How To Tell If Feeding Therapy Will End In Failure

When a child is identified as a picky eater or diagnosed with a condition like ARFID (Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder), parents naturally seek out professional help, such as feeding therapy. Feeding therapists typically work with the child, addressing oral motor skills, sensory processing challenges, or behavioral strategies to improve the child’s relationship with food. While these approaches can be effective, they often fall short of achieving lasting results. Why? The answer lies in a key element that’s frequently overlooked: parent training.

In many traditional feeding therapies, parents are left out of the equation, and this is where the system fails. Without adequate parent involvement, feeding therapy can become an isolated effort that works only during sessions with the therapist, but doesn’t translate to progress at home. Let’s explore why this happens and how empowering parents can unlock significant and sustained progress in feeding therapy.

The Problem with Traditional Feeding Therapies

The conventional approach to feeding therapy often leaves parents on the sidelines, waiting in the reception area while the therapist works behind closed doors with their child. These sessions may focus on specific strategies like oral motor exercises, sensory tolerance techniques, or behavioral reinforcements, all aimed at increasing food acceptance and reducing food refusal. While these methods have merit, they often fail to include parents as an integral part of the process, which creates a critical gap in the child’s progress.

Here’s the issue:

1. Limited Parent Involvement: In many traditional feeding therapy models, parents aren’t involved in the actual therapy sessions. This means they don’t see the strategies the therapist uses or understand the rationale behind them. As a result, parents are unable to replicate these strategies at home where the child spends most of their time. This lack of consistency can hinder the child’s progress.

1. Lack of Guidance: Even when parents are involved, the guidance they receive is often minimal. They might get a brief summary of what happened during the session, but without detailed instruction or resources, it’s hard for them to continue the work at home. Inconsistent application of techniques reduces the overall effectiveness of the treatment.

2. Missed Opportunities for Empowerment: When parents aren’t trained, they miss the chance to become active participants in their child’s feeding journey. This can lead to feelings of helplessness and frustration as parents watch their child struggle without knowing how to help. Feeding therapy becomes something that only happens at the therapist’s office, rather than a consistent part of everyday life.

Why Parent Training is Essential In Feeding Therapy

Parent training isn’t just a nice addition to feeding therapy; it’s essential. Research supports the idea that when parents are involved in their child’s feeding therapy, the results are far better. Let’s take a closer look at why parent training is such a crucial component of feeding success.

1. Consistency is Key

One of the most important factors in successful feeding therapy is consistency. A child who practices feeding strategies only during their therapy sessions but doesn’t have those strategies reinforced at home is unlikely to make significant progress. Parents need to know how to implement these strategies at home, where the child spends the majority of their time. Without parent training, the progress made during therapy can quickly unravel once the child is back in their everyday environment.

2. Empowerment

When parents are trained, they become empowered to take control of their child’s feeding journey. They gain confidence in their ability to help their child and can respond more effectively to challenges that arise during mealtimes. Instead of feeling like feeding therapy is something they must rely solely on professionals for, parents become co-pilots in the process.

“In our one-to-one sessions, we give parents access our course because we know how important it is for parents to have this knowledge and implement it.” Parent involvement isn’t optional if families want to see big gains and improvement in their child’s feeding outcomes.

3. Sustained Progress

Feeding therapy is often a long-term process. It takes time for a child to develop new skills, overcome sensory challenges, and change long-held behaviors around food. When parents are trained to continue therapy techniques at home, the likelihood of sustained progress is much higher. This also helps in preventing regression once therapy ends.

In fact, a study by Piazza in 2003 found that children whose parents were trained to continue feeding interventions at home showed a 70% rate of maintaining progress six months after therapy ended, compared to only 40% in children whose parents weren’t trained. These statistics underscore the importance of empowering parents with the tools and knowledge to support their child beyond the therapy room.

4. Understanding the Child’s Needs

Parents who are educated about their child’s specific needs—whether sensory, behavioral, or nutritional—are better equipped to make informed decisions about food and mealtimes. They become more attuned to their child’s cues and can adjust their approach as needed, fostering a more supportive and responsive feeding environment.

How Unlocking Mealtimes: Fearful to Foodie Transformation Program Empowers Parents for Success

One of the standout features of the Unlocking Mealtimes: Fearful to Foodie Transformation Program is its parent-centered approach to feeding therapy. We train parents not just on what to do, but on exactly how and when to do it, giving you the confidence to handle mealtimes like a pro. It’s a program designed to ensure that you, as a parent, have the skills and knowledge necessary to lead your child through their feeding journey—without constantly relying on in-person therapy.

