Getting Your Kids to Eat More Greens
Getting your kids to eat their veggies can often feel like a losing battle, and after numerous failed attempts, you might even think about throwing in the towel. But even when you have picky eaters on your hands, it doesn't have to be so difficult. Don't believe us? Here are 10 easy, tried-and-true tricks that may help you get your little ones to eat more greens—and 10 methods that won't work.
1. Be Playful with the Presentation
Kids love cute and fun things, so when you play it up with the presentation and add a little creative magic into how the veggies appear on the plate, your kids might be more enticed to eat them. Add on entertaining utensils, like a dinosaur-shaped fork and spoon, and they may feel even more encouraged.
2. Cook Them Differently
If your kids don't like it when you cook your veggies one way, try a different method instead of stubbornly sticking to the same recipe. Plus, if kicking up the seasoning or cutting them up into cute shapes doesn't cut it, try incorporating them into muffins, bread loaves, and cookies.
3. Involve Your Kids in Choosing & Cooking
Instead of disguising the veggies or sneaking them into different foods, make your kids feel involved by letting them choose and having them help around in the kitchen. The more they have a say in what they eat and how it's prepared, the more motivated they'll be to actually eat it.
4. Cook Veggies Into Their Favorite Meals
Another way to get your kids to eat more veggies is to add them to their favorite foods. For example, broccoli in mac and cheese is always a popular pairing, as is chopped carrots and peas in fried rice. When greens are incorporated into a dish they already like, it's usually easier for your kids to stomach them—and want to eat them.
5. Serve Them with a Dip
Who doesn't like veggies and dip? Sometimes, it's not the cooking method that needs to be changed—it's how the greens are served. Plating up raw carrots, cucumbers, bell peppers, and celery with a delicious dip, like hummus, might be all it takes to get your kids to munch on more veggies.
6. Make Sure There's Variety
Don't force your kids to eat just one kind of veggie; even if they tolerate it on some days, serving up the same thing over and over can eventually tire out their taste buds. Always make sure to serve up variety, so that they're given more than one choice of veggie to eat at each meal.
7. Talk About What Veggies Do
Instead of just telling your kids that veggies are good for them, teach them why they're healthy, and what benefits they bring by eating them. Sharing fun facts—like the immune-boosting and bone-strengthening effects of broccoli—may better encourage your little ones to eat the greens on their plate.
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8. Know the Goals
It'll also help to know exactly how many servings of veggies your kids should get each day; this differs by age and gender, so read up on the suggested recommendations to set clear, healthy goals. That way, you're not just blindly shoving piles of greens on your kids' plates, which can demotivate them.
9. Encourage, Don't Insist
It can be frustrating when your kids don't eat their veggies, but even then, refrain from telling them that they "have to" eat their greens. When you're insistent or use force to get them to finish their plate, they'll feel more inclined to do the opposite. Instead, encourage your little ones by familiarizing them with different veggies, and present them in ways that make them not so scary. When your kids are ready, they'll go for it on their own.
10. Lead By Example
Another way to get your kids to eat their veggies? Make eating them a habit, and be a good role model. When you lead by example, you show your little ones that veggies are enjoyable and fun to eat, which helps them dissociate their greens with negative labels. Over time, they'll mirror you and eat theirs, too.
Wondering which methods won't get your kids to eat more veggies? Here are 10 techniques you shouldn't try:
1. Being Sneaky
Contrary to what you might think, sneaking veggies into your kids' plates is not the way to go. Even if you've seen hacks on social media or from your other friends, demonstrating blending greens into a fruit smoothie or puréeing squash into mac and cheese, it's best to be transparent with your little ones. Plus, trying to sneak veggies into food doesn't teach them to appreciate these foods; over time, your kids might even end up hating veggies more.
2. Forcing Them
Another thing you shouldn't do? Force your kids to eat their veggies. You might think your only remaining option is to sit at the table with them and keep watch until they finish every last bite of their greens, but doing this only reinforces that veggies are the villain or something awful. This will make them develop a negative attitude toward healthy foods, which you don't want.
3. Punishing Them
Just as you shouldn't force your kids to eat their veggies, you should also never punish them for not trying or finishing their greens. This, again, will only strengthen the negative associations they may have already made with vegetables; in the long run, it'll damage their relationship with healthy food. Putting pressure on your little ones to eat, even if it's something nutritious, is never a good idea.
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4. Making Comparisons
You should also refrain from making comparisons or guilt-tripping your kids to eat their veggies. Telling them that "your sister finished her plate" isn't going to encourage them. Remember, your little ones each have their own preferences and differences, so let them set their own pace.
5. Being Inconsistent
Even if you don't make significant progress the first few times, don't give up just yet. It's important to stay consistent when encouraging your kids to eat their veggies, so letting them "off the hook" some days isn't going to help them build good habits. Instead, they'll think that they can get away with skipping their greens, and they'll try it again the next time.
6. Showing Preference
As mentioned earlier, variety is key. You don't want to constantly serve up the same types of veggies—broccoli, carrots, peas—and hope that they eventually stick. More than that, you don't want to show your kids your preferences, either; if they know that you also have veggies you don't like, they'll think it's okay to say "yes" to some and "no" to others.
7. Bribing with Dessert
You might think bribing your kids with dessert so that they'll eat their veggies is a good tactic, but this only sends the wrong message. Instead of thinking that veggies are healthy and good for them, your little ones will end up thinking that they're just obstacles to get through before the reward. You want to normalize greens as part of the meal, not frame them as something bad.
8. Piling Up the Plate
If your kids are already twisting their faces at the sight of veggies, it's better to start small than to pile up their plates with veggies in hopes that they'll somehow finish them all. Serving up ridiculous portions is only going to intimidate your little ones more, so make sure to present them with something manageable and approachable before building your way up.
9. Don't Label Them
Don't label your kids as picky eaters. If you tell others that "my little ones don't like peas or XYZ" just because you were unsuccessful the first two times, that'll only reinforce the fact, and your kids will believe it themselves. Remember that preferences can change, and your kids are still growing. It's important to continue introducing—and familiarizing—them with new, healthy foods, rather than immediately jumping to conclusions.
10. Don't Skimp on Veggies Yourself
Even as adults, there are certain veggies and foods we like more than others. Heck, you might still turn your nose up when it comes to finishing your greens or getting enough of them in a day. But to be a good role model for your kids, you don't want to be skimping on the nutritious things you're asking them to eat. So, remember to eat your veggies, too, and your little ones will follow your lead.
