Playing With Food, Should I Allow It?
Children are often told not to play with food. In fact, it’s a phrase that moms and dads around the world repeat quite often. This is because children have a natural tendency to play with the food in front of them.
Despite the fact that most parents punish their children for playing with food, experts say this is a good practice!
In fact, this form of interaction is perhaps the best way to develop healthy eating habits from an early age.
5 Benefits of Allowing Food Play
While it may be hard to believe, there are many benefits to allowing children to play with food. Read more below and join us:
1. Stimulation of the senses
In today’s modern digital age, playing with food is a perfect opportunity to develop the child’s senses.
You can try all kinds of exercises. For example, make molds of the food to stimulate touch. You can also blindfold your child and let him guess what it is that he smells.
You can also discover whether your child tastes a difference in taste by stimulating his taste buds and adding an extra spice to a dish. These are just some ideas. Be creative!
2. By playing with food, children try a wider variety of foods
Sometimes children have a hard time eating certain foods. Therefore , playing with food helps them overcome the fear that prevents them from tasting and enjoying certain dishes.
For example, many children do not like vegetables and salads. How can you ensure that your child gets the nutrients it needs?
Keep all the ingredients you intended for the salad aside. Then ask them to be creative with it. Have them make a collage, a face or, for example, a flower.
Of course, the goal is to eat this creation. But if he’s not ready yet, this enjoyable experience is a step in the right direction.
In fact, this form of interaction is perhaps the best way to develop healthy eating habits from an early age.
3. Stimulate the interest in cooking in your children
Without a doubt , playing with food introduces children to different types of food. This can make them interested in cooking.
Simply this interest alone makes this a learning experience. This will teach your child how the simple preparation of some dishes works.
4. It stimulates your child’s cognitive development
Contrary to popular belief, playing with food stimulates the child’s cognitive development. In other words, babies who touch food with their hands will explore more than other children. They also learn their first words faster than others.
That’s why we recommend that you encourage your child to examine his food. Foods such as puree, juice and soup provide the perfect information that stimulate the development of the baby’s brain.
5. It allows children to use colors and textures for artistic expression
Remember that a wide variety of colors and textures of different foods give children the opportunity to express themselves in an artistic way.
For example, you can ask your kids to make a rainbow of vegetables using different colored foods. You can also experiment with texture, hard and soft products.
For example, make pizza dough together and let your child make letters and shapes with it.
Now that you know the benefits of playing with food, let them do it now!
Resist the urge to intervene when your kids are playing with food. Let them experience different sensations and thus discover multiple foods, using all their senses.
Remember: don’t worry or get angry when your kids play with food. It is perfectly normal for children to examine their food before tasting it. Without a doubt, this is the first step to a new experience.
