Tips on getting kids to eat their veggies
If sneaking vegetables into meals is counterproductive, then what's a kosher way to get your kids to eat them willingly? Here are some pointers from veteran food behavior researcher Leann Birch of Pennsylvania State University.
* Be persistent. Birch's studies have found that kids need repeated exposures to food to develop a taste for them -- in one landmark experiment she conducted with preschoolers, it took at least 10 exposures over a period of several weeks. Don't give up.
* Set a good example by eating the vegetable yourself. "You need to let them see you eating it and liking it," Birch says.
* Be matter-of-fact. Many parents unwittingly short-circuit their efforts, appearing shocked when kids eat the vegetables on their plate and making comments such as, "That's amazing! I can't believe you ate that." This makes kids feel like they did something weird.
* Don't punish kids for not finishing the vegetables on their plate. It simply reinforces a negative association with vegetables.
* Don't offer rewards such as ice cream or television for finishing vegetables -- it makes kids believe that vegetables are something that must be endured, not enjoyed.
A couple of landmark studies that Birch conducted in the 1980s -- ones still cited by nutritionists today -- shoot down these punish-or-bribe tactics.
One, published in the journal Child Development in 1984, showed that when 45 preschool kids were offered rewards such as a movie if they drank flavored, milk-based beverages, they tended to rank that beverage lower in terms of preference. And when they were made to drink more of it than was comfortable for them, they tended to prefer it less.
The same was true in another study in which a dozen 3- to 6-year-olds were told they could ride a tricycle if they finished drinking some juice. For most of the participants, the juice was deemed less appealing after the trial.
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Melinda Fulmer
