What To Do When The Child Throws The Food?
When parents introduce the infant to complementary feeding there may be situations in which the infant plays and throws the food on the ground or to each side. This especially happens with solid foods.
This can happen with any child, initially there will always be a phase where they will play with food. But sometimes, as a parent, you don’t like it or think that this behavior is going on longer than you can bear.
Before deciding what to do in the face of this behavior on the part of the child, it is necessary to understand what lies behind it and reflect what it is trying to achieve when it throws the food . Is he trying to communicate something?
Relationship with food: why does the child throw food?
Children have their brains programmed to learn. They are little scientists doing all kinds of experiments all the time. When he begins to touch the food you have lovingly prepared for him, he is experiencing; yes, he is learning about textures, temperatures, resistance to pressure, that is, if the food falls apart or crumbles, if it leaves color on the plate or on the tray.
When he throws food from the top of his high chair, he is experimenting on gravity, he is discovering that things do not float but fall. He is discovering how quickly food falls, if it spreads or if it breaks when it reaches the ground, if it stains it, if it gets wet and many other things.
Sometimes the child throws the food because he is playing
Playing with food is basically one of the most complete activities for babies. But sometimes it may be that he does it simply because he isn’t hungry. Maybe because he took the milk shortly before or because he is having a moment of poor appetite. If eating is a secondary activity for the child to play-learning, it is probably because he is not hungry, or at least because he does not have much of it.
It must be clarified that this behavior in itself does not indicate any particular problem, it is perfectly normal when viewed from the perspective of childhood development. The only problem actually is when parents react very badly to this behavior; and so, without realizing it, they encourage it by making this phase go on and on. Furthermore, transforming the moment of the meal into an unpleasant moment for the whole family.
If we are convinced that children actually learn from our example, we will have the patience and peace of mind to let them be children. They will then be able to learn everything they need to learn.
Advice on what to do if I want son toss food
Place a plastic bag or newspaper under the baby’s high chair
A large open plastic bag under the baby’s high chair or newspaper lying on the floor will make cleaning a lot easier. If what you are interested in is that the food does not get lost and does not get dirty by falling on the ground, the method with the plastic bag will help you a lot because in this way the food will not touch the ground.
Give him very small amounts of food
You can feed him the food little by little, starting by giving him only a small piece at a time. When he starts throwing it, you can decide whether to give him some more or to stop and start again later. You may even decide to take this as a sign that you are already satisfied for the time being.
Put food on the high chair tray instead of using a plate
This way you avoid the risk of leaving a plate full of food within reach that he could throw like a Frisbee.
Avoid any kind of forced behavior
If the child refuses to open his mouth, under no circumstances and for no reason should you force him. Feeding by force or with distractions can bring with it a lot of food-related problems in the future, as well as being a fairly traumatic experience.
Establish a limit
If you are very sensitive to dirt or food waste, however important it may be as a learning activity for the child, it is preferable to set a limit. This does not mean that you will deprive your child of exploration and learning, but that he will simply have to learn with other things or in some other way.
In this case, it would be best to be aware of the value of a sensory activity like this and look for a way to allow it to have similar experiences that are acceptable to you. The limits will be different in each family and will have to be decided to facilitate the coexistence of all family members.
Ideally, you can see it and allow it, at least in a controlled way, as such. But remember that you can still set a limit and that you can do it in a respectful way. Without losing your temper, without getting angry, without ignoring your baby’s emotions. With confidence, with confidence, calmly and with affection.
