The Philippine Online Chronicles

Many kids today somehow have an aversion to eating vegetables and fruits. Kids are usually drawn to hamburgers, fries, hotdogs, spaghetti, fried chicken, cakes, cookies, chocolates, chips and soda.  Sadly, processed food, junk food, calorie-rich food and fast food meals have become a staple diet of a lot of kids.  Unhealthy eating habits among children have led to health problems such as obesity and diabetes. In fact, overweight problems have become a prevailing concern among Filipino school-age children. There is also a worldwide rise of type 2 diabetes among children.

The Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) is imploring the cooperation of parents to help prevent health problems among children by promoting healthy eating habits. According to FNRI, a person should eat at least 2-3 servings of fruits daily. Fruits are rich sources of vitamin C, beta-carotene, and potassium that help build body resistance against diseases.

How do you get kids to enjoy eating fruits and vegetables?

Here are some ways to help children appreciate the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables.

1.      Introduce early healthy eating habits. -  The best time to teach children to eat fruits and vegetables is when they are babies. Parents can gradually introduce a baby to different fruits and vegetables as soon as the child is ready for table food.   Kids will more likely enjoy eating fruits and vegetables when they are constantly served to them as they grow up. Teaching your children healthy eating habits early on life will help them maintain a healthy lifestyle until they become adults.

2.      Involve the kids. – Involve the kids in planning your family meals.  This is a good way to know about your children’s food preferences. Listen to what they like and try to find ways to incorporate them as part of healthy meals. Bring the kids to the grocery and let them help out in picking the ingredients.  The colorful array of assorted fruits and vegetables is a lovely sight that even the toddlers will appreciate.  Make grocery shopping fun for the young ones.  Make a short grocery list for school-age kids and give them their own colored marker. They can tick the box each time they find an item on the list. If you have a colored printer, you can print a colorful grocery list or you can write down the list using colored pens. Make sure the list involves some fruits and vegetables. For younger kids, you can use a picture list. Accomplishing the list will give the kids a feeling of accomplishment and at the same time provide an opportunity to learn about good nutrition. Give kids a chance to help in the kitchen.  When they become involve in the process of preparing the meals, then they are more likely to eat the food served on the family table.

3.      Expose kids to the source of their food. – According to an article in PBS Parents, it is beneficial to teach kids where their food comes from. Aside from taking the kids to the grocery, you can also bring them to the local farmer’s market or even at the farm where crops are grown. They can meet a real farmer and have the chance to pick fresh fruits and vegetables that they could bring home. If you have a garden, you can try planting your own vegetables and fruits. Kids can help in the actual planting. Seeing the fruits of their labor grow and harvesting them later will be a fun and educational experience. Some of the easy to plant fruits include tomatoes, calamansi, papaya, melon, watermelon and banana. Some vegetables that are easy to grow include okra, bell pepper, eggplant, petchay, carrots, potatoes, cucumber and beans.

4.      Be creative in meal presentations. – Kids will more likely eat the food served to them when the food looks interesting. Cookie cutters are perfect in turning ordinary vegetables into fancy shapes such as stars, flowers and animals. Put some fun into their plates. For example, shape the rice using a small bowl and put it on the center of the place. Turn ordinary rice into a cute character by using olives for the eyes, a strip of green bell pepper for the mouth and mixed green peas, corn and carrots for the hair.  Most young kids are drawn to visually appealing food.  For school-age kids, fun bento boxes are a hit. They are both pleasing to the taste buds and the eyes.

5.      Try juice alternatives. – Juicing is a good way to give your kids a healthy dose of nutrients from fresh fruits and vegetables. If you have a juicer at home, you can combine different fruits or vegetables to make tasty and nutritional drinks.  Let the kids help by letting them put the fruits or vegetables in the juicer. You can also use a blender if you don’t have a juicer.  Here are some fruit and/or vegetable combinations worth trying: (1) 2 kiwi, 1 large red apple ( peeled, sliced and seeds removed) and 2 carrots; (2) 2 peeled oranges and ¼ pineapple (without the rind) and (3) 3 ribs celery and 2 red apples. Have fun experimenting with fruit and vegetable combinations.  Encourage your kids to drink healthy juices instead of soft drinks, artificially flavored juices and chocolate drinks.

6.      Teach kids about benefits of healthy foods. – Tell school-age kids about the nutritional value of specific food groups. Teach them about the benefits of vitamins and minerals to their bodies. Be specific with your examples.  For instance, tell kids that they can get Vitamin C when they eat papaya, tomatoes, peppers and cabbage. Teach them that Vitamin C will make their smiles more beautiful because it promotes healthy teeth and gums. You can also tell kids that Vitamin C will help wounds heal faster and make them more resistant to infection and common colds.  Another example is the green leafy vegetable kangkong (also called water spinach or swamp cabbage). It has been coined as a “poor man’s vegetable” but it is actually rich in carotene, vitamins and minerals.

7.      Cut down on unhealthy foods. – Stir your kids away from unhealthy foods like fastfood meals, processed and junk food. Many kids enjoy eating hamburger and fries in fastfood restaurants. Some are drawn to fastfood chains because of promotional items such as toys. Parents should know that certain studies claim that children ages 2 to 12 who regularly eat fast food meals are more prone to overweight problems. Help curb your kids’ preference for fastfood and junk food by keeping ready to eat nutritional food within reach of the kids.  Put bite-size pieces of fresh fruits and vegetables such as grapes, sliced or cubed carrots, cucumbers, watermelons, melons and mangoes inside the refrigerator where kids can easily get them when they get hungry.  (Supervise kids ages 4 and below when eating. Cut round fruits into quarters for very young kids to avoid choking.) Avoid buying chips and soda for snack.  Refrain from eating at fastfood chains and select healthier items on the menu when dining out with the family.

8.      Be a good role model. - Eat the same healthy meals that you serve to your kids. Show them how much you love to eat fruits and vegetables to entice them to do the same. When you’re eating in a restaurant, order healthy dishes on the menu and refrain from ordering fatty and fried foods. Kids are likely to develop the taste for the food that their parents enjoy eating. In the same manner that kids are likely to develop an aversion for certain food that their parents dislike. Be a good example to your kids by consciously choosing healthy meals instead of fast food meals, processed and junk foods.

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Rachel Yapchiongco, also known as Rach to her friends, is a Psychology and Marketing Management graduate of De La Salle University.  She took up several units of MBA at the same university.  Rachel is a full-time mom to a charming young boy and married to an entrepreneur with a passion for cooking. She shares parenting experiences and slices of everyday life on her personal blog called Heart of Rachel.