Getting Kids Used To Vegetables

Getting children to eat their vegetables might not be an endless battle if parents follow some research based advice from a nutrition expert at Kansas State University.

Pregnant rodents' eating habits and their offspring's taste preferences shows that children's tastes start being shaped while they are still in the womb. Studies also show that pregnant women who eat more foods with bitter polyphenolics, such as kale and Brussel sprouts, have children who are more receptive to them when they try them for the first time.

Infants can learn through repeated exposure and dietary variety. So focusing more on a child's willingness to consume a food rather than relying on the facial expressions they give when eating it. For example, some infants may frown at bitter vegetables, but if they still swallow the food, their desire toward the food can be increased over time by continuing to serve it to them.