I had an interesting conversation the other day with a parent who wasn’t keen to offer her child an afternoon snack because she wanted him to eat his tea. If he was really hungry, she thought, surely he’d be more likely to eat better?

It’s true that if a child isn’t hungry because the meal offered is too close to their snack, they’ll eat very little or nothing at all.

But, if they’re famished, and quite possibly hangry, because it has been too long since their last meal or snack, they aren’t going to eat well either.

A famished child is also likely to be tired and upset so might find feeding himself a challenge and he definitely won’t be in the right frame of mind to explore new foods. A hangry child will want to eat what is going to fill them up most easily and so also won’t be open to trying anything other than what he knows or which takes any effort to eat. 

Children need to be hungry, not famished, to eat well. That’s why a meal and snack routine is important – it ensures a regular supply of food whilst allowing a child to build up an appetite, in between each meal and snack, to explore and eat.