I don’t know what you think, but I’m at my in a bind trying to convince my children to eat their vegetables. They were fond of them at some point but it’s now that there’s no way to convince them to consume them.
I will always include the baby carrots inside their meals and each day when they get home, they’re found inside all of their boxes for lunch. What do I do? So I go to dinner but all I get is angry faces and shaking of their heads when given vegetables.
I spoke with the children their pediatrician about this, and he said that 9/10 kids do not meet the daily requirements in terms of getting enough vegetables for their daily nutritional requirements.
While it made me feel at ease knowing that I didn’t do better than everyone else but I was still anxious about them.
He also said the tomatoes (aren’t they fruits?) as well as white potato (this includes fries and chips) comprised over 50% of the vegetables children aged four to eight years old consumed. I must tell you that I was awestruck however, knowing that my children would not have a diet of vegetables, I was able to understand.
Based on the CDC the kids consume less than half of vegetables they need and, more surprisingly the number of vegetables they consume is not affected according to the income level or race.
According to a survey by parents found that it was much harder for kids to be motivated to eat their vegetables than to convince them to keep their rooms clean. Here are some ideas and tips I have used to encourage my children to eat more veggies.
Table of Contents
Identify the veggies
I was thinking about what do marketers use to sell products to children? They name them therefore why wouldn’t I do that? The moment I began using the term Brussels sprouts “hero buttons,” and my pea’s power pods, my children couldn’t stop eating the veg.
Take your kids shopping
If you are shopping for groceries, make sure they pick the vegetables and fruits. If you are unable to accompany your children to the store for the whole shopping experience, you can simply let them pick the fruits and vegetables I’ve done, and they’re more likely consume them if they decide to pick them by themselves. Inspire them to take a look at the produce and enjoy the hues.
Prepare meals with your kids
A few months ago, I asked my daughter to cook the green beans once I had cooked them adding butter to them and sprinkle some seasonings on top as I cooked different dishes.
My daughter was at the table and demanded to eat the green beans, because she said, “I made them.” And the rest of the children have been asking to help in “making the veggies.”
Establishing the “no thank you bite” rule
Make sure your child knows to have a bite of food before refusing to eat something from his plate. My husband and I think that in the event that our son can taste foods, he’ll soon become used to it.
Offer a tasty dish as a bribe
Are you not ready to finish the good stuff? No problem; no dessert. It’s not the best method to encourage the kids to eat their veggies, however it did the trick for me and my husband along with one of the children who wouldn’t even consume them. Desserts are a big part of his life.