Do you make your children clean their plates?

Question

Do you punish them for not finishing their meals?
Do you allow them to have seconds? or thirds?

I personally do not make my kids finish anything they don't feel they can finish. I do make them atleast try a bite of something, but they ushually like everything I make.
I am try not to let them have seconds of pastas and breads... but always leave the door open for extra fruits and veggies.

Answer 1

Sometimes.

If I know that they're just not in the mood to sit down and eat, I will tell them they have to stay at the table while the rest of us finish. They usually end up taking a few more bites and it's good manners too.



But if I know they've had enough they can excuse themselves. Our kids are very good eaters so I don't worry terribly about amounts.

Answer 2

My parents used to make my sisters and me clean our plates. It was miserable - meal time was a battle, instead of nice family time. Then when I was about 10, we were at the dr's for a check up, and my mom pretty much ratted me out, saying "melanie won't eat the vegetables i serve, fish, etc" (i WAS a picky eater).. and the dr. gave great advice: "your daughter is a healthy, happy girl, at a healthy weight, growing at the right rate, etc - she is clearly eating what she's craving, and it is working.. by forcing her to eat things, you are over-riding her body's inner-workings and may be teaching her to overeat"..etc..

I have kept to that throughout my life - at 33 years old, I've never had a weight problem - I go through periods of craving carbs, proteins, and yes- even veggies - I follow what my body tells me, and it works..

Now I have a 2 and a half year old daughter-- at mealtime, i use those dishes with 5 seperate sections- and she has a choice- 2 servings of some kind of fruit and or veggie, some kind of carb (pasta, potatao, bread, etc), a protein (she refuses to eat meat, so i offer eggs, cheese, yogurt, beans,), and the last - and largest section is what the rest of the family is eating - "the grownup food".. I can clearly see what she needs on any given day b/c one day she'll inhale the banana and say, corn - and avoid the carbs and protein altogether.. Other days, she's all over the proteins..

Let their bodies be their guides-- of course -- all bets are off when you introduce ice cream and candy - their bodies will ALWAYS tell them they need that!!! lol

Answer 3

There are times that I have to sit and make sure my kids will eat their dinner. I do this b/c if I don't once bedtime rolls around they are suddenly dying for food. Then I have to quickly make something, have to wait till they finish their food which all this cuts into their bedtime. I don't force food down my kids throat, but when I make dinner I expect them to eat it, not all of it, but at least a good portion. Of course I allow seconds if they should ask for more. It makes me happy to know my children are being fed and are enjoying their meal. Fruits are never a problem in my house it's the veggies I have trouble w/. Sometimes not even the ranch dressing helps, but I'm working on it. I don't punish my kids for not finishing their meals but I let them know they are going to be hungry later if they don't at least eat a good amount.

Answer 4

It depends, when it comes to vegetables I have to make them eat, but as for the main course they generally ask for seconds. I try not to put to much on the plate instead of to little. If they are still hungry I can gladly give them a little bit more. Certain foods they don't like as well but when it comes to vitamins and nutrition I do make them eat. My kids are 7 and 9 so one serving spoon of vegetables, maybe 4 or 5 bites, will not hurt them to eat. Most of the time when they are full they ask if they can set their plate in the microwave to eat later which of course is also fine with me because we generally eat early then they go outside to play to build a new appetite all over again. Soda is hard to say. Most places allow children to take their drink with them but my kids generally prefer tea or milk at a restaurant. I wish my kids would say they didn't want all of their soda HAHA. But in other words no I do not make them eat unless it has to do with nutrition and generally they don't have to many bites to take and they are done. With mine they say they are full when it comes to veggies but 5 minutes later ask for dessert. I think it may depend on what exactly the child needs but the lady int he restaurant was wrong. No kid NEEDS soda.

Answer 5

It depends, I know what my kids can eat.

They can have as much as they want in reason.

I have divider plates, from pottery barn kids, and there are 3 sections on each plate, I make sure there is a different food group in each section. usually ; )

But I do not allow them to not finish their food and get dessert or some sort of treat 15 minutes later. No way.

