How to Get Your Baby to Like Vegetables

Today I'm going to share with you 12 ways to get your little one to like more vegetables. All these tips are backed in research, and I can't wait to share them with you. Alright, let's do this! My name is Lindsay, and welcome to the Little Foundations Channel, where I help parents and caregivers create healthy habits for their babies from the very start.

Let's jump right in with number one. I want you to keep it real, and I want you to keep your baby really involved. That means you want your baby to be a part of every step of this. We don't want the food to just show up on the table or show up on their tray. We want them to see every step in between. So, we want them to go to the garden with us or go to the supermarket. We want them to be a part of putting the food away or washing it. When they're older, they can be a part of the cooking, serving, and cleaning up. If your baby is a little bit older and they can understand things like "Let's count four potatoes" or "Let's look for the biggest broccoli," they can help you with those things. It doesn't mean they have to eat it, but they're still involved in all the food activities. They can help you hold the food in the cart or wash it off in the sink. All of this helps them see the real foods that you keep in your house that they will be exposed to as they grow up.

Number two is to have them out. Have cut-up pieces of vegetables around all the time. That means when you're cooking and prepping food, and your baby might be asking for a snack, you will have some prepped vegetables right there. If your baby's hungry and they see it out, it makes it a little bit more exciting. It can be a snack that's right out on the counter that they might want to grab. The other part of this is that we want to make it a non-negotiable that as your baby gets older, they have a little bit of everything that's served. So, if you have some vegetables with your meal, make sure they're safe for your baby, and give your baby at least a little bit of what the rest of the family is eating. If you start this habit from the very beginning, they will know that this is to be expected. It doesn't mean they have to eat it; it means it's going to live on their tray, and they can play with it and explore it if they want.

This leads us to number three: build things, play with your food. I know that some people don't want their babies to play with food, and we worry that if they play too much, they won't actually eat. But really, it's the reverse. If we let our babies play with food, get exposed, get messy, and experiment, they'll actually be more comfortable around the food and more interested in it. If it's new and it feels off-limits to touch, it's going to make them a little bit more hesitant. So, this can be a really fun activity, especially as you're introducing new foods. You can make shapes and letters, spell their name, count, write numbers, or build houses. Stack up foods in a tower or make funny faces on their tray with different shapes of food. There are so many things you can do to take the pressure off, so they don't feel they have to eat it, but it's going to feel so familiar that they're going to want to pop that in their mouth on their own.

Number four, cook them. Cook your vegetables. Many vegetables will have to be cooked for your baby in the beginning to keep them safe. So, don't be afraid to cook them and put salt and seasonings on them. When the food tastes better, your baby is going to be more interested to try it. But if the food is too hard for them, it can potentially be unsafe. So, in the beginning, when they're still learning to eat, we're going to make sure we're cooking the food and keeping it soft enough for them to manage. We're going to be cooking for the whole family, so you might as well put salt, pepper, and all your regular seasonings on there. Your baby can have those things, and they will like things that taste even better.

Number five is no tricks. Many parents and caregivers ask me how they can sneak in more vegetables. Here's my thought on that: I don't like the word "sneak." I want your babies to eat the food that you eat. So yes, there will be many things that will have vegetables baked or cooked into them. They will be a part of the meals that you eat, and it's great for your baby's body to be exposed to those foods. It's going to give them a great experience and the flavor of those vegetables that we're trying to introduce. We have great recipes where we can include vegetables, but I don't like sneaking in that way where we're covering it with something or doing it when they're not looking. We don't want to lose our baby's trust. Sneaking it in can make them feel like they're not in control of their food. So, yes, it's important to have a rich diet with things you and your family are eating, but let's not sneak it in. Let's keep the food real and be honest with them.

Alright, tip number seven on how to get your baby to like more vegetables is actually for you to play it cool. I know we desperately want our baby to be healthy and have a varied diet of many different foods, but we can't wear our emotions on our face when we're disappointed if they don't like something. We want to give your baby a healthy relationship with food, and if we start to look disappointed, angry, or negotiate with them, we can head down the wrong path. I don't negotiate with babies. I don't use words like "just" or say things like "just try it" or "just have a bite" or "it's just broccoli." That negotiating back and forth can really start us down the wrong path. It's okay if your baby doesn't like it at first. We're going to follow these tips, and we're going to keep at it.

This goes right into number eight: don't force your baby. All of this is so that they can make the decision of when they want to eat it. If we continue to show them in a happy and positive way, they're more willing to eat it. If we force them or negotiate or battle every time we have a meal, it's going to make them more nervous, more controlling, and even pickier. I know you want the best for your baby, but promise me that you're not going to force it.

Number nine, talk about foods. We want to talk about food in a positive way, not in hopes that they're going to eat it in that second. We can read books and talk about food, talk about the superpowers that vegetables and fruits have. We can talk about why they're good for us and how they help our eyes, bones, or brain. There are so many things we can do to talk about vegetables in a happy way. Talking about food in the market and in your home will help them be more comfortable. It's exciting for them to think about there being foods that have these great powers. But again, we're not forcing it. We are introducing the topic.

Number 10 is what I call "tasting time". There are probably things that you and other people in your house don't like to eat all the time or are still learning to like. So, as your baby gets older, it's important for them to see that it's okay if we don't like everything, that we can still learn to play with it, explore it, and taste it every once in a while. So, a routine we have in our house is that we like to go to farmers' markets and stores that sell unique foods that we don't usually see. We like to try new fruits and vegetables from other countries. We eat them together and see what we like, and we see things that maybe we're still learning to like. It's important for your baby, especially as they get older, to see that it's okay if we don't like things at first, that we can still have them around, play with them, and taste them.

This goes right into number 11: the most important thing I can tell you about getting your child to like more vegetables or like new foods is exposure. That is the biggest thing that research shows us. The more that we expose our babies to real foods that we have in our house, over time, those repetitions pay off. It doesn't mean they're going to like it after the first time they see it, but it means that when we continue to expose our baby, not only in their chair at the table but in the market, in the kitchen, in the garden, talking about foods, exposing them in many different ways, the more likely they will be to eat it.

And that takes us to number 12: keep trying and don't stress. I know it's hard, and I know you want your baby to be healthy. I tell parents and caregivers that teaching your baby to like new foods and new vegetables is like building a muscle. You can't build a muscle overnight, and there are many ways to build muscles. The most important thing is that we have that repeated exposure to build that muscle. We are involving them in the food, we are exposing them, we are taking the pressure off, we're talking about food, we're playing with it, we're giving them our food every single day, as long as it's safe. We're giving them the chance to explore. The research shows us that when we let go of that control, when we give our baby the exposure to many different foods many times, it will pay off, and your baby gets to play with food, see it, talk about it, and experience it without the pressure. They will become more interested and excited about eating those new foods, even vegetables. You're doing a great job. I'm here for you, and we are in this together.

For more baby feeding tips, check this one.