Feeding kids can feel like an uphill battle. Between conflicting nutrition advice, mealtime struggles, and the sheer exhaustion of parenting, it’s easy to focus on getting through the day rather than building long-term habits. But here’s the truth: raising confident, mindful eaters doesn’t happen overnight—it happens over years. Understanding this shifts the pressure off individual meals and onto a bigger-picture approach that actually works.
Being a parent is all-consuming—especially when it comes to feeding our kids. There’s an overwhelming amount of information out there, and much of it, especially the advice, contradicts itself.
"Fat is bad." "No, actually, carbs are bad." "Wait—low carb is just more sugar, bring back the fat!"
Meanwhile, as parents, we’re juggling a million things. We’re exhausted, overworked, and underappreciated. Our kids are always getting sick (which means we are too), and we’re constantly worrying about their growth, their safety, and their future.
And now, on top of all that, we’re supposed to get them to eat — and like — broccoli?
It’s no wonder that long-term healthy eating habits often take a backseat to just getting through mealtime without a meltdown.
I was recently asked on a morning show interview: What’s the thing most parents get wrong when feeding their kids?
Here’s my answer: They give up too soon.
Parents give up on helping their kids develop healthy habits. They give up on improving their family’s mealtime routines. They give up on creating their own healthy eating patterns.
And they give in—to their kids' demands for something else, anything else—rather than staying confident in their role as parents.
I’ve spent over 20 years researching nutrition and nearly 16 as a parent, and here’s what I know to be true:
Healthy, confident, mindful eaters develop over decades, not dinners.
It takes years of practice and consistency to develop healthy habits.
Think about the last time you tried to start a new habit—or break an old one. How did that go?
It’s easy to feel discouraged when something doesn’t work after a few tries. And it’s tempting to believe that if your child doesn’t like broccoli tonight, they’ll never like it.
But that’s not how habits—or taste preferences—are built.
Healthy, confident, mindful eaters develop over decades, not dinners.
I get it.
As a nutrition researcher and a parent, I felt intense pressure to make every single meal count. Every dinner felt like it had to be perfect—like it was make-or-break for my kids’ future relationship with food.
But when things didn’t go as planned—when a meal flopped, or I got home late, or my kids flat-out refused to eat—it felt like I was failing.
I let each meal carry way too much weight.
Here’s what I’ve learned: What happens at one meal isn’t as important as what happens over the next 10 meals.
Or the next 10 months.
Or the 10 years.
Let’s put this into perspective.
If you started feeding your baby at six months old and stopped the moment they turned 18, do you know how many meals you’d prepare?
18,690.
Yes, you read that right.
Even if you cut that number down—if you outsource lunches, do takeout once a week, and take a couple of weeks off for vacations—you’re still responsible for about 4,500 meals.
That’s a lot of opportunities to reinforce healthy habits.
I know this might feel overwhelming, but I hope it also feels empowering.
Because this means you don’t have to make tonight’s dinner perfect.
Tonight’s meal doesn’t have to be the one where your child magically loves broccoli.
You have thousands more chances.
Feeding your kids isn’t about getting it right this time—it’s about showing up, staying patient, and keeping at it over time.
Because that’s how confident, mindful eaters are made.
"Confident, healthy, mindful eaters are made one dinner at a time ... but only over a long time."
Here are some additional resources that can help you be persistent and stay consistent!
- How to be consistent, even with picky eaters at home.
