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One of the toughest jobs, as a parent, can be getting your toddler to eat her food. Tastes change as quickly as you can say 'mashed potato' and it can easily lead to mealtimes becoming a battleground.

Follow our advice on how to make breakfast, lunch and tea a lot more peaceful

I'm not having that!

From around the age of 2 (and sometimes even before then), your growing child starts to make up her own mind about what she will and won't eat. Her eating habits can become unpredictable, what she happily wolfed down last week will be spat out this week. Or the food she rejected outright a few days ago is what she now asks to have for her lunch. Such fussy eating habits can drive you to distraction.

You can't force your child to eat, no matter how hard you try. You can be sure that if you use threats to try to coerce her into clearing her plate, she'll think to herself, "The more they push me to eat all of this, the more I'm determined not to." That's why, when it comes to your little one's fussy eating, persuasion and encouragement tend to work better than insisting they eat.

So why does your child suddenly make a meal out of not eating?

• It doesn't look right: Food has to be eye-catching and attractive from your child's point of view. A meal that looks unappetising, perhaps because it is piled too high or has wafts of steam rising from it, can instantly kill your child's appetite.
• I'm not going to be comfortable while eating: She wants to be seated in a comfy chair that provides easy access to the food; child-sized cutlery also helps to make the eating experience more pleasant.
• It doesn't taste nice: Youngsters tend to be very unadventurous when it comes to taste, they like bland flavours, with minimal seasoning and flavouring and a smooth texture. Anything else can generate a negative reaction.
• I don't like eating on my own: Children are sociable by nature, they prefer company, even when they're eating. So don't be surprised if she isn't co-operative at mealtimes when she's expected to sit and finish her meal all on her own.

- Next: why not eating says: 'Notice me!'

More help and advice

- Masterchef judge Gregg Wallace on his son's fussy eating
- How to get your toddler to eat more veggies
- 'I panicked when my two-year-old stopped eating!'
- Reward good behaviour
- Try to set boundaries

By Dr Richard Woolfson

• Next: Dealing with a fussy eater: Notice me!

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