"Sneaking" veggies into foods

I recently bought a cookbook at a used bookstore - Deceptively Delicious, by Jessica Seinfeld. I took it home and it has tons of ideas about how to make typical kid fare healthy without kids even knowing it. She uses a number of different purees, and there are ideas like this all over Pinterest, from substituting applesauce for oil or adding carrots and spinach to muffins, to using butternut squash and cauliflower to "healthify" pasta sauces.

All of these can be great ways to boost nutrient content in our kids' food, and can be an easy way to add vegetables, which are often lacking. I add things to food I make all the time! I have also been known to completely puree certain soups so that my kids won't see the dreaded onions (or beans, or celery, or whatever is "dreaded" at the time). However, before you start filling up your freezer with beet and spinach purees, consider the following three points about being "sneaky:" 

1. Kids need fat. 

The fat requirement for children is a much higher proportion of their intake than it is for adults. Even if you feel like you need to cut back on fat and oil, using "low fat" or "lite" options, your kids most likely don't. Now this doesn't mean that a diet of deep fried chicken and French fries is healthy, but it does mean if your child has a generally healthy diet, constantly trying to eliminate fats and oils may do more harm than good for their growing bodies. 

2. The trust between you and your child regarding feeding is hard-earned and even harder to win back.

If your child refuses to eat broccoli and they catch you trying to sneak it into a snack, they will be even less likely to try it on their own, and they will suspect every food you put in front of them. The whole feeding relationship is built on trust - your child trusts you to provide regular, healthy meals and snacks, and you trust that your child will eat what they need. When you try and "sneak" them foods they are scared of, it is a breach of that trust, and they will respond by shutting down. So what do you do? By all means, still put that broccoli into a muffin, or avocados into chocolate pudding, but if your child asks, be open about it! And then, of course, give them the option of whether or not to eat it. You don't necessarily have to announce "THIS IS A BEET-CARROT-BRUSSELS SPROUT COOKIE" - that might send anyone running! But you don't want to seem to your child to be going behind their back. Many kids, if they truly sense you aren't trying to push them, will be open to trying new ways of eating. Try saying, "I know you haven't liked steamed spinach, but maybe you'll like it in this smoothie. Want to give it a try?"

3. Still present whole vegetables

Even if your child eats enough pureed vegetables to meet their needs for a week, you still want to give them the option a few times a day to eat whole vegetables, raw or cooked. They may love spinach in a smoothie, but if you eventually want them to eat a salad, you will have to allow them to see spinach leaves on their plate - to smell and taste and handle them in their original form. 

So, in summary, please continue (or start!) bulking up your meals with vegetables - Americans are dreadfully low on veggie intake - but while you do, don't forget to not overdo fat elimination, maintain that trusting relationship above all else, and make opportunities to give them whole produce, as well. 

Happy blending!

Preventing Picky Eaters - workshop 2

Happy Easter! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend with their families. We are excited to clear out all the sugar craziness around here!

Last week was our second installment of the Feeding Healthy Kids workshop series. Here is a quick rundown of tips for preventing picky eaters, based on age. Remember to lean on that Division of Responsibility!

Newborn

• Feed on demand - parents decide what (breastmilk or formula), baby decides when, where, how much

6 Months

• Offer food, but don't force or trick them to eat it. Distracting them will work in the short-term, but will sabotage you later!
• If baby rejects the food 3 times in one sitting, put it away and try it again at another meal.
• Babies still get most of their calories and nutrients from breastmilk or formula for the first year, so the biggest goal in feeding solids is to expose them to foods and help them be physically and psychologically ready to eat solids.
• Expect messes! They are not only inevitable, but important for development.
• Playing with food and other "messy" things (sand, play dough, etc.) helps kids accept textures in their food. Find ways to expose your baby to playful situations with textures.
• This should be fun! Think of it as a conversation, and allow yourself to enjoy your baby during feeding.

Toddlers

• A normal toddler is a picky eater. Most pickiness is normal in this stage, and you can generally just look past it!
• Ignore some silliness - most things they will just grow out of. Save your energy and pick your battles!
• You can accommodate some preferences (broken crackers, cup color, food cooked a certain way) but cut it off when it starts becoming a burden
• Be kind but firm - no short order cooking. Some tantrums will happen :)
• Give some choices (do you want a banana or an apple?)
• Give small portions

Preschoolers

• Get them involved with their food! Have them help cook, pick things out at the store, look through cookbooks, etc.
• Start talking about hunger/fullness, nutrition in a non-threatening way

When to seek help

• Child starts losing weight
• List of "acceptable foods" keeps getting smaller and smaller
• Severe emotional or physical reactions to foods
• If you think it may be due to immature oral skills or sensory issues
• An occupational or physical therapist can help your child develop skills needed to be able to eat food with confidence

This is just the bare bones of what we talked about this week! Let me know if you have any questions! And please join us next time, April 16, for our final workshop!