Thursday, January 7, 2010

Tricks To Get Your Child To Eat Veggies

How do you get your toddler to eat VEGETABLES?

Hallie refuses to eat any veggies. We try to sneak a little bit in but she just spits it out. Is this a normal stage for toddlers? What do you do to make sure your baby is getting the proper nutrition?

9 comments:

  1. Good luck with that one is my advice! Terrible, I know, but I have one that is the worst picky eater ever. Everyone is always giving us advice and telling us to do stuff with him, but nothing works. I remembered just today, that I gave all my babies a bottle once a day so that if I needed to go somewhere I could without worrying about them. All of them took it eventually, except him. 8 months, every day I gave that kid a bottle, he would drink a tiny bit, but really just hold out until I would feed him again. Even as a baby he was picky eater! He now gets benafiber in his juice and a vitamin every day, because sometimes you can't win!

    ReplyDelete
  2. BROOKE IS THE PICKIEST EATER. SHE WILL LOVE SOMETHING ONE DAY THEN NOT EAT IT AGAIN, IT IS SOOO HARD! I JUST TRY TO KEEP TRYING AND MAKE SURE SHE HAS HER MILK AND DRINKS JUICES. SHE LOVES FRUIT AND VEGGIES BUT HATES MEAT, NOODLES, PRETTY MUCH ANYTHING ELSE! I WISH WE COULD JUST BOTTLE FEED FOREVER SO MUCH EASIER :) JUST KEEP TRYING AND AS LONG AS SHE STILL GROWING SHE IS GOOD TO GO!

    ReplyDelete
  3. My son actually loves veggies, so I don't have this issue. But the best advice I have is "Deceptively Delicious," because I have that cookbook, and its an amazing way for EVERYONE in the family to get more veggies in their diet. You make vegetable purees to mix in common foods - like mac and cheese, then also you always put a fresh (or cooked) veggie on the plate. You can also try making it fun like "ants on a log" (celery sticks with peanut butter and raisins. Good luck!

    ReplyDelete
  4. I buy zucchini and put it in everything. I shred it so it's kind of a pulp and put it in my pancake mix, muffin mix, pasta sauce, seriously, everything. You hardly notice the difference in taste.

    ReplyDelete
  5. When i worked at a shelter in Logan i got unbelievably picky kids, and worse i had to feed them according the the food program...so i had no choice but to offer fruit and veggies with every meal...so i got creative...like puree cauliflower and put it in mashed potatoes...mashed potatoes in mac and cheese, or shredded carrots in mac and cheese, carrots or cucumbers in juice, the rest of the time when i couldn't i would make them eat at least one bit...some of the kids were really young and they just learned they had to take a bit before they got down. It took a while but they got it...and then sadly they left so my hard work in training them was for nothing...but hey at least in the week or so i had them they ate veggies!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I say just keep trying and offering. I remember Koen was really picky between 1 & 2. He only liked to eat certain things. We just kept trying and some time around 2 he was just better at trying new things. Keep trying and my biggest advice is just to not catter 100% to her wants...try and only offer what you are eating.

    ReplyDelete
  7. My girls do love some veggies, but I notice they usually only like them cooked and warm. I try to cook zuchini in a little butter and they like that. They also love green beans and corn heated up, but veggies are a hard one! They are good with fruits, but not so much with veggies some days. I just sneak it into casseroles, etc :)

    ReplyDelete
  8. BTW- I haven't given up on Joseph. I still make him eat one fruit or vegetable with each meal- it just has to be one of the few he will eat.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I'm new to your blog, but I have read it once or twice before. Another one of your commenters suggested Deceptively Delicious, and I too have been using these tricks for a while. Pureed vegi's like sweet potatoes or butternut squash can easily be disguised in pancake batter, oatmeal, soups, chili, meatballs, casseroles, mac & cheese, and even in grilled cheese sandwiches. I have one child (4) who by and large refuses to eat vegis, so he has to eat fruit with every meal. Eat them yourself, and offer, offer, offer, because you never know when their taste buds will become compatible again. Good Luck.

    ReplyDelete

Moms with Advice