5 of 7

Write now Article Tools

The main reason toddlers don't like vegetables is because adults don't like them. How can a parent convince a toddler that vegetables are delicious, crunchy and better than candy if she or he shudders at the mention of broccoli?

The way to get your toddler to at vegetables is to make vegetables a simple and accepted part of everyday life. Look in your fridge and pantry. What do you keep for you to snack on, and what do you try to encourage the kids to eat? If salty and sweet snacks are the basis of your diet, keeping carrots for the kids won't convince them that veggies are more fun.

Check out these scenarios and consider the effect on children. It's dinner time, and all the vegetables are on the kid's plates, because Mom and Dad have hated vegetables since they were kids and never got over it; munching on a bag of salty snacks, a parent suggests to a hungry child that they eat an apple; shopping with youngsters in tow in the supermarket, a parent says to a fellow shopper, "I never eat carrots but I have to buy them because they are good for the kids."

Every time something like this happens, a child gets one clear messages - vegetables are yucky, I never eat them, but you have to because I say so.

Hard as it may seem, the only way to train your toddler to eat and enjoy vegetables is to eat them yourself, as casually but with as much pleasure as if it were any old snack. It means retraining your fridge and your pantry as well.

Start by making vegetable snacks that are as appealing as the bright wrappers on candy bars. Buy crisp fresh carrots, celery and red bell peppers, and cut them into strips. Pile them in a bowl with ice cubes and leave in the fridge. Grab one any time you need a snack - that is, if your kids leave any for you.

Instead of providing crackers to eat with dips and cheese, provide crudites, delicious slices and sticks of fresh vegetables that can be dipped or crunched. Celery chopped into handy lengths has a hollow just begging to be filled with yummy things like peanut butter, cream cheese or raisins.

Kids are happy to eat the foods you eat, and the willingness to eat veggies can never start too soon. Puree cooked carrots, pumpkin and beans for your baby who is just starting to take solid food. Walk right past the jars of baby food and head straight for the veggie aisle. Let your baby taste real food before the bland floury contents of those tins and jars corrupt their ability to enjoy natural taste and flavor.

Learn to love veggies and your children will love them too. Study recipe books and arrange to have a vegetarian night once a week. This doen't mean going completely vegetarian, it just means exploring the possibilities of vegetables as a family. If everyone is tucking into a delicious herb scented potato casserole or stir fried cabbage your toddler will absorb the family love of a good vegetable dish.

When it comes to sandwiches, don't forget to add lettuce and tomato to the bologna as a matter of course. In the summer, make a delicious salad the main attraction at meal times. Keep cherry tomatoes and cucumber slices in the fridge as refreshing snacks. Serve tomato juice and juiced carrots and make up your own vegetable drinks. Kids enjoy helping to prepare the food they eat, so let them make up a plate of their favorite foods - bananas with cherry tomatoes and some grated cheese is fine, even if you think it looks a bit odd.

You'll find that toddlers do like vegetables after all - once you start liking them yourself.

Learn more about this author, Gail Kavanagh.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.

Add your voice

Know something about Why toddlers don't like vegetables?
We want to hear your view. Write now!