A pan-India survey of children with fussy eating habits has revealed that 86 per cent of children in Mumbai in the three to seven age group are fussy-eaters, the younger ones more so. The national version of this figure stands at 88 per cent.
The study, commissioned by Abbott Nutrition across metros to understand fussy eating behaviour in India, further revealed that over 59 per cent of mothers worry about their children’s nutritional requirements.
Moreover, around 37 per cent of the mothers expressed that their children were susceptible to cold and cough frequently, and 41 per cent believed that fussy eating affected their children’s overall performance at school.
Kim Milano, international paediatric nutrition expert and nutritional consultant from Fort Carson, Colorado, said, “Just like learning to walk, children need help learning to eat well. Establishing set meal and snacking times, eating as a family, and selecting and consistently offering new healthy foods can help your child learn to enjoy them.” Studies have shown that fussy eating can lead to serious physical ailments, including growth complications, increases in chronic illnesses and increased risk of developing an eating disorder later in life.
A mammoth 96 per cent of the mothers too felt that junk food did have a major role to play in the fussy eating habits of their children.
Apart from the TV, the survey listed three other factors that lead to fussy eating: Distraction, eating junk food before meals and neophobia, the fear of having to eat something new.