How to Make Your Kids Eat Those Veggies

Submitted by Stella Morgan on June 8, 2010

Consuming a good diet is very important for staying healthy. However, getting kids to eat vegetables may be a difficult task. Everyday, there are studies and research being done on the harmful effects of improper diets. The extent to which our health can suffer because of not keeping to a healthy diet, can be very grave. A recent study has even suggested that what we eat has a lasting genetic impact on us.

This means that if you have not been maintaining a proper diet, it can work against you in the long term and can also affect your children. There are not many kids who actually like to eat vegetables. In general, it has been seen that kids prefer fast food.

Even if you do not have a lot of fast food meals at home, they emulate their peers and enjoy fast foods more than regular homemade meals. More often than not, it has been seen that parents themselves are not very fond of vegetables, because of which the children are not able to understand the importance of eating vegetables.

Benefits of Vegetables: Vegetables are a major source of dietary fiber, energy, and many vital nutrients. Vegetables come in different colors and textures.

It has been found that differently colored vegetables have different kinds of nutrients. Due to this, it is recommended that vegetables of all colors should be included in the diet. However, in order to get the kids to eat their vegetables, it is important for the parents to start eating vegetables themselves.

Being overly pushy, when it comes to vegetables, can have a negative effect. Many a times, children will not want to eat vegetables only because it was forced on them. Kids also care a lot about the presentation. If you give your child vegetables and present them well, the child is more likely to eat them. For instance, if you want your child to eat broccoli, steam it, cut it into small pieces, and then mix it with some noodles or macaroni.

Another great way to get your child interested in vegetables is to serve them boiled, with a dipping sauce. You can also use sour cream or hung yogurt with the vegetables. Use crunchy vegetables for such a preparation so that the child enjoys munching on them. If your child is especially fussy, add vegetables to broths and curries where the child may not be able to detect their presence. To increase the interest of the child, be a little creative with the names of the vegetables. Rename them, alluding to themes or things that your child is fond of.