After years of working with families affected by persistent feeding difficulties, Melbourne practitioner and author Marie-France Laval has released The Fussy Eater Reboot: Confident Eating: A Parenting Plan for Stubborn Picky Eaters. The book provides a practical, multi-disciplinary framework for parents who feel they have tried everything, from rewards to separate meals, only to find their child’s eating becomes more restricted and stressful.
Drawing on Marie-France’s background in dietetics, nutrition, social work, and hypnotherapy, the book explores how sensory sensitivities, anxiety, avoidance, and protective threat responses shape a child’s experience of food. It is highly relevant for families supporting children with selective eating, ARFID, or paediatric feeding disorders. “Parents work incredibly hard to help their child eat,” Marie-France commented. “But logical strategies like pressure, bargaining, or immediately replacing rejected food can unintentionally keep the difficulty going. The aim of this book is to reduce pressure and create conditions where confidence can grow.”
A practical plan for real family life, the book combines behavioural and psychological perspectives to explain:
- Why some children reject food before tasting it.
- How anxiety and sensory sensitivities influence eating.
- The role of avoidance and protective routines.
- Why pressure and accommodation keep children stuck.
- How parents can respond without coercion.
Marie-France noted that many parents feel a sense of relief when they realise their child is not simply choosing to be difficult. “A child can look calm at the table while still experiencing food as a psychological threat,” she commented.
Psychologist Michael Hawton (The Anxiety Coach) described the book as a practical guide that transforms mealtimes, while consultant paediatrician Dr Liam Tjia praised its unique combination of clinical knowledge and psychotherapy skills. The Fussy Eater Reboot is available in paperback (AUD $34.99) directly via https://fussyeater.com.au/shop. E-book (AUD $8.99) available through major ebook retailers.