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Step 1
Practice sensibility during mealtimes. When you're trying to slow down a child's eating, loading his plate with food isn't going to help accomplish your mission. Instead, serve smaller portions. If your child is still hungry after he's finished, you can always offer him more.
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Step 2
Don’t use food as a reward. Instead of giving your child ice cream and pizza every time he does something wonderful, try offering an alternative reward such as a trip to the zoo or a visit to the local park.
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Step 3
Refrain from forcing your child to eat every morsel on his plate. Don’t use the old “starving children around the world” adage to guilt your youngster into licking her plate clean. If your child tells you she's full, let her stop eating.
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Step 4
Don't upsize your child's fast food choices. You may save a few pennies now but in the long run your child will pay with his health.
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Step 5
Never criticize. Criticizing your child won’t give her any incentive to curb the amount of food she eats; it will only cause her to feel belittled, lower her self-esteem and possibly drive her to eat more.
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Step 6
Just say "no." Part of a parent's job description is to do what's best for her child--and that often means denying him things that aren't necessarily healthy--including excessive amounts of food.
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Step 7
Lead by example. You are the biggest influence in your child’s life, so when you demonstrate sensible eating habits, you're giving her a lifelong example to follow.
