The Good Parenting Food Guide: Managing What Children Eat Without Making Food a Problem

Why is feeding a child so difficult? This book answers a question that many parents find themselves asking on a daily basis. Hunger is a basic biological drive and eating should be an easy and delicious part of family life. Too often, it is anything but that. Based on 25 years of research into eating behavior, Jane Ogden offers straightforward advice for how to encourage children to develop a healthy, unproblematic approach to eating from birth through young adulthood.   The book describes current theory and research and turns this into practical tips for use in every day family life.  It covers how children learn to like food, how habits are formed and can be changed, what children should be eating and how this can be helped to happen without making food into an issue.    She discusses common problems that parents face such as picky eating, under–eating, over eating, obesity, eating disorders and how to deal with a child who thinks they are fat. She also provides practical tips and solutions and some simple ways to feed a family a healthy diet.   With insightful advice for one of the most complicated adventures in parenting, this guide is a must–have for any parent who wants their child’s relationship with food to thrive.

Jane Ogden is Professor of Health Psychology at the University of Surrey, UK, and has researched eating behavior, obesity management, and eating disorders for 25 years.  She has published over 140 papers and is the author of five books, including The Psychology of Eating: From Healthy to Disordered Behavior, and Fat Chance: The Myth of Dieting Explained . In addition, she has published several articles for a non–academic audience and is a regular contributor to health discussions on the radio and television and in magazines and newspapers.  She has two children, and this book is the culmination of 14 years of trying to put her research into practice.