Fruits and veggies are an important part of daily nutrition but getting. Your child to eat them can be another story entirely. If you ever raised a picky eater, you would know how difficult this can be!
By the time toddlers are two and three years old, they have become more independent, have gained clarity on their own personal preferences, and they adapt their behaviours on how to get more of what it is they want (this is where tantrums come in handy for them).
Knowing this much about toddlers, it can be easier for parents to work with their children instead of against them, especially when broccoli and carrots are involved! One of the tricks which worked in my family was raising my kiddo early on fruits and veggies. Eventually she acquired a taste for them and even eats salads regularly without dressing.
Tips on how to get your child to eat their fruits and veggies:
- Juice it
If your child isn’t getting into the whole veggie-vibe, sometimes making veggie juice or a smoothie can help them get into the swing of it. Not all juices have to use fruits, and not all smoothies have to be made with dairy, yogurt or almond milk. There are so many different variations you can try, and the fun colours often get the kids excited and eager to eat their fruits and veggies (in liquid form of course).
- Start small.
Whenever starting a child in something new, it may be wise to start small and ease them into it slowly. A couple of carrots and cucumber sticks ought to do the trick, along with some berries and apple slices.
- Offer them variety.
Children often like variety, so cutting up a mini veggie tray with varying colours can make things more appetizing for them! Creativity usually wins the game here; think up fun unique ways of presenting these new fun finger-foods and find what works best for your tot!
- Give them choices.
Some children can be fiercely independent and flex this new-found virtue by being picky and choosey with their food. If you give them a couple choices, say a banana, orange or apple to pick from, they get to pick and choose which fruits they want and you have the satisfaction of knowing they are eating healthy.
- Dip it!!
Kids love having fun, and fun with food is no exception! If you can find yummy things for your child to dip their vegetables in, such as ranch dressing, mayonnaise or yogurt, then you have gotten them to eat their veggies for life!
- Keep them on an eating schedule
By and far one of the things I swear by as a parent is keeping your child on a schedule. Incorporating fruits and veggies into mealtimes can be beneficial as well (especially for finicky eaters). For example, you may cook lunch but beforehand put out fruits and veggies so your child can enjoy them while dinner is on the stove. Or, make it mandatory that all the fruits and veggies be finished before the main course hits the table – I have heard this is quite effective as well.
- Have a friend come over, about the same age or slightly older, that knows how to eat veggies
Monkey see monkey do. If children have an older sibling or a playmate who loves eating their vegetables, have them come over for a few meals so your child can see how their friend does it.
I remember bumping into my friend and her young daughter at a chicken rice stand in Petaling Jaya. At the time, her daughter despised vegetables and wanted nothing to do with them….until she saw my daughter eat all the cucumbers on her plate. In fact, we had to order extra because my daughter really loves cucumbers. As the next plate of veggies came, my friend’s daughter eagerly grabbed one of the cucumbers and started munching away. Sometimes the old tricks are the best tricks in the book!
In summary, there are loads of things you can test out should your child be anti-fruits and veggies. Let us know which tips worked best for you and your kiddo!!
About Little Human Scholars School and Full Day Daycare Centre in PJ
Little Human Scholars is an all-in-one childcare solution. It is a preschool, playschool, kindergarten, nursery and full day daycare centre (with extended hours) located in the heart of PJ.
In fact, the location is one of the things which makes Little Human Scholars so sought after – it is conveniently nestled near Jalan Gasing, University hospital, PJ Old town, PJ New town, Jaya One, Jaya33, and the PJ IT Mall.
The best part is LHS has premiere services many other schools in PJ don’t offer such as full day daycare with extended hours, CCTV access for parents, and a nifty little phone app called Toddlytic which provides parents with automatic updates on their child’s development, behaviour and health checks.
With full-time guards always present at each of their locations, access to CCTV (which is in every room except the office, bathroom and kitchen areas), and very strict pick-up and drop-off rules, Little Human Scholars treats every child who walks into its hallways as one of their own children!
This place has it all: location, safety, health, IGSCE curriculum and play-based learning. What more could you ask for? Did I mention they also have transportation services and offer meal plans for students? It doesn’t get any better than that.
If you are interested in a tour of one of our centres (that’s right, there’s more than one), all you need to do is fill out the form here or call +6017-7303-025 and an LHS administrative staff will get back with you shortly!
Cheers,
Jana Moreno