Boy vs. Broccoli

Q: My 5-year-old son hates vegetables. How do I ensure he gets the nutrients he needs?

A: Surprisingly, this is a very loaded question. Although I’m not a parent myself, I have plenty of friends who are, and I see the struggles and tantrums that can occur at mealtime. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve held my tongue as macaroni and cheese was served for more than one meal in a given day simply because it’s what the child wanted.

Honestly, a child of 5 should not be dictating the food that is served at mealtime. Studies have shown that couples with children are more likely to be overweight and have high cholesterol than those without children primarily because they cave to the foods that children often prefer.

Take back the plate. Serve the things that you know are healthy and that are prepared in a healthy way. Be creative. If he doesn’t like broccoli, instead of eliminating it from the table completely, run a fun day of taste-testing. Experiment with him about what makes broccoli taste better. Does he like it when it is raw or when it is cooked? Does he like it with cheese?

Parenting is a tough job, but making compromises to make things easier in the short-term never really pays off in the long-run. If you are buying the food, cooking the food, and putting it on the table, one thing is certain: Your child will not starve.

Dr. Brent Ridge is the health expert for Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. You can call and ask him a question live every Tuesday at 2 p.m. Eastern on Sirius Satellite Radio, Channel 112 (1.866.675.6675). You can also follow along as he learns to grow his own food and raise goats on his farm in upstate New York by visiting www.beekman1802.com.

Got a health question for Dr. Brent? E-mail him at drbrent@care2.com.

Read more: Diet & Nutrition, Health, Children, parenting, vegetables

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Flora W.

5:25AM PDT on Apr 21, 2011

I think it's very important not to turn mealtimes into a power struggle. If your child does not like something s/he does not like it. Simple. I always encouraged my son to try things he did not like and he now eats everything (except broccoli funnily enough). I was advised to start giving him solids at 6 weeks (very frowned upon I know) as he was not getting enough nutrients from my milk, so blended up carrot and celery which he loved. He was a vegetarian til he was 10 tho so there wasn't any getting away from veg! However he is now healthy and understands nutrition and why he was not allowed biscuits, chocolate, sweets or squash/fizzy drinks til he was 7 and thanks me for it. Too many parents are unwittingly, literally poisoning their kids through lack of knowledge (have you looked at the ingredients of a chicken nugget? Terrifying).. but there are so many healthy eating/cooking groups springing up all over that that is not really an excuse any more

send a green star

5:39AM PDT on Apr 12, 2010

Thanks! My baby hates broccoli and I was wondering how to make her eat them!

11:52PM PDT on Apr 10, 2010

KIDS WILL BE KIDS! PARENTS HAVE TO HAVE RULES WITH FOOD FOR GREAT HEALTH FOR THEIR KIDS!

Past Member .

2:32AM PDT on Jun 15, 2009

thanks...
Kabin

Konteyner

Josephine F.

6:26AM PDT on Oct 26, 2008

my family do not like steamed veges. but lately i got a recipe from a friend that helped me to use veges.
boil veges in a small amount of water for some minutes.when nearly cooked put some mecoroni{pasta} together with the veges.
beat 2 eggs + some grated cheese + a pinch of salt and pepper to taste.
bake for 20 minutes in a moderate oven.

Maria C.

2:19PM PDT on Oct 25, 2008

Children must begin - very early in age - to get acquainted with the various flavours of food. In Europe pediatricians say to give 4 month babies the first potatoes, then carrots, then spinach at a rate of 1 new flavour a week. At 5th month you can introduce fish and fruit - like pear or cooked apple. Food flavours should be more and more complex as the babies grow. Don't give babies salt or sugar because these two elements are already present in almost every natural food.

Nick S.

6:49PM PDT on Oct 24, 2008

had the same problem , until I steam them and
not over steam them, make them taste 80% better
in his case I would the chop it real small pieces and
put in food he like ! like mac+ cheese

Mario G.

3:12PM PDT on Oct 24, 2008

Kids do what they see their parents do and not so much what they are told. They will follow a good example. The problem is that parents do not provide either a good example or a united front on issues. The problem is mostly not the kids but the parents. Parents do it right and you will not have a problem with your children.

3:09PM PDT on Oct 24, 2008

I am close to 70 years old. I grew up on a farm and we always had more vegetables than most people today ever heard of. All four of us children never had a problem with anything that was put before us. Mom was a very good cook and everything she prepared always tasted good. We were always following the model of both of our parents who ate everything on the planet, so to speak, and relished it. We were never ordered to eat this or that and threatened and punished for not eating anything. For us we were always told that nothing that was served would harm us. We were told that everything had a nutritional value and was essential for our health. The concept was a well rounded out, balanced nutrition. We were taught to think of things in terms of benefiting us. We were always told that mom and dad ate everything and it did them good....that the family rule was that we had to eat a little bit of everything put before us. We were given choices of what condiments that we had in the house like butter, gravey, mustard, olive oil, ketchup, homemade slad dressing to eat with the things we liked the least and make it so that we could like it. If we did not like it cooked we could have it raw but we still were encouraged to do whatever we felt best to make it work for us. To this day we all have grown up familys with grand children who eat everything before them. Because of eating good healthy foods we are not snack food families. We do not like the taste of processed foods.Kids d

Debrah R.

12:49PM PDT on Oct 24, 2008

I am a mom of 3 adults and grandma of 3 --it does not harm them in them least to be in charge of meals! Certainly there should not be a power struggle over food but that does not mean letting the kids decide. I talked with my kids about the importance of eating at least 1 whole grain, 1 type of protein, 1 green food and 1 orange or yellow food every day. They could help choose other vegeys if they did not like a particular one. Of course if they grow up eating a variety of organic foods they will like almost everything--it is not true that kids do not like vegeys! Mine always loved broccoli but were not too crazy about kale--so I would often prepare both, I could eat kale and they could eat broccoli. If they did not want to eat anything I prepared they could go without--they won't starve! Yes, they complained at times since their friends got to eat junk food but now they thank me since they are all slim and fit while many of their friends struggle with weight and health issues(and only in their 20's!) I NEVER used their weight as a way to get them to eat healthy though--most of the girls we know who have emotional problems/eating disorders lived in homes where being thin was valued more than health yet mostly junk was served.
I did find an oganic ranch dressing which my grandkids like --they will eat almost any vegey with the ranch!
Also, if you are planning to have a baby or are pregnant--breast feed your baby--there is absolutely no better way to give your child a health