Children can be very stubborn when it comes to eating vegetables and healthy foods. Here are steps you can take to get your child to eat healthier with more vegetables.
Lead by Example
The majority of the time, children want to eat what their parents are eating, so set an example for your children and make sure you eat plenty of vegetables when they are around.
If vegetables are just an afterthought in your home, it can be pretty tough to expect your kids to like them. Kids eat what they are familiar with, and they won’t ask for vegetables or a healthy meal if they do not know it’s an option.
Make Mealtime Fun
Kids love to play make believe and games. Foods such as broccoli and cabbage can be disappointing for a child hoping for macaroni and cheese. But if your child is a dinosaur that needs to eat all of its food, it makes eating healthy a lot more interesting and maybe even fun. By relating vegetables to things your child already loves and making a game out of it is an excellent way to encourage them to eat a few greens.
Get Them Involved in the Preparation of Vegetables
Children are more interested in a meal if they have helped to prepare it. Why not take your kids to the supermarket or farmers market and let them pick one or two items to cook dinner? This will make them far more excited to eat it later on.
Don’t Force Them to Finish
One bite is the complete opposite from finishing your plate. Possibly the biggest misconception among parents is that by forcing children to eat a type of food they don’t like will get them to change their behavior. Forcing your children to eat their food or punishing them can create a negative mealtime experience. They will learn to associate food with the bad feelings.
Negative eating experiences have the opposite effect and actually increase picky eating tendencies. Try and get them to eat one bite at a time and they will eventually finish their meal.
Reward Good Behavior
On the flipside, creating a positive eating experience and will decrease picky eating tendencies. Research shows by rewarding a child for trying one bite of a rejected food with incentives like stickers or stars makes it easier for them to try the food.
Rewarding good behavior will help your children associate food with positive feelings.
Present the Food in Patterns Around the Plate
Children love when their food is organized into patterns on their plate. Unlike us adults who prefer foods to be clumped near each other on the plate, kids like their food to be separated into sections around the perimeter. Try making it into a shape such as a smiley face; they will like it even more. This is another way to make eating fun.
Respect their Values
Children don’t see the world in the same way that adults do, they have completely different values. They couldn’t care less about their health; the majority of kids think they are invincible. So telling them a certain type of food is healthy won’t get you very far and can sometimes backfire.
On the other hand, many children feel limited by their size and want to be bigger and stronger. Explaining to them vegetables “help you grow” is a lot more effective than “it’s good for you” or “because I said so.”
Keep At It
Some kids will be more difficult than others, and will need more patience and effort. It’s important to understand that habits they develop at a young age will be following them into adulthood. It is worth solving any eating problems as soon as possible.
Keep setting a good example for your children, make eating a fun and positive experience, let them help you in the kitchen. If you keep doing this your persistence will eventually pay off.
This is a guest post from David at Pathway Care Foster Agency, an independent fostering agency that provides foster care and fostering related services throughout Wales and England.
