during odin’s developmental assessment in addition to being chastized for letting odin drink from and walk around with a bottle we were also gently chided when it was discovered that we let odin eat meals while not in his highchair. the mantra seemed to be that as a parent you determine where, when and what a child will eat and they determine how much they want. and grazing away from the table is not something to be encouraged since it can lead to endless snacking and poor eating habits.

but our increasingly on-the-go toddler seems less and less interested in being constrained in his highchair and it seems like it can’t be that detrimental as long as you’re providing healthy eating options.

although the developmental specialist was adament about the issue, opinions are split at babycenter on the topic and another site encourages grazing as a healthy habit as does dr. sears.

so, is grazing away from the table A Good Thing, or not?