If you’re having trouble getting your child to eat their veggies, know you are not alone! It can be stressful, and you may be concerned that they aren’t eating a balanced diet and that nutritional gaps may form. To help, we’ve put together a list of ways you can get your child to eat more veggies.

Lead by example

Even if your child refuses certain types of vegetables when you offer them directly to them, they will be more inclined to try them if they see you eating them and enjoying them. Start off small by encouraging them to try a little piece. If they decline, don’t force them, this can make the problem worse. Instead, try another vegetable and keep trying until you find the ones they like or will eat at the very least. Keep trying, it takes time!

Encourage and praise

For those with super fussy kids, when they try a new vegetable, no matter how small their taste is, it’s a huge deal! Ensure you are encouraging them to try new foods regularly and praise them when they do. Little children respond exceptionally well to praise, and when they are praised for trying their vegetables, they’ll be more inclined to continue trying them as they know they will get positive reinforcement as a result of doing so. As they start to eat these more willingly, you can rein back the praise.

Make eating vegetables playful

Often, the textures and feel of vegetables can be quite off-putting for kids. One way to get around this is by allowing them to touch the vegetables by involving them in meal prep. After a while, they’ll become familiar with the feel, smell, and texture. When you offer it to them, they’ll recognise the vegetable and it won’t be as overwhelming. You can try cutting vegetables into fun shapes or plating them in a playful way, such as a smiley face. If you take your child to the shops with you, ask them which vegetables they’d like. If they will eat a few vegetables, but you’d like them to try others, allow them to pick their favourites and a new one to try.

Grow your own vegetables

Growing your own vegetables is not only beneficial to your child, but with the ever-rising cost of groceries, it can save you some serious money, plus homegrown always tastes better! Children are inquisitive, and being able to plant their vegetables from seed in the dirt, water them and watch them grow is an effective way for them to take interest. It also provides an opportunity to educate them about the different vegetables and why they are so healthy for the body.

Offer veggies as a snack option

Whether your child eats some vegetables or none at all, you can encourage them to eat them by providing them as a snack option. For example, instead of giving them rice crackers alone, offer a plate with a few rices crackers, cut up vegetables and a healthy dip. This way, they can try the vegetables in the dip, even if it only starts off as a small bite, it’s still progress.

Hide it in foods

Sometimes, children will detest vegetables no matter how hard you try and if this is the case for your little one, hiding them in meals is perfectly acceptable. There are almost endless options for hiding vegetables in meals, and if your children are extra fussy and won’t eat them if they can see them, grating or blending them into foods is a good way to hide them.

When kids are fussy with eating vegetables, it’s better to start small and add more as they get more used to the flavours and textures. Ways you can do this is by adding small amounts of veggies such as kale or zucchini to a smoothie or instead of having plain potato mash, you can substitute some of the potatoes for cauliflower. This doesn’t change its appearance, or you could gradually add sweet potato and carrot to the mash, adding more each time you make it. If you are stumped for ideas, a quick google search will reveal thousands of recipes to spark your creativity. You can begin with blending and grating and work your way up to tiny diced pieces and so on.

While hiding vegetables in foods is a good way to get nutrition into your fussy kids, it is best to teach them about vegetables and why eating them is so important. It can be testing for sure, but try not to push the issue. Most children will be more willing to explore different foods as they get older.

Remember that getting your children to eat vegetables when they are not overly keen on them is all trial and error. Encourage without pushing, and your little tacker will likely be eating a variety of wholesome veggies in no time.

We hope this post has given you some helpful ideas on how to incorporate more vegetables into your child’s diet. 

Little Saints is a boutique daycare centre located amongst the trees in Tallebudgera on the Gold Coast and we place a strong emphasis on healthy eating! Our chef-prepared meals are balanced, nutritious and sumptuous. If you are looking for a holistic childcare centre for your little one, contact us today to discuss enrolling!