{"id":7824,"date":"2015-04-09T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-04-09T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/togethercounts.com\/get-your-kids-to-eat-veggiesreally\/"},"modified":"2015-04-09T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2015-04-09T00:00:00","slug":"get-your-kids-to-eat-veggiesreally","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/togethercounts.com\/es\/get-your-kids-to-eat-veggiesreally\/","title":{"rendered":"Get Your Kids To Eat Veggies\u2026Really!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Eat<\/a><\/p>\n

Are you having a difficult time with your child eating their vegetables?<\/p>\n

It can be puzzling how a child who has liked plenty of vegetables from the time they were just starting baby foods, turns around one day and thinks all vegetables are \u201cyucky\u201d!<\/p>\n

Soon kids realize that no matter how much they push their peas around on their plate, they just won\u2019t disappear! Then, they try to get the family dog to eat their food only to find out that it\u2019s not the most fool-proof plan either!<\/p>\n

Now, as parents, what are we to do?<\/p>\n

Our children don\u2019t know how important it is to eat vegetables; it\u2019s our job as parents to impart this wisdom upon them. Hopefully, we do so in a way that allows them to keep such healthy eating habits with them throughout life.<\/p>\n

The question is: How do we do this . . . with success? As with most issues, the \u201cAlmighty Parenting Guide\u201d seems to have left out the section with all the \u201cright answers.\u201d Unfortunately there is no one perfect solution so the best we can do is consider all of our options and choose the right one for our family.<\/p>\n

Here are some suggestions from parents who\u2019ve been there:<\/p>\n

Make up fun names.<\/strong><\/p>\n

You might consider re-naming vegetables to make them sound more fun to eat.\u00a0 For example, instead of green beans, you could call them \u201cgreener beaners\u201d.\u00a0 Broccoli is always a favorite as \u201clittle trees\u201d.\u00a0 At some point, you might want to tell your children the real name of the vegetable, so they aren\u2019t ordering greener beaners when they\u2019re 30.<\/p>\n

Cooking vegetables in different ways<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even with adults, sometimes it\u2019s not the food \u2013 it\u2019s the preparation.\u00a0 You might find that your kids like to eat raw carrots with ranch dressing, but they don\u2019t like cooked carrots. Grilled vegetables sometimes go over better than steamed vegetables.\u00a0 Of course, we don\u2019t want to get into the habit of running our kitchen like a restaurant, but the point is that if kids know that vegetables can be prepared in different ways, perhaps they will be less likely to swear off a vegetable after one experience with it.<\/p>\n

Hiding vegetables<\/strong><\/p>\n

Hiding vegetables in other foods that your kids like seems like a sure-fire way to get them their suggested daily serving. For example, you could chop up squash and zucchini and mix it in with macaroni and cheese.\u00a0 This option might not help our kids find a love of vegetables in the long run but is a quick fix to get them the nutrition they need to be healthy.<\/p>\n

Include your kids in the process!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Kids love to help! Take advantage of this fact. Giving kids ownership of what they are eating might prevent them from focusing on the \u201chealthy\u201d side of dinner. Another bonus, these cooking skills might just stick with them, so that when they are in college they aren\u2019t relying on the same meal over and over as their sole source of nourishment.<\/p>\n


\n<\/a> \"Shannon<\/a><\/em>Shannon Miller is the most decorated American gymnast in history and is the only female athlete inducted into the U.S. Olympics Hall of Fame – twice! Her tally of five medals at the 1992 Olympics was the most won by a U.S. athlete. At the 1996 Games, she led the \u201cMagnificent Seven\u201d to the U.S. Women’s first ever Team Gold and captured Gold on the Balance Beam for the first time for any American gymnast. Launching her company Shannon Miller Lifestyle: Health and Fitness for Women in 2010, Shannon is now a highly sought-after motivational speaker, advocate for the health and wellness of women and children and a proud partner of the Healthy Weight Commitment Foundation. As an Olympian, wife, mother and cancer survivor, Shannon is dedicated to helping women make their health a priority. Her memoir It\u2019s Not About Perfect: Competing For My Country and Fighting For My Life publishes April 21st! Please visit <\/em>http:\/\/www.shannonmiller.com\/<\/em><\/a> for more info on her upcoming book and other projects.<\/em><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

If you\u2019d like to read about more ways to get your kids getting more interested in their meals, take a look at these other articles.<\/strong><\/p>\n