Parenting: why we shouldn't tame toddler tantrums with sweet treats...

Nippers Nutrition's top tip of the day...

 Using food for non-nutritional reasons can contribute to more than just an overconsumption of calories.

 Although taming a tantrum with a tasty treat may seem like a speedy solution to soothing a stressful situation, using food for non-nutritional reasons (think as a reward for academic achievements, comfort for a crying child and bribery to tempt tots to behave), can not only contribute to emotional eating and excess weight during childhood, adolescence and adulthood - children who chronically find a form of comfort and/or control in favourable foods are much more likely to be overweight and/or continue to feed their feelings throughout adolescence and adulthood - but it can also reinforce bad behaviour - this is predominantly due to the fact that troublesome tots who are tempted and tamed with tasty treats are more likely to deliberately display bolshy behaviour in an attempt to access the sweet treats that they've learned to associate with their inappropriate actions, and/or attitude. 

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