:

1.     Mealtime Responsibilities

2.     Regular routines

3.     Family Mealtimes

4.     Fun

At the core of the Recipe of Mealtime Success is trust at mealtimes. This is represented by our Love Spoon at the centre of the circle.  It is important that caregivers can learn to trust that their child is able to eat what their body needs for their growth and development and that children can trust that their caregiver will make them feel safe and secure, help them build independent eating skills and provide the right foods, at the right time.

Mealtime Responsibilities

Dr Ellyn Satter’s The Division of Responsibility in Feeding is a feeding model based on years of research, that outlines caregiver responsibilities at mealtimes (that is the things caregivers CAN control) and our child’s responsibilities at mealtimes (the things THEY can control).   In this model caregivers are responsible for the what, where and when of mealtimes, and children are responsible for whether or how much they eat.

An example:

As a parent I decide:

What: I choose dinner to be a protein (chops), vegetable (peas, carrot and broccoli) and carbohydrate (bread) and I have included at least one food I know that my child likes to eat.

Where:  We sit at the table together.  My child is seated in a supportive chair.

When:  2.5 hours after my child’s last snack.

My child decides:

How much:  My child joins me at the table and eats from the options until they indicate they have finished.

Click here for more information on The Division of Responsibility

Routine

Creating routines help us to form habits.   Routines help children to anticipate what is ahead, which can reduce stress and anxiety.  Routines allow for repetition, which helps children learn and become better at tasks.   Not surprisingly children thrive when routines are put in place around daily activities.

Daily routines:

A daily mealtime routine for children over the age of 1 usually consists of 3 main meals and 2 snacks, with approximately 2.5 hours between eating.  Allowing at least 2 hours between eating helps children to experience the rhythm of feeling hungry and then full.  This pattern of hunger and fullness is important because it helps children learn to listen to their bodies’ cues and successfully self-regulate when it comes to eating.   Children who come to the table hungry are more likely to eat a range of food.  A child who is able to learn to listen to their fullness cues will learn to eat the right amount of food to keep them satisfied until the next meal and has lifelong positive outcomes related to eating disorders and obesity.  Routine also minimises frequent snacking which can have an impact on healthy eating.

Mealtime Routines:

Mealtime routines can help to reduce anxiety at mealtimes.  Reducing mealtimes anxiety is important because anxiety increases the release of a hormone called cortisol which supresses hunger.  Examples of mealtime routine includes starting the meal the same way each time, such as washing your hands together, lighting a candle or listening to or singing a song, sitting in the same place or using a favourite plate.  Finishing a meal with a routine is just as important.  Examples include taking the plate to the sink, putting food scraps in the bin or blowing out the candle.

Family Mealtimes

Research conducted by Harvard University has found that children who participate in regular family mealtimes experience physical, emotional, cognitive and social benefits such as higher self-esteem, higher school grades and are less likely to experience eating disorders or obesity in adolescence.  However, family meals only have these positive outcomes when they are not places of power struggles and stress.  It is recommended that at mealtime everyone who is home eats together without distractions such as the television, meals are self service (bowls to choose from in the middle of the table), that they are short and that each family member is following their mealtime responsibilities.

Read more about how to make family mealtimes work here.

Fun

Children learn best when they are relaxed and having fun. As mentioned previously, feeling relaxed also assists appetite.   Just like any other developmental skill such as walking or reading, eating is learnt through play.  Children will want to be in the place where they are most engaged.

Examples of how to keep mealtimes fun include:

·       Explore food by touching, squashing or mixing food

·       Presenting food on a favourite plate

·       Making food into shapes or pictures

·       Playing verbal games such as “eye spy”

·       Avoiding placing pressure on children to ‘eat’

·       Provide opportunities outside mealtimes to engage or play with food such as cooking or shopping together, making art with food or pretend play picnics with dolls and teddies

·       It is important caregivers show their child how they enjoy exploring and playing with food.

To learn more about how to apply The Recipe of Mealtime Success come along to one of our upcoming workshops, or organise a parent group workshop or a professional team training for your organisation.