Get Kids to Eat More Veggies

Anticipating mealtime battles now that the new USDA dietary guidelines suggest half our plates be filled with fruits and vegetables? Getting kids to eat more veggies doesn't have to be a fight. It can feel intimidating, but you can do it, says certified nutritionist Julie Negrin, MS, author of Easy Meals to Cook With Kids. Here are creative ways to introduce and serve vegetables.

Take them to a farmers market or grocery and have them pick out a veggie. Let them wash, peel, and slice it and help choose how to cook and flavor it. "Get them to touch it and smell it," says Negrin. "Having them see how the food is prepared makes them less intimidated. Having a sense of ownership makes them more likely to eat it."

If your child already likes plain pizza, see if she'll try adding a single veggie topping. Some kids don't like to mix foods -- especially messing with a food they think is already perfect. But some kids will be willing to experiment. Try setting up bowls of veggies for pizza night, taco night, or salad night, and let the family go wild. Kids may be tempted by the selection and fun of it being hands-on.

For a young child, making faces with cut-up veggies may help get them from his plate to his mouth. Calling broccoli "trees" or cauliflower "brains" can make them much less intimidating. Making food mini-sized also can make it more kid-friendly. "Oftentimes, it's the entertainment behind it," says clinical pediatric dietitian Marilyn Tanner-Blasiar, MHS, RD, LD, of St. Louis Children's Hospital. "It's the exploration -- making it fun."

When you're frustrated that your child won't try a veggie, it can be tempting to get mad or force her to clean her plate. Experts say forcing a child to eat something can cause them to avoid eating it, even as adults. "You never want to force feed because you don’t want it become an emotional drama," says dietician Tanner-Blasiar. "Don’t react one way or another. There are going to be things that they're not going to eat."