A majority of parents become their kids' personal chef: poll

Three in five parents cook specialized meals for their kids if they don't like what the rest of their family is eating, according to the National Poll on Children's Health at the University of Michigan Health C.S. Mott Children's Hospital. The poll surveyed 1,083 parents with children ages 3 to 10. 

"Feeding young children can be difficult due to general pickiness, hesitancy to try unfamiliar foods and constantly evolving food preferences," Dr. Susan Woolford, Mott Poll co-director and Mott pediatrician, said in a press release.

This adaptive strategy could backfire, experts warned. 

"The preschool and elementary age is an important time to establish healthy eating patterns. Yet parents' concern about whether their child is eating enough or if they're getting the nutrients they need may lead them to adopt practices that actually sabotage their efforts to get kids to have healthy eating habits in the short and long term."  

Instead of cooking an entirely different meal, Woolford said parents should eat a balanced diet with at least one food that their kid is likely to eat. She said that since kids learn by observing their parents, eating a healthy diet will inspire kids to do the same. 

The poll also found the following results: 

The American diet 

Only one-third of parents think the American diet, which is high in sugar and fat, is healthy. Despite knowing this, few parents have adopted a healthier diet. 

"Parents may recognize the standard diet in the US includes high amounts of saturated fats, added sugars, sodium and refined carbohydrates, which can generate an excess intake of calories beyond nutritional needs and contribute to health problems," Woolford said in the release. 

"However, despite this recognition and evidence suggesting that other diet options may help avoid many illnesses, only about 9% have tried the Mediterranean diet for their children and fewer have tried giving their children a vegetarian diet."

Woolford said that parents who try a vegetarian diet should make sure their kids are getting alternative sources of protein like tofu. She warned against putting kids on a ketogenic diet.

Dining rules

Fifteen percent of parents make their kids finish everything on their plate — which can hinder their diet. 

A bit less than a third of parents require their kids to finish all the food on their plate if they want dessert afterward.

"Requiring children to eat everything on their plate, or withholding dessert unless all other foods are eaten, can lead to overconsumption, especially if portion sizes are too large for the child's age," she said in the release. 

Woolford said parents can serve their kids healthy foods and let their kids decide how much they will eat of whatever is on their plate. 

Vegetables 

It's an age-old problem, but vegetables still seem to be a point of contention among kids. 

"Unsurprisingly, parents said pickiness and getting kids to eat veggies were among major challenges during mealtimes," Woolford said.   

"Parents should try to include children in meal decisions, avoid pressuring food consumption and provide a variety of healthy options at each meal so kids feel more control."

Portion size

The poll found that 70% of parents gave their kids a little less than an adult portion.

Portion size could be important in the fight against obesity, but determining the right portion can be tricky. 

Woolford recommended people look up portion sizes via "MyPlate," a visual representation on the US Department of Agriculture's website. 

Healthy groceries

Parents in the poll said they try to limit unhealthy foods while going grocery shopping. 

Woolford said including kids in the shopping and asking them what foods they want to try can help. 

"Have them help in the process of choosing the healthiest options, not ones that necessarily directly advertise to children, but foods that they are willing to try that are lower in sugar, fat and salt," she said.

"Spend most of the time in the produce section and try to make it fun by maybe selecting new options from different parts of the world that they haven't tried before."

Woolford also urged parents to check nutrition labels since foods advertised as "healthy" may be processed or have added sugars.