I think that is the only reasonable punishment for not finishing your food.

I do however get mad if they tell me they want something and after I give it to them, they don't eat it. Not mad, just a bit aggravated.

That whole clean your plate thing is ol' school, I think.



Does the whole hiding spinach in brownies thing anger anyone esle?

If you start your kids off with veggies early, they'll eat them later in life, everyone has somethings they don't like, but I think picky kids from either picky parents, or from unexposed homes (exposure being to different types of food that is)

Cheap palettes!

Answer 6

My thing is when kids dont want to eat their real food, but then beg for dessert. But if they are full, I would never make them over eat, or eat something they really just cant stand.



I really dont understand why anyone would make their child drink all the SODA especially. I mean, soda isnt healthy for the child anyways. That seems rediculous to me.



And as far as the wasting food argument some may have... eating out you dont really have much control over the portions

Answer 7

No Never make your kids eat or drink all of what you put in front of them. If they are hungry they will eat, Now if you have over-weight kids then maybe you should limit them on some things and say no to others, but to force a kid to eat everything I think is wrong. Someone told me that a baby's stomach is only as big as their fist.

Answer 8

I'll tell you when I grew up we has "eye bigger than or stomachs" and we were forced to eat everything we took or what was on our plates, and that's why I believe my brother and I are FAT! I think it is teaching bad eating habits that stick with you for a life time, I don't force my daughter to eat anything and she can eat as much "healthy" stuff as she wants(fruits veggies protein) as far as that mother making her child finish her soda OMG are you STUPID! come on get real people I would be happy if my kid left her soda!!

Answer 9

No I don't. They have to try everything and take the same number of bites of the food as their age. Five bites of carrots, five bites of chicken etc., I would think that would make them overweight. I tell them they won't be getting a snack later on unless they finish or I leave their plate out for a bit in case they are hungry later

Answer 10

I require at least one courtesy bite of all the food and we serve a couple of different choices on the plate, but if my child does not finish her food then it's taken up and she can eat at her next meal. I'm not going to allow her to sit there for hours on end just to get her to eat.



She does really well about eating her food though and is growing quite fond of collard greens :)

Answer 11

Never. My Mother in Law came to stay and said "Finish it all up." to my 3 year old...I had to explain that we do things differently nowadays...at least sensible people do! My daughter eats very healthily and if she is full then she is full....she just wont be offered anything other than fruit before the next meal.

Answer 12

Personally, my mom let us have seconds or thirds of whatever. But she didn't force us to finish everything - she just said that what we ate at dinner was what we got, she wasn't going to make us something else later if we got hungry, so we should eat as much as we wanted at the time. The exception to that would be something like beets - my brother and I HATED beets, but she'd always make us eat just one slice (and it was a pretty small slice).

I don't have kids, but to be honest, I'm pretty happy with the way my mom raised me, and plan on modeling myself after her.

Answer 13

No because my parents did that to me when I was a kid. I still have a problem with it, feeling like I'm wasting food and wasting money and it's a struggle that's really hard to overcome. I feel it is the main reason I used to have weight problems. I have since lost the weight but still struggle with the wasting food problem. I don't want my kids going through that. You sound like you are doing great.

Answer 14

I would not make them finish their meal but I would start them out w/ a small amount if I felt they couldn't eat it all. They can always have seconds.

Answer 15

I don't make my kids clear their plates but they can't have any snacks if they don't eat most of the food. I do allow seconds of whatever I serve. There are certain foods that my kids don't like so I offer an alternative if I make that food. Example, my son cannot eat fish, it makes him gag, so I don't make him.

Answer 16

I'm babysitter, but the rule is the same for all the households: if you don't clear your plate you don't get seconds or dessert, but they don't have to. it's good because the kids choose what they want in the first place.

Answer 17

No, if they do not want all of their meal, they put it up. And later they can have a piece of fruit.

Answer 18

Of course not I don't want fat kids!

Answer 19

nope i let them decide when they are full