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Forceful Feeding: Is It A Good Idea?

By Sowmiya Prasad

A child is a bliss, it's existence a bliss, and watching it a bliss!! When all is true, it is necessary to take care of the child and its eating practices. Feeding a baby could be a daunting task. With their age, they develop a taste towards food and you can always expect sudden whims. Feeding toddlers can get tougher day by day. However, there is no other option other than making the food they like or spoon feeding them. There are also forceful feeding kids undergo when they become too reluctant to have their food.

Forceful feeding kids may one way help them to eat and get enough energy and nutrition. On the other hand, it may turn into something disastrous too. Force-feeding involves opening the child's mouth with a finger and clamping the thumb down the throat and feeding it with fluids. This is practiced when the child is reluctant to have food. The spot of a small kettle is also used for this purpose. Forceful feeding makes child get its food and makes it survive from difficult situation. However, on the other hand there are also death cases reported due to forceful feeding. Here are a few things to claim the validity and dark side of forceful feeding.

Forceful Feeding

What happens when you force feed?
Your child slowly develops dietary preference as she grows. She may like some food and dislike other food. Meal times become a horror for many and your dining room becomes a battle field. The best way to make her have her food is to give her the food she needs. However, if you think force-feeding is the answer, then you might go wrong. Feeding toddlers is not any easy task. You need to understand their preferences and tastes and feed them accordingly.
Force-feeding kids

  • Forceful feeding kids may sometimes end up in a blow. Instead of developing a taste towards food, they may end up hating it. Forceful feeding kids make them get irritated about the food they eat and they no longer have food. If your kid is fond of junk food, let her have it for a few months. It is imperative that you handle her tactfully. Force-feeding kids may make them dislike the food , this way they only loose the needed nutrition.
  • Improper intake of food may leave you and the child in distress. The child may develop ailments which you may not be able to treat easily. Further any medication would work only with a proper balance of food. Instead of forceful-feeding kids, make them like their food. Make the food colourful and pleasant so that they develop an urge to eat.
  • Try giving the food she likes for a few months and then slowly introduce her to some nutritious food. Forceful-feeding kids may not help you on this. You can only go with the child and change her. When you try to introduce some food she likes, she may leave it in her lunch box, if that is the case, don't make an issue out of it. Feeding toddlers can be tiresome, but you should give them their time.
  • If you feel that your child eats like a bird, sure you may try the idea of spoon-feeding. This is also a method of forceful-feeding kids. Some kids even develop the habit that they eat their food only when spoon-fed. This is not good and this will only make your kid suffer. There are also cases being reported of child deaths on account of force-feeding.

It is essential to take extra care while you force-feed your child. Feeding toddlers is more of an art! It requires trick and patience! Acquire it, you are a proud mom!

Story first published: Friday, November 22, 2013, 18:06 [IST]
Read more about: kids