10 Tips to help your kids eat more healthy veggies<\/p>\n
I was getting my haircut today and my stylist has a two year old daughter. She was remarking how smart the little girl is and how she loves a new educational interactive TV show. She allows her daughter only one total hour in front of the screen (broken up in chunks throughout the day) and only with this channel. She said \u201cI put her in her high chair and feed her while she\u2019s watching – it\u2019s the only way I can get her to eat anything healthy!\u201d and then she motioned how her daughter stares intently at the screen while shoving good food in her mouth- oblivious to taste or what it is. She\u2019s so mesmerized by the screen that it doesn\u2019t matter what she\u2019s eating. While I\u2019m glad her daughter is getting nutrition, I don\u2019t know that mindless eating in front of the TV is necessarily a good habit to encourage – but I don\u2019t blame her. It\u2019s HARD to get toddlers to eat anything beyond Mac and Cheese or peanut butter and jelly once they\u2019ve tasted those things.<\/p>\n
So, to help you, below are ten tips for helping your kids eat more veggies (without using a screen!)<\/p>\n
1. Start young. When your babies are old enough to start on solids, encourage their taste buds to LIKE the green stuff by not always giving in and giving them mashed bananas or other sweeter items.<\/p>\n
2. Be enthused. There\u2019s something to be said for \u201cOpen your mouth, here comes the airplane\u201d or something similar!<\/p>\n
3. Model good habits. Little Johnny won\u2019t really want his broccoli if he sees you eating a handful of M&Ms out of the corner of his eye. Save the M&Ms for after the kids go to bed.<\/p>\n
4. Whenever they ask for a snack or complain with \u201cI\u2019m hungry\u201d choose healthy veggies instead of cookies or crackers, etc. Grocery stores make it easy these days with prepackaged baby carrots and more.<\/p>\n
5. Hide them. Zucchini can be shredded and added to soups or even breads. Carrots too.<\/p>\n
6. Let them choose. Give each of your children a \u201csnack box\u201d in the fridge and only put healthy choices inside. When they ask for a snack, send them to the refrigerator to their own box to choose from what\u2019s inside.<\/p>\n
7. Dip it. Kids love Ranch dip on almost anything.<\/p>\n
8. Smoothies. Grab your blender, some yogurt and fruit and mix up a smoothie. The trick here is to add a piece of green cabbage. The kids won\u2019t taste the cabbage and it\u2019s another way to hide the health!<\/p>\n
9. Serve them raw. Some kids just don\u2019t liked cooked vegetables and there is no rule stating that they need to be cooked. Raw is sometimes (many times) healthier than cooked anyway.<\/p>\n
10. Save them for the next meal. Require your children to eat the portion of veggies that\u2019s on their plate or you\u2019ll be serving that same portion to them at the next meal (and the next… and the next if needed) until they\u2019re eaten. Kids will learn very quickly that fresh veggies taste much better than triple warmed over ones! Just don\u2019t let them snack in between on other things!<\/p>\n
What are your favorite tips for getting your kids to eat healthy? Find more tips from Sarah Matheny, author of \u201cPeas and Thank You: Simple Meatless Meals the Whole Family Will Love<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n Learn More about the book<\/p>\n More info: http:\/\/peasandthankyou.com<\/a><\/p>\n Peas and Thank You: Simple Meatless Meals the Whole Family Will Love [VIDEO]<\/a><\/p>\n Peas and Thank You on Facebook<\/a><\/p>\n