I t is important to know your child’s hunger and fullness cues. And, it is important for your child to learn to trust their body. Teaching your child to trust their body will help them create healthy eating patterns early in their life. They will know when to eat if they know they are hungry. They will also eat the right amount if they know when they are full.
Ignoring hunger and fullness cues can lead to overeating. If your child approaches you after a meal and asks for a snack, ask them if they are hungry. Your child may be bored and need an activity to do.
Look for other ways to help your child release stress and emotions like sadness, frustration, or anxiety. Try taking them for walks or scheduling play dates. Encourage relaxing baths, coloring, reading, and sensory activities like smelling flowers or blowing bubbles. It is important to role model ways to relieve emotions and stress without food. Try not to offer food to your child to help them feel better. Try not to offer food as a reward or a bribe for good behavior.
Here are some hunger and fullness cues you may notice in your child.
Their hunger cues may be visible or not. Help them begin to recognize the common cues such as:
- Stomach growls
- Headache
- Grumpiness
- Tired
- Unmotivated
- Light-headed feeling
- Nauseous
- Shakiness/weakness
Their fullness cues may be visible or not. Help them begin to recognize the common cues such as:
- Full stomach
- Clear-headed/ focused
- Energized
- Stronger
- Comfortable
- Content
- Motivated
They may experience overfull cues. These may be visible or not. Help them begin to recognize the common cues such as:
- “Thanksgiving day”/overstuffed
- Tired or sluggish
- General feeling of being uncomfortable
- Do not want to move
When learning and talking about hunger and fullness cues, ask your child these questions:
- Are you really hungry? What is your body telling you? How do you feel?
- Are you feeling stressed, bored, sad, angry, or frustrated?
- Let's wait a little bit while we give our tummy time to decide if it's still hungry.
- Are you feeling thirsty?
Use the hunger scale to allow your child to show you how hungry they are.
Use the different cues in the lists above to match them with a face on the hunger and fullness scale.
