Parents’ eating behaviour directly influences their child’s, so it’s always a good idea to model good practices around food when you can Kids will mimic parents’ healthy eating habits. Photo: Getty What kind of an eater are you? Do you usually just think about food when you feel hungry? Can you ignore the rows of high sugar snacks as you walk in to pay for fuel at the petrol station? Do you reward yourself with a food treat for a job well done? Does your nightly cup of tea always come with a biscuit or two? Do you reach for food when you are bored, lonely, upset or tired? Some recent research conducted in Aston University in the UK identified four different kinds of eating styles among parents — ‘typical eating’, ‘avid eating’, ‘emotional eating’ and ‘avoidant eating’. Typical eaters, who made up 41.
4pc of the sample, have no extreme behaviours. Avid eaters (37.3pc) are very engaged by food and will eat in response to food cues in the environment and their emotions, rather than hunger signals.
Emotional eaters (15.7pc) also eat in response to emotion but do not enjoy food as much as avid eaters. Avoidant eaters (5.
6pc) are extremely selective about food and have a low enjoyment of eating. Join the Irish Independent WhatsApp channel Stay up to date with all the latest news.
