Introduce as many new tastes, textures and combinations as possible between a child's first and second birthdays. This is when food whims are less likely. Be a role model. Children are more eager to eat foods that friends and family enjoy. Introduce one new food at a time, and offer only a small portion. Be patient; your child may reject a new food the first time it is offered. Try again in a few days. It may also help to offer new foods in various forms (such as raw, cooked, baked, mashed), or along with familiar foods. Respect your child's individual food likes and dislikes.

Adapt food to your child's stage of development. In the first two years, children are still developing chewing and swallowing skills. Most don't have their full set of primary teeth until two and a-half years and prefer easy-to-chew foods. To prevent choking, don't offer foods such as hard or sticky candies, chewing gum or popcorn to children under four years. If you are serving wieners or sausages, slice them lengthwise. In addition, cut seedless grapes in halves; or finely chop fruits and vegetables, partially cook hard vegetables; remove pits from fruits; make sure peanut butter isn't spread too thickly; remove bones from fish and finely chop nuts or seeds.

Encourage your children to feed themselves as soon as they show an interest. Young children enjoy foods they can pick up and eat with their fingers. Because children are slowly learning to use utensils, be prepared for some mess.

Have meals and snacks planned for regular times, but be flexible. Regular meals and snacks help to develop a child's appetite. This also helps to increase your awareness of your child's total food intake.

Allow children to eat when they are hungry and to stop eating when they are full. Young stomachs are about one-third the size of adults' so they tend to get hungry more often. Time snacks so that your child is not eating too closely to a mealtime, yet stays full until the next meal. Do not force children to eat meals or snacks if they are not hungry.