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Introduction and purpose Depending on the source, feeding disorders are common reasons to visit a pediatrician - reported in 2-60% of generally healthy children. This study was designed in order to assess the incidence of feeding difficulties in a group of healthy children aged 6-36 months from the Łódź region and to identify factors that may be related to feeding disorders. Material and method The research tool of this study was a questionnaire designed by the authors which consisted of 4 personal data questions, 9 questions about the perinatal and neonatal period, 36 feeding questions, 10 questions about child development and weight gain, 10 questions about previous medical history, 30 questions about symptoms, 8 questions about misbehavior during feeding and 14 sociodemographic questions. Results 215 parents completed questionnaires. However, 10 of them were rejected because those participants met the exclusion criteria. Finally, 205 children were enrolled in the study. The difficulties in feeding were confirmed by the parents of 66 participants. Children with feeding difficulties were more often attended to specialist ambulatories, had been diagnosed with food allergies, and underwent speech therapy and rehabilitation. Additionally, the analysis showed that feeding disorders in mothers and the occurrence of stressful situations in the family were more frequent in children whose parents reported feeding difficulties. Conclusions The incidence of feeding difficulties, in the group of healthy children aged 6-36 months from the Łódź region, was higher than reported in other studies. Therefore there is an urgent need to educate parents on feeding recommendations to modify eating behaviors and overcome feeding disorders, followed by some practical advice on appropriate diet adjustment.

Feeding disorders in young and preschool-age children are a very important problem in modern pediatrics due to the high prevalence and negative consequences for the health and development of children due to chronic nutritional deficiency. Correction of feeding disorders in young children is a long-term process, during which it makes most sense to set short-term goals to reach a favourable outcome in the perspective.In the initial phase, the primary goal is to identify warning signs (“red flags”) that pose a risk to children. The prevailing disorders that make feeding difficult are food selectivity, decreased appetite and fear of eating. Treatment should be complex and aimed, first of all, at the psychological side of the problem, with simultaneous correction of nutrition if necessary. The article presents a modern approach to the management of patients with the most common difficulties in feeding in outpatient pediatric practice. This approach provides for the exclusion of alarming signs of somatic and psychoneurological pathology, assessment of oral motor skills, the nutritional status of children and the identification of pathological types of feeding.At present time, there are four main feeding styles: mindful (authoritative), supervising (authoritarian), indulging and uninvolved. Therapeutic tactics depend on the leading disorder of the eating behaviour. Recommendations for appetite correction depend on the underlying cause of its disorder. Providing the child with the necessary nutrients by prescribing “feeding insurance” through the inclusion of isocaloric food products containing native protein and micronutrients into the food ration, which enables the parents to reduce anxiety and avoid the use of forced feeding approaches.