Is it damaging to make a child finish their food?

My parents did this and I'll be honest I do not feel that it was to my benefit. I would feel sick when they made me finish something when I was full or when I didn't like it. I would say ok you can stop for now and if she asks for more food you could offer it again or ask why she didn't want it.

It’s best to keep feedings and meal times as low pressure as possible.

The more you try to pressure a kid into eating the more pushback you will see.

We give small portions & happily give out seconds!

Big plates full of food are overwhelming to a lot of people’s brains (kid or adult) & I’d rather feel proud dishing out seconds than feel annoyed the food was barely touched

I would give her a smaller portion for now, sometimes kids go through a stage of using food as control or they are simply overwhelmed with what’s on their plate.

I usually try and encourage once, sometimes my son just wants me to feed him. If he won’t eat it I let him finish and leave it on the table to see if he comes back to it.
My son isn’t really into snacks but I only offer toast / sandwich as an alternative.

I said some rules are needed. In our house if you’re not hungry enough to eat your dinner you’re not hungry enough for a snack. If it’s something I know is hit or miss (mainly meat) I’ll let them have an extra fruit or vegetable of their choice but no bars, crackers, or sweet things. The times I pull out the “3 more bites” is when they’re asking for more pasta but haven’t eaten any vegetables I know they like (today’s problem). If they’re deciding to do other things when they’re supposed to be eating they can go hungry. Most meals we give at least an hour but I f they’re deciding not to eat better luck next time

I don't make them finish the food. But if she chooses not to eat, we don't get alternatives. That's her choice and I respect it. But making mealtimes about pressure isn't really productive. It creates a negative association and sometimes it can just be about toddler stubbornness. Food is one of the only things a toddler has control over, so they sometimes refuse to eat as a way of exerting control.

My grandma did this and now I have an eating disorder. I struggle with binge eating. So yes this can cause life long issues.

I only portion the size of their fists. So if my daughter says she's full, & she's only had half I say "baby, why don't you wait a few and see if you're still not hungry. I never give you too much." Sometimes I'll show her before she eats ill tell her to make fists & she measures it with how much food I put. I learned in early ed their stomach is just that big. So it's not harmful if it's around that size, anything more that's horrible.