TBRI® and Food

February 5, 2026

Nutrition and hydration are important for development, brain function, and regulation, but for children who have been impacted by adoption and/or foster care, there may be difficult histories around food. Your child or teen may have experienced insecurity or hunger; food being withheld or forced due to punishment; or sensory-processing difference. Oftentimes, because of these differences, meal times can become a battle zone. Through the lens of TBRI^®—or Trust-Based Relational Intervention^®—these times can be a great opportunity for connection.

TBRI is a care model designed to help meet relational and developmental needs of children and youth impacted by trauma. TBRI considers the whole child—his or her brain, biology, behavior, body, and beliefs—and provides parents and caregivers with practical tools and insight to help their child(ren) reach his or her highest potential. And, perhaps most integral, TBRI has connection at its core—the truth that connection builds trust, and trust builds healthy relationships.

Developed by Dr. Karyn Purvis and Dr. David Cross of the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development (KPICD) at TCU, the TBRI model is built upon three guiding principles:

– TBRI Connecting Principles: Create connections that disarm fear, gain trust, and enhance learning.

– TBRI Empowering Principles: Strengthen learning and regulation by meeting a child’s physical and environmental needs.

– TBRI Correcting Principles: Shape beliefs and behaviors effectively, so children feel safe, protected, and empowered.

The goal of TBRI Empowering Principles is to prepare bodies and brains for success by meeting environmental and physical needs of children and youth. For parents and caregivers, one of the primary physical needs that you meet every day is food. Try the strategies below to turn your meals—a very practical, everyday need—into times of connection, building trust and felt-safety with your child.

Provide Predictability

Try to eat meals and snacks around the same times every day, and write these times into a daily schedule that your child or teen can easily check throughout the day. At the beginning of each week, write out a meal plan, and keep it in the kitchen where it can be referenced during the week. Consider creating family meal rituals, such as taco Tuesday, pizza and movie night Fridays, or mac and cheese Monday.

Make Food Accessible

Children or teens who have experienced trauma may need reassurance that he or she will be fed the next time he or she is hungry. Try placing a basket of snacks on the counter as a “yes” basket, so your child knows that they can grab a snack at any time. Pack snacks, even for short car rides! You may even consider letting your child keep a snack in their backpack or by their bedside.

Involve the whole family in meal planning and preparing food. Make one dinner each week a “kids choose” meal, or research a different new recipe to try each week together. When cooking or preparing snacks, assign each family a role and make it fun! You can even have your child or teen help fill their snack basket each week.