My two-year old will only eat pureed green beans, and sometimes if we're lucky, babyfood pears and peaches. Are there any tricks to getting him to try fresh fruits and veggies? We have been trying everyday for over a year. The only success we have had is with smoothies and dry/freeze dried goodies.
Thank you for all of your advice. After reading your suggestions, I realized we were on the right track. He is occasionally eating the babyfood veggies. With your suggestions, my son is loving the sweet potato chips (husband too). I also found plantain chips at Trader Joe's. We have tried smoothies, and even carrot juice. I also found the veggie burger california burger, which is full of veggies. Now I need to go buy that book Deceptively Delicious. My son is becoming more open to trying new things in the meantime. Your help is greatly appreciated.
I know this sounds goofy, C., but here goes...I'm 54, and I wouldn't eat my veggies. I even remember being in my high chair and pushing away the dreaded peas! However, my mom put my veggies and fruit in Jello and I ate them. I don't like Jello any more, but I now love veggies. So I guess it's worth a shot!
E. Black
Try blueberries or other "finger food" fruits that are easy on the go. My 2 -year old also loves the California Clementines "cuties" - they're like tangerines but small, easy to peel, seedless and sweet. I have him help peel it and pull the sections apart, which is fun. Also, I just found a new way to get him to eat bites of something he's not interested in: I hold a bite between my thumb and index finger and tease him by saying, "don't bite my finger!!!" which he a wants to do, and will eat the food in a playful attempt to bite mommy. Silly, but it's working!
C.-
It's not unusual for preemies to have difficulty coordinating their tongues to learn to eat. It seems your little one is sensitive to textures, an indication that there is still some maturation issues with the tongue, or possibly palate issues. It might be good to talk to your pediatrician.
S.
Hello C.,
My daughter is 2 1/2 and she is more willing to eat food that she has helped me make. We make sweet potato "chips" in the oven that she LOVES. She also loves freeze-dried fruit. I also put a big variety of fruits and veggies on her tray each meal. She loves tomatoes, but only if I mix a tiny bit of mayo with them in a bowl. She will eat anything she thinks is just for Daddy (big-time Daddy's girl) so I have Daddy "share" with her. I found a Raleys here in Sacramento that carries a brand of freeze-dried fruit in the produce section. We do buy some dried fruit, but most have added sugar. My friend's twin boys won't eat much fresh fruits & veggies, so she make fruit smoothies and veggie juices. Just keep trying.
Good luck!
L.
There is the book by Jessica Seinfeld, "Deceptively Delicious". It sounds like a lot of work to do the preparations however.
Hi, My son is 3 1/2 years old. He will eat fruit but no veggies, his pediatrician suggested v-8 fusion juice. He loves it. They tend to be little thick so the only one he likes is the blueberry pamagranite. He drinks at least 2-3 cups a day. I hope this helps.
Have you read The Sneaky Chef by Jessica Seinfeld? It incorporates pureed veggies and fruits in "kid" recipes. I work full time too and make the purees on the weekend and freeze them in 0.5cup portions to use when I need them. My 3yo daughter loves fruits, but veggies are a whole different story. She loves the alphabet soup recipe. I usually serve it with other whole veggies too and ask her to try them. Granted she may not always eat the visible vegetables all the time, but at least I know she is getting some. I also try to have her try something new when she is really hungry. Have you tried putting veggies and/or fruit and have your son make silly food faces (blueberry eyes, cherry tomato nose, etc)? This technique can be tricky though because some kids tend to play more with the veggies/fruit then eat them. Keep trying and don't get discouraged. My doctor told me that it may 10, 15, maybe 20+ times before a kid will eat something new. Hope this helps. :)
I started my family on a gummy or chewable product called Juice Plus almost 3 years ago. It is all whole food based, the fiber, juice and pulp of the fruits and veggies. It is backed by research and I have even had my own blood tested to be sure. My 3 kids have not had a cold or flu in almost 3 years and my asthmatic son is drug free for more than 2 years. If you are interested in hearing about the product, please call or email me at ###-###-#### or ____@____.com. I'm here in Lafayette and swear by the product! A.
My daughter loves fruit, but not veggies. Ironically though, she will eat vegetable soup, and tomato soup.Have you tried that? Try mixing pureed cauliflower in mashed potatoes, maybe he will eat sweet potato fries? There are juices out there as well that have veggies hidden in them! Good luck
What other foods does your child eat? It might help to find out what textures he likes. Maybe start making purees at home from fresh fruits and veggies. This does two things.
1. It gives him a closer approximation to the taste of fresh stuff to make the transition easier.
2. You have the ability to control how chunky or smooth to make it an easier transition for your toddler. You may even be able to sneak in small bits of completely uncooked fruits and veggies.
M
hi. my 3yr old daughter wouldn't do veggies till we had a garden and she got to water and see them grow. this personal connection seems to work with many kids. they enjoy eating something they have nurtured and that is their own. you can even grow in a pot in the window and help them water. fun for you too. good luck.
