If you’re a parent, you know how hard it can be to get your child to eat enough healthy foods throughout the day. While they seem to love eating snacks and junk food, getting in the recommended amount of fruits, veggies, dairy, and protein can be a struggle. But for some parents, in this country and others, feeding their kids at all is difficult. And when this happens, the child can get severely underfed and even malnourished. So if you know of a child who’s not getting the food they need, here’s what you can do to help a child to ensure that they start to get the food their little bodies need.

Make Sure There’s Not A Medical Reason For It

For some kids, there’s a medical reason why they have a hard time eating foods or eating enough foods to help make them big and strong. According to KidsHealth.org, kids who have conditions like celiac disease or cystic fibrosis have trouble absorbing all the nutrients from the foods they eat. This can make it hard for them to gain weight and get all the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients their bodies need to be considered nourished. If you’re worried about a condition like this, call your doctor to get the necessary testing to diagnosis these conditions.

Get Them Involved In All Food Processes

If your child is being underfed by their own doing, you may want to consider making them more involved in the food processes at your house. According to Katherine Serbinski, a contributor to EatRight.org, kids who are picky eaters often feel like that’s one of the only things they have control over. Knowing this, it may help to let them become more involved in picking out healthy foods to eat at the store, making the food with you when at home, and setting the table for the family to eat together. Additionally, you should try to make mealtimes fun and not stressful or rushed, which can cause your child to not eat all they can or should.

Pick The Right Foods

To ensure that your kids are getting the nutrients they need regardless of how much they’re eating, it’s important to pick the right foods for them. According to Erin Coleman, a contributor to LiveStrong.com, you should try to supply your kids with nutrient-dense, high-calorie foods. This can include things like dairy products and proteins. When your child eats foods like these, they’re getting the vitamins and minerals they need while also getting the caloric intake to help them put on healthy weight and become bigger and stronger.

If you’re worried that your child is being underfed, consider using the tips mentioned above to help them make their body healthier and happier.