Keeping kids away from junk food can feel like keeping fish away from water. Whether it’s due to the way junk food is marketed – plastered with bright colours and recognisable characters – or simply due to its status as a treat, making it more fun, kids just prefer it to healthier options.
Don’t lose hope, though! There are always ways to change your little one’s mind about all things unhealthy.
While the following 5 tips may not work for all, they will certainly work for some:
1. Make food fun.
There’s a reason why junk food is so often in bright, colourful packaging. Kids love bright colours!
And what else are brightly coloured? Fruit and vegetables. Plating them in a way that appeals to your kid’s imagination might turn them from sources of anxiety into something fun. Colour is key!
Still, plating isn’t the only way that this can be done. By using cookie cutters, fruit and vegetables can transform entirely. After all, as said by Dr Desta Golden, MD, “Who wouldn’t love star-shaped radishes, zucchini hearts, or roasted sweet potato in the shape of a dinosaur?”
2. Model eating healthy food.
After a long day, it’s understandable that you’d prefer the quick boost that junk food provides to keep you upbeat and energised for your kid.
Still, there are few people in the world your kid admires more than you. This means they look to you for how to live their life in every way, from behaviour down to food choice.
So, eating healthy food with your kid makes them more likely to eat it as it normalises it to them. If their example is eating something, then they might as well try it, because their example is someone they want to be.
However, founder of Your Kid’s Table Alisha Grogan clarifies that when doing this, it’s best to avoid overemphasising what is going on. This can lead to your kid feeling pressured, associating the healthy food with a negative experience. This makes them less likely to try it in the future. Instead, it’s worth talking about the food more neutrally, explaining its texture and other facets that would help demystify it to the curious kid.
3. Get your child involved in the cooking process.
While the specific stage in the process depends on yourself and your kid, naturally, it can be helpful to get them involved. This can be in relation to food preparation, plating, or if your kid is old enough, the cooking itself.
In 2015, the BBC spoke to the co-founder of Flavour School, Dr Nicholas Wilkinson, who said that if kids “see what goes in there, they trust it more.” Being involved in the process makes them more invested, making them more likely to try it.
So, it’s worth encouraging their curiosity. An involved kid is an interested kid, and one who’ll likely be a bit more open-minded.
4. Be patient with yourself.
No matter how much you love your picky eater, dealing with their various tastes can be frustrating. That’s understandable. You want the best for your kid, which eating healthy can provide them, but they are still too young to get this.
And so, with this in mind, be kind to yourself. Sometimes even when you try your best, your kid may reject all the healthier options you provide them. This is frustrating, but it’s okay. Because there is always another day. One where they’re in a better mood, or more curious, or just feeling more open-minded.
So, look after yourself. Because when you do, you’re looking after them too.
5. Give the Veginom series a try.
Understanding the universal healthy eating issue, recent start-up Veginom will soon be releasing its children’s book series. This series is primarily for 5- to 7-year-olds which aims to do the seemingly impossible: make healthy eating cool.
Veginom covers the adventures of a varied cast of fruit and vegetable superheroes. All these superheroes have the same aim: to keep Food World happy, healthy, and free of the evil forces of the Junk Food! The series combines education and good morals with an unrelenting sense of fun, made especially memorable by its bouncy rhyming prose.
With each book focusing on one of the characters in its rich, developed world, your little one will be sure to find the hero that a-peels to them. No matter their gender or personality, likes or dislikes, one of its numerous cast will stand out to them!
While there’s no release date for Veginom yet, keep an eye on its site. Because this imaginative series is sure to help make dinnertime bunches of fun!
We at Veginom want to help you and your children’s health in any way we can! Promoting a healthy lifestyle is our goal for the future of today’s children. If you need any further assistance, then feel free to contact us here.