Last month, our resident healthy eating expert Nicci Webb spoke about creating a positive relationship with food. This month she focuses on food for children.
Something that has always stuck with me, is something that Nigel Latta said,
“Kids will not starve themselves. So if they don’t eat their dinner, don’t offer them something else.”
There are many strategies here, for example, an idea would be to give them veggies at lunch, as sometimes kids aren’t actually that hungry at the end of the day. Have a think about yourself, sometimes we are hungrier than others or sometimes we are not hungry. This attitude of trying to force food into your kids could actually be the beginning of a negative relationship for them.
A common occurrence, is that us parents change our diets to be healthier, but we put the kids’ habits into the “too hard” basket. You know what is good for you right? Let’s say you have cleaned up your diet, so why not your kids? Why are you eating that nutritious smoothie, and they are sitting there with corn flakes for breakfast? You may be thinking, but my kids would never eat that, I promise they will, it will take time, but you now have to change their palette and eating habits as well.
Nicci’s Disclaimer: I do understand it may not work for everyone. I can honestly say that I don’t have a big issue with my kids and their veggies. I have a two-year-old that will happily sit their eating a head of broccoli- but I know each child is different.
They don’t have to finish their plate.
As much as I love my parents, I was forced to finish my plate. I think that’s probably where my negative relationship with food started and why I hate mashed potatoes so much now. We are always told that kids learn so much from watching us, so just keep eating veggies in front of them. If they see you enjoying healthy food, they soon become interested enough to taste that spinach and avocado smoothie as well… And maybe even enjoy it too!
Get the kids involved.
Something that I would encourage would be to get your child/children to help you make dinner. It may take a lot longer and require more patience, but teaching them how to use the peeler, or cutting up food with them, actually gets them involved in the process. When they go to eat the food, they feel proud that they helped made this, which makes the eating part more enjoyable for them as well. It also teaches them about food as well, learning what different veggies are, discussing the ingredients as you go. Also, if you plan meals each week, try to include your children in on this as well,
“is there something you would like on the menu this week?”
It’s a great way to make them feel included, and excited for dinner.
How many of us do this? We are making dinner, there is a pile of chopped veggies ready to go and our children come up to grab some. We tell them,
“no, that’s for dinner.”
They want to eat veggies right now, why not let them?! Even if they full up on veggies for dinner, nothing is wrong with that. Maybe even have another pile on the chopping board that is for them, that they are allowed to grab. Or if you have a cheeky child like myself; pretend that they are been sneaky when grabbing the veggies – when actually you have left them on the chopping board for them anyway!
Make it Fun
Something that seems to work well for my children is making it fun, so it may be plating up their meals differently. I was lucky enough to be gifted a spiralizer from my brother for Christmas last year, and it is amazing! The kids love it, their favourites are carrot noodles, zucchini noodles, and apple noodles. So much fun for the little ones! Or a very simple option for kids, is serving up a platter for dinner, and let them pick off the foods they want to enjoy. You might be surprised at what they pick to eat.
Think outside the ‘snack’ box
When we think ‘snacks’, quite often we automatically think, dried fruit, crackers, muesli bars. Snacks can be a chicken drumstick, chia seed pudding, bliss balls, veggie sticks with hummus, don’t get me wrong there is nothing wrong with an apple, but again, trying to think how can I get more veggies into their diet too. My 2 year old loves his containers of cherry tomatoes, capsicum, carrot, bean and celery sticks (even little broccoli heads), which he dips into hummus or peanut butter. Sneaking veggies into meals is a great strategy, I do this all the time! I once put broccoli into their dessert… but also try to encourage them to eat them in their original form, as they learn what each tastes like.
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Kids and Vegetables?