How to Handle High Chair Struggles

Q: How do you feed a child who struggles and fights whenever you want to put him in his high chair?
A: Be as firm and definite as you can be: "Now it's time for your supper." Cut down on competing stimuli (send older children out of the room). Offer him an attractive object related to feeding—a teething biscuit, a cracker, whatever he happens to like at the time, but nothing sugary if possible. (Once you start with sweets as a reward, your child may resist eating anything else.)

Q: When he struggles to get out of his high chair, what do I do? He's just learning to walk and I know he's excited about it.
A: Try to make feeding an expected ritual: "It's time to eat." Use the protective strap or belt on his seat to hold him, and offer a bit of food he likes. When he's too resistant, forget about food. Put him down until the next meal.

Q: Should I feed him while he's walking around?
A: No. Feedings should be a ritual. Feeding him without sitting him down could lead to grazing and might interfere with his learning to tell when he is hungry and when he's had enough. He will be even less likely to sit in his high chair.

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