What Makes Our Program Different?

Unlike many traditional therapies that leave parents in the dark, our program focuses on short, manageable lessons, typically between 5 to 10 minutes long. These bite-sized sessions provide actionable steps that parents can immediately implement. Every lesson is designed to be easy to digest and directly applicable, making sure that parents stay engaged and avoid overwhelm.

Step-by-Step Guidance with 1:1 Support

In addition to structured lessons, parents also receive personalized, one-on-one guidance throughout the program. This hands-on support ensures that you are set up for success, with a clear understanding of how to manage your child’s progress and troubleshoot any challenges along the way.

We’ve had numerous parents who initially started with in-person therapy but found that our program was so effective that they chose to focus solely on the course. They realized that the strategies they learned and implemented through Unlocking Mealtimes were more than enough to handle mealtime struggles on their own. For many, in-person therapy became redundant because they were achieving such significant progress at home.

The beauty of Unlocking Mealtimes lies in its ability to empower you as a parent to take the lead. You’ll gain confidence not only in applying the techniques but also in knowing that you can create lasting change in your child’s relationship with food. Our program allows you to make meaningful progress without being tied to a therapist’s office week after week.

The Research: What the Numbers Say

The importance of parent involvement in feeding therapy isn’t just anecdotal—it’s backed by research. Let’s look at some of the studies that highlight why parent training is a game-changer in the success of feeding therapy.

• Sharp (2010) Study: Sharp found that children whose parents were actively involved in feeding therapy and received training on how to implement interventions at home showed a 40-60% increase in food acceptance compared to children whose parents were not involved. This substantial difference illustrates how much parent involvement matters.

• Williams (2007) Study: Williams demonstrated that parent-led interventions resulted in a 68% improvement in children’s feeding outcomes, including a wider variety of foods eaten and reduced food refusal, compared to only a 30% improvement in clinician-led therapy without parent involvement. Again, this underscores the power of parents in driving their child’s feeding success.

• Piazza (2003) Study: As mentioned earlier, children whose parents were trained to continue feeding interventions at home showed a 70% rate of maintaining progress after therapy ended, compared to only 40% in children whose parents were not trained. This finding highlights the long-term benefits of parent involvement.

• Blackman (2014) Study: Blackman’s research found that children whose parents participated in feeding therapy were three times more likely to generalize their new skills across different settings (such as home, school, or restaurants) than children whose parents were not involved. This is key because a child’s ability to eat in the therapist’s office doesn’t mean much if they can’t apply those skills in everyday environments.

How Parent Training Can Make or Break Your Child’s Feeding Success In Feeding Therapy

Imagine this scenario: Your child makes great progress during therapy sessions, trying new foods and improving their oral motor skills. However, when they get home, the strategies used in therapy aren’t consistently applied. Gradually, your child reverts to their old picky eating habits, undoing the progress they made in therapy. This scenario is all too common and highlights the importance of parent training.

Parents are the most influential figures in their child’s life. When they are equipped with the right knowledge and tools, they can reinforce positive eating behaviors and help their child overcome picky eating. On the other hand, without proper training, parents may unintentionally reinforce negative behaviors, leading to setbacks in the child’s progress.

Feeding therapy works best when it’s a collaborative effort between the therapist, the child, and the parents. As Christine Miroddi Yoder puts it: “Parents are the ones eating with their child day in and day out. A therapist is only with them for a short amount of time. If you want to see big gains, parent involvement is key.”

What You Can Do as a Parent To Make Feeding Therapy A Success

If you’re the parent of a picky eater, don’t hesitate to ask for more involvement in your child’s feeding therapy. Seek out therapists who prioritize parent training and provide you with the resources and support you need to be successful at home. Remember, you are an essential part of the solution.

Start today by taking our quiz to identify what type of eater their child is: “This is the first step on the journey to creating a customized plan that will work for your child. Our course, Unlocking Mealtimes, teaches parents how to systematically address their child’s feeding challenges, and it’s proven to make progress faster than traditional in-person therapy alone.”

Parent training is often the missing link in feeding therapy, but it doesn’t have to be. By becoming actively involved and educated, you can play a pivotal role in your child’s feeding success. The research is clear: parent involvement leads to better outcomes, faster progress, and long-term success. Don’t let traditional therapy models keep you in the dark—be your child’s biggest advocate and take charge of their journey toward a healthier relationship with food.

If you haven’t already, take the first step by identifying your child’s feeding type through our quiz. With the right tools and guidance, you can make mealtimes a positive experience for your child and your family.