What else are you offering your babe to eat? Does the rest of your family eat fruits & veggies? (believe it or not, I have met plenty of parents who insist that their kids eat them, but they won't touch the stuff!)
And have you tried cooked fruit & veggies (baked apples, carrots, potatoes)? One thing you could try is grating up veggies & putting them in sauce, like spaghetti sauce (grated carrot, zucchini, that sort of thing). Try baby carrots with a yogurt or ranch dip...just keep offering two or three choices at meals.
I would stay away from offering any dried fruit, (freeze-dried isn't as bad) unless you treat it like candy. It usually has added sugar, and has much less nutrition than fresh, frozen or cooked fruits & veggies. Plus, you have to make sure you brush his teeth really well, to get the sticky stuff off!
In general, I would recommend helping him develop a taste for things other than sweet stuff...by giving a child a sweet v-8 fusion juice, and no other veggies, they will not be used to it & probably won't want to develop a taste for it, as he gets older & learns to assert his independence more & more.
My son is a great fruit & veggie eater in general, but at times we have to insist that he eat a balance of foods, & won't give him more of his entree, or snacks, if he won't eat a minimum of at least some bites of his fruit & veggie choices. We do a lot of fresh fruit for snacks. We also tried giving him chinese food veggie mix with tofu, he loved the sauce, so he started liking to eat the veggies & tofu more & more. Cheddar cheese sauce on broccoli & cauliflower, yum. We kept trying different sauces on broccoli until we hit one that our son liked, & we learned that he didn't like frozen broccoli, but would eat fresh, cooked broccoli with no problem.
Maybe try making some green bean casserole, since your guy will eat bean puree...??
Just be creative! Try to keep it fun. Good luck!
My two and a half year old eats fruit (mainly apples, bananas, oranges and strawberries), but the only veggie she'll eat is carrots. I got a book "deceptively delicious" that has recipes on "sneaking" in veggies into things like pancakes, muffins, etc and so far they've worked (I've tried the pancakes, muffins and cookie recipes) with my daughter. Good luck!
My son (now 13) ate like this as well. It turned out he had lack of nerve endings in his mouth! He only wanted to eat baby food (jar) for two years, and then went onto eat crunchy, salty things. Now he won't eat much of anything creamy (with the exception of cream soups and mashed potatoes)--he's really a texture kid. He also didn't get his teeth as quickly as others (he was also an early delivery). What I did was line up very small foods on his tray, cherrio, blueberry, peeled grape (maybe cut in half), piece of bagel or bread, piece of chicken, steamed veggie (brocolli, carrot, etc.), banana. I would make a game of it, often sing song, etc. I know this sounds like a lot of work, but he eventually started eating the stuff we wanted him to eat. Good luck!
My son, now 3yrs old, has had the same problem. I try to sneak veggies in where ever I can. I shred carrots and zuccini and put it in turkey burger or meat balls. Also spinach in scrambled eggs. Will he eat spagetti? Spagetti sauce is a great place to add pureed veggies. As for fruit, smoothies are great. I have also given the green planet juice. Keep trying he will eventually come around. My son will now eat broccoli because giraffes eat trees.
He may have some sensory issues, not uncommon in x premies. Have you mentioned this to your prediatrician?
I've had good luck cooking them with a little butter and chicken stock.
I tried this last year with my son, who was having the same issue. When he wouldn't eat his veggies we booed (like at a sporting event). When he did eat one, we would cheer and clap enthusiastically. This got him to eat them. This may sound silly but it worked.
Good luck!
My son was the same way. The only thing green he would eat was peas! I started having him eat Juice Plus+ chewables about 8 months ago and now he eats lots of veggies. Fruits were never really a problem. I became a distributor shortly after I started him on the chewables. They also have gummies. Let me know if you want more info, it is a really great product and my whole family is on it.
Hi C.,
A good friend of mine recently gave me the book Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld (yes, Jerry Seinfeld's wife). This cookbook is all about helping parents feed their children healthful foods. The idea is to add pureed veggies and other healthful additions to classic favorites, like mac & cheese, pancakes, taco, burgers, chicken nuggets & even dessert, and boost your families nutritional intake. I have tried several recipes, all have been great, and my kids (& husband) didn't know about the secret ingredients.
I have recently seen this cookbook at Costco.
There is a book out about how to sneak veggies and good things into all of the foods that kids love (I don't know the name, sorry). If your son is resistant to knowingly eating these things, make sure you get them in somehow. He'll come around one day, but for now don't make it a struggle...just keep introducing them like you are. And it might help for him to see other kids eating fruits and veggies.
there are wonderful books out on making food fun that you can find at the library or probabily online as well that are all about fun LOOKING meals and how to make it fun for your kids. (A girlfriend turned me on to those) Its been so long though I can't remember the name but it was meals or recipies, something in that general area. What worked with mine, honestly was dipping sauce. It doesn't matter what the sauce is its the fun they have doing it. You might try yogert for the fruit and something sweet for the veggies. Anyway good luck!!!!
