The Voice of Early Childhood

From picky eating to positive mealtimes: Supporting varied eating habits


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This episode is in partnership with Nursery Management Show:

Nursery Management Show is the largest show dedicated to nursery management and leadership. Join us on the 27th June 2025 for one day of insightful content, discussion and networking for the early years sector, plus access to industry leaders, suppliers and providers. 

Find out more here: https://nurserymanagementshow.co.uk/tickets?utm_campaign=56071396-Nursery%20Management%20Show%20Birmingham%202025&utm_source=voice-of-early-childhood 

In this episode…

Registered nutritionist Catherine Lippe and early years writer Charlotte Goddard look at what drives fussy eating, and give practical strategies on how to support children to try new foods without pressure.

Read Charlotte’s and Catherine’s article here:

https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/from-picky-eating-to-positive-mealtimes-supporting-varied-eating-habits/

Get in touch and share your voice:

Do you have thoughts, questions or feedback? Get in touch here! – https://thevoiceofearlychildhood.com/contact/ 

Episode break down:

00:00 – Welcome! 02:00 – New nutrition guidance document 06:40 – Fussy eating and food refusal 09:45 – Eating is a highly sensory & emotive process 11:00 – Food neophobia 13:00 – Accepted and non-accepted foods 15:00 – Food refusal is not your fault 17:10 – Responsive feeding vs controlling feeding 22:20 – Rolling snack & self-serving 24:45 – So should we scrap set meal times? 29:50 – Responding to emotional cues and signals 32:00 – Allow children to self-regulate their appetite 33:20 – Supporting children to try new foods 36:00 – Getting parents involved 36:35 – Equipping children with vocabulary around food 39:40 – Treats, puddings, sweet after savoury… 43:20 – Using food as a reward 47:00 – Leave your feelings about food at the door 48:30 – Keep language around food factual rather than emotional 52:00 – More on nutrition at the Nursery Management Show 54:35 – Article on nutrition for young children

For more episodes and articles visit The Voice of Early Childhood website: https://www.thevoiceofearlychildhood.com

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The Voice of Early ChildhoodBy The Voice of Early Childhood