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By Heather Mayer

Think everyone wins when you bribe Junior to finish his broccoli for a scoop of ice cream? Wrong! Here we debunk the top five nutritional myths parents encounter on their quest to raise healthy and happy children.

MYTH: Clean your plate. There are starving children in (insert third-world country here).

Attention baby boomers! It is no longer forbidden to leave the dinner table without finishing everything on the dinner plate. “Clean plate clubs,” which advocated food conservation, began in schools during World War II to encourage youngsters to clear their plates.

But times have changed. Since World War II, restaurant portions in the United States have more than doubled, in some cases, making “clean your plate” an unhealthy rule, at least when dining out. Research has shown that when Americans are given larger portions, they ignore their feelings of satiety and continue eating. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition showed that adults who were given larger portions ate 30% more.

Children who are forced to clean their plates override their natural ability to monitor how much food they need to grow at a healthy rate. One study showed that preschoolers who were rewarded for cleaning their plates ate more. Don’t worry about your child going hungry; infants and toddlers are able to self-regulate their energy needs and intake, says Jane Uzcategui, a registered dietitian in upstate New York.

Try this: Start serving your child small portions and let them ask for more. A 2003 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that when children served themselves food, the portions were appropriate for their age, whereas when adults served them double portions, the children ate 25% more.