Feeding: Conclusion

This video shows what is hoped for in the feeding relationship and what can be gained from a responsive feeding relationship.

In this video, the mother is going to offer her child kimchi for the first time (a pickled cabbage dish that is spicy), which the child is interested in trying. She’s very aware that this new food will taste spicy to him and is sensitive to what his reaction is going to be.

Watch for the synchrony in their interactions. At one point, they will both lean in towards each other. Both are responsive to what each has said. They expand on each other’s questions (The mother says, “Do you want to eat it?” and the child says “No, Mommy eat it.”) There is an enormous amount of language and imitation going back and forth. They have many moments of shared pleasure during this interaction. The child is literally squealing with delight.

During moments of shared delight, the brain is in an increased receptive state for learning. Shared delight is a buffer against difficulties from stress or postpartum anxiety so this brief feeding interaction functions not only to introduce a new food, but to lay down tracks for language and to buffer the pair neurobiologically. It is through thousands and thousands of daily moments like this where there is parental sensitivity and responsiveness to what the child is doing in the moment that the child’s language and cognitive development unfolds most optimally. Feeding truly is more than just eating.