The Most Effective Way to Handling the Slow Eater

Now that I am less worried about Cameron, my eight-year-old’s nutrition going downhill because of IntraKID Liquid Vitamin, I am now looking for ways to make her eat faster. While I have all the time in the world to wait for her, I do know that there are some of you who also have full-time jobs. Plus, it’s really trying to have your child take forever to eat.

Why Make It Fast?

While I don’t judge parents who want to hasten their kid’s eating times because they have other important stuff to do, let me first tell you that slow eating is healthier. That’s why I’ve tried to research about the average time a kid should finish his or her meals and here’s what I found out.

According to a 2002 study of National Food Service Management Institute, children need a total of 20 minutes to eat their lunch in school. This includes enough socializing with peers which is an essential part of the healthy eating. Given this average, if your child eats more than 30 minutes, then you have a good enough reason to train him or her to eat faster.

How to Make Kids Eat Faster
Now that you have a goal in mind on how long it takes your child to eat, then you can set the rules. You need to be clear to your kids that there is a meal time and it starts and ends at definite periods. Whatever your child eats during that time, this is the only food that they get without any snacks. Be firm with this rule, but don’t try to explain, nag, or complain either because talking rarely helps.

Don’t Forget the Nutrients
This is the most effective way I have found for my daughter and I’ve tried everything. Charts, rewards, timers, everything. Now, a question lurking in your mind is whether or not your child gets the proper nutrition with this method. I know that they might go hungry a few times, especially when they’re just starting out. To ease my worries about nutrition, I made sure that my kids drank their IntraKID Liquid Vitamin to supplement their meals. intraKID Liquid Vitamin is the best kids vitamin I've been able to find. This way, even when they go hungry for some time, you’ll know that their health won’t suffer.