Experts share tips and tricks for parents to get children to eat right

Shifa Merchant with Ayan

Ask any parent about the most difficult part of lockdown with kids, and they'll agree that it is about them being around all the time. After the initial phase of cooking and baking with kids for social media feeds fizzled out, the struggle with meal planning got real. Author Saee Korane Khandekar feels there is a lot to do, saying, "Earlier kids at short break snacks provided by the school and that helped their tastes to evolve. Also, sharing food with kids from different backgrounds was great. With my younger ones especially, I find that they are less open to tasting new stuff despite the variety I cook, perhaps because they've not eaten with peers or in restaurants since the lockdown."

Ayaan Calyn (left) and Aashay Cleon D'souza

As obesity and deficiency of vitamins and minerals emerge in children across age groups, nutritionist Karishma Chawla believes they are over-fed by the food industry that wants them to get more addicted to fast food. In reality, it is actually making them undernourished because the body uses its precious nutrients to metabolise these empty calories. "I get that the lockdown has compelled us to adopt a new normal but I must highlight that it has also made us return to our roots with simple cooking, more human connections, and where we can be in sync with nature. Hence, it would be ideal to actually get creative while feeding our kids and use healthy alternatives."

Here are our curated FAQs on practical eating for kids:

What if they don't like veggies?
Make rules. Khandekar has one food rule at home that cannot be broken - a thick soup every day. "Veggies, daals, starchy veggies; it's the stuff they won't eat like dudhi-palak. I make it in a new colour every day." Entrepreneur Mansi Zaveri suggests explaining to children why it is important to eat veggies and make a meal plan to add to the list. "Empower them with choices. Ask if they would like certain veggies with roti or sabzi, or in case they don't like the texture, if you should make it differently. Experiment, don't camouflage. They will thus own their decisions."

Karishma Chawla

What if they like ready-made breads and jams?
Bake it to make it. Khandekar bakes regularly at home. That way, they hardly eat any commercial bread or cakes/cookies. "All jams are homemade. They've not tasted Kissan Mixed Fruit yet," she reveals.

What if they don't listen?
Khandekar suggests, "I've realised that when it comes to feeding healthy kids, it's best to involve them in everyday cooking. Not just fancy stuff. Make them smell rawa when you roast it for upma or shed tears when you cut onions. This makes them respect food better and eventually eat better." Chawla echoes this, "Let them participate in cooking, buy groceries or have them teach you things they might know about food!"

Mansi Zaveri

What if they ask for treats?
Bring outside in. Airoli residents Collin and Ashrita D'souza learnt to cook after their marriage. Their sons Aashay Cleon, seven, and Ayaan Calyn, five, regularly have homemade foods of varieties of dal - mix, palak, methi, etc. There's soya chunks curry, paneer, and chicken curry once a week too. Collin makes mean whole wheat pancakes, cheela and dhokla - all learnt from the Internet. His phone has a meal planner with relevant links, so it's easier to prepare the dish at home. "That way they don't crave for outside food. Once a week, we give them the choice to order from McDonald's or some restaurant of their choice. Television is a huge distraction, but our kids like to read books; we have truckloads of them." Chawla advises not using food as rewards or cheats. "We don't want to create confusion for them. Instead, simply set boundaries and say, indulge in these foods once a week and let them enjoy it."

What if you can't say no all the time?
Saying no all the time is tough, so when kids ask for commercial foods, Khandekar buys occasionally and in very small amounts - chocolate spreads, instant noodles, crunchy munchies. "But I try to show them flavour differences - can you feel the soapiness when we bake a cake from a box? That's because of too much soda bicarbonate. We don't feel it when I make it from scratch at home, Then it strikes them, even if for a while. Currently, my challenge is to recreate the school's dal khichdi, which my daughter loves and misses terribly, and no matter what I do, it doesn't match up."

Saee Korane Khandekar

What if the infant doesn't like the taste?
Sweeten the deal. Mommy blogger Shifa Merchant follows a simple rule of a healthy mix of easy-to-eat nutritious food for her 15-month-old Ayan. "Greens, proteins, iron-rich foods along with foods that are high in energy are included every day. To sweeten his meals, we swap refined sugar with dates or bananas. We also follow his lead, so for example, when we noticed he loves avocados, we tried out recipes to include this protein-packed goodness in his meals," she adds. For older kids, Zaveri says, don't force-feed. "I continue to feed local and seasonal foods but I also respect the food that my child rejects and never force-feed. That way they will have a healthy relationship with food."

What if they throw tantrums all the time?
Toddlers can throw tantrums if they don't approve of something. "We distract him by singing, playing music on his toy piano, reading out from his 3-D story books. Soon enough, he gets engrossed in these activities and sits in one place to enjoy his meals. Worst-case scenario, when he rejects an ingredient or greens, we prepare it in a different way. But we keep trying," suggests Merchant.
For older kids, Zaveri feels on a hunger scale of one to 10, kids should never cross five. "Longer gaps mean they end up becoming fussier - it is attention-seeking behaviour. The mind begins to reject logic, and you or they will end up with a bag of chips. Eat often, stay satiated and ensure mealtimes are together."

What if they like to order in?
Zaveri is against this instant food gratification. "It is not good in the long run. Instead, make a wishlist and add items into next week's plan. They learn to wait for their turn of favourite foods, and that's a good thing," she feels.

Additional information

Healthy swaps
. Pumpkin fries instead of potato fries
. Jowar and bajra-crust pizza over refined flour
. Homemade jowar noodles over refined ones

Undernourishment signs in kids
. Lack of interest and focus
. Delayed recovery time
. Loss of appetite
. Picky eating (especially with zinc deficiency)
. Frequent colds
. Tantrums due to mood swings

For a healthy gut
. Real whole foods rich in fibre
. Foods rich in bacteria like fermented veggies, kefir, apple cider vinegar and yogurt
. Medicinal kitchen herbs like ginger, turmeric and garlic
. Adequate water
. Adequate sunshine