Vegetables: encouraging kids to eat veggies

Eating Veggie with kids

Being a parent can be a tough job at times. It is a job that requires your attention 24×7 and dedication. If you are wondering why vegetables are important, then read this article till the end to know why.

Why is eating vegetables important for your kid?

  • Vegetables provide your kid with anti-oxidants, vitamins, and fiber in addition to water.
  • They help your child in the future by preventing chronic illnesses and diseases, including cancers, strokes and heart diseases, and even lifestyle diseases, among others.
  • A healthy child nutrition chart will include plenty of vegetables of all kinds, right from leafy to starchy in addition to a lot of other foods.
  • According to the Australian Dietary guidelines, a toddler of 1-2 years of age should consume about 2 to 3 serves of vegetables every day.
  • While 2 to 3 years are recommended to eat two and a half serves of vegetable daily in their meals.
  • Children between the age of 4 to 8 years require four and a half servings of vegetables every day.
  • The key is to encourage your kids to eat vegetables patiently so that your children can develop healthy eating habits.

How to make good vegetable eating habits?

  • Sit with your children to eat vegetables. One of the easiest ways to encourage your children to eat vegetables is by sitting alongside your children during meals.
  • Family meals are the best way to encourage your children to develop healthy eating habits.
  • A bowl of salad could be very interesting and tasty side dishes that will make your toddlers eat vegetables without making much fuss.
  • If your child sees his or her siblings eating vegetables, then he or she will also be doing the same.
  • It is very common for children to know like vegetables at first, don’t worry, you will have to be patient with your children and the changes that will revolve around them.
  • Serve different vegetables in small amounts to see your children react differently to different vegetables. You will get clear signals about the likes and dislikes relevant to your children eating vegetables.
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How to encourage your children while eating vegetables?

  • Make sure to praise your children while they are eating vegetables.
  • This will show your appreciation towards your child, and the child will feel you are being attentive towards him or her.
  • Do not punish your child for not eating certain vegetables or vegetables in general. Your patience will play a key role in helping your child eat vegetables.
  • You aim to encourage your child to appreciate and eat vegetables, not be scared and repel away from them.

How to make your child like vegetables?

  • When you are trying to get your child into liking vegetables, you can start by getting your child involved in cooking the vegetables with you.
  • By doing that, you will make your child appreciate the efforts that go into cooking up the vegetables, and your child will be encouraged into eating the vegetables.
  • In addition to that, you can even take your child to vegetable shopping and let them choose the vegetables they like. Limit their options between this or that so that they are not overwhelmed by the variety of vegetables available.
  • Make your child eat vegetables as snacks. Stir-fried vegetables can never taste bad or look disgusting. Your child will surely enjoy some colorful-looking vegetables.
  • The trick is to incorporate vegetables in almost every meal someday, in some way or the other— either pureed vegetables or as sauces and soups.
  • This will not only change the attitude of your child regarding vegetables, from negative to positive. Your child will slowly enjoy the healthy meals and will ask for more home-cooked and nourishing meals.
See also  Teaching Kids About Nutrition and Healthy Food Choices

Conclusion

Feeding your child the right meals could be challenging especially including vegetables into meals but with patience, you and your child will get adjusted to it.

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