What we surround ourselves with makes a huge difference in the habits that we fall into. If you want your kids to eat fruits and vegetables one important thing to do is to create an environment that encourages this goal. How do you go about doing this? Stock your kitchen full of colourful fruits and vegetables, be sure to have some washed and ready to eat! Set a habit of making produce a part of every meal and every snack. The earlier you set this habit with your children the better! The goal is to make eating fruits and vegetables a normal and expected part of their meals and snacks. This will help avoid some of the typical struggles with picky eating! This isn’t to say that the cause of all picky eating is habits! I know firsthand that there are multiple reasons for picky eating. However I do believe that the eating habits that are established at a young age play a big part!
I was curious about the eating habits of children that are raised Vegan and Vegetarian…where eating fruits and vegetables is a big part of every meal not a side dish…are there less issues with picky eating? I asked Ruby Roth, a Vegan Mom, teacher and children’s book author what her thoughts were on this subject. She said “As far as picky eaters go, it seems like parents who raise their children vegetarian or vegan from birth actually have an easier time than omnivorous families do incorporating greens and vegetables into their family’s daily diet. Our little one, born and raised vegan and mostly raw, was sucking on sprigs of chives when she was two! Chives are the kind of thing that most parents think a kid would pick off their food, but my experience is that what a kid likes to eat depends on what has been normalized in the household.”(...) Author: Kia Robertson
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