Eating healthily is something that is probably difficult for you. Now that you have kids, you may feel an even greater desire to be healthy so that you can best help them live their best lives as well. Figuring out how to help your kids consume more vegetables will really vary according to your particular situation, but applying some of these ideas can help.
Give Them Options
According to the T.H. Chan School of Public Health, when you’re trying to help your children learn to love eating healthy, it’s important for them to be able to choose from a variety of healthy foods. While they simply might not like the taste of broccoli, they may actually love carrots.
Instead of trying to force your kids to eat vegetables, providing them with options won’t inadvertently enforce a conception of healthy foods as something akin to medicine—gross but necessary. When you give them options, they’ll be able to recognize certain healthy foods that they actually enjoy.
Add More Vegetables to Their Diet
Adding more vegetables to each meal is a great way to help them be healthier and learn to love healthy foods. Doing so will provide so many different health benefits to them. For example, according to Stellar Kids, vegetables can counteract the acidity of other foods like citrus. Additionally, having more vegetables in their diet will help their bodies more efficiently convert all their foods to energy.
When you have a variety of different vegetables on the table, they’ll start to build a habit and expectation of meals as something that involves eating vegetables. This single habit can have huge benefits if maintained over the course of their life.
Make Healthy Foods Fun
According to Diethood, one of the best and most obvious ways to help your children love healthy food is to simply make that food enjoyable to eat. Find ways to make delicious smoothies or have yummy chilled watermelon for your dessert after dinner.
In addition to trying to make healthy food fun, make sure to simply be an example to your children. If you’re able to truly love healthy food and model enjoying healthy meals, they’ll be willing to give it a try themselves.
Helping your kids learn to love healthy food will take time and consistent effort. As you work to incorporate healthy eating habits into your kids’ personal habits, be sure to zoom out occasionally. Recognize that it is not only important to help your kids embrace whole foods, but it is also essential to help them develop healthy relationships with food in general.
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