Introducing vegetables early and often to your baby's diet is a crucial step towards establishing healthy eating habits. But, as any parent knows, this can sometimes be a challenging endeavor.
It doesn’t matter how much JJ from Cocomelon sings about eating your peas, your baby is most likely more into the song than the peas themselves. At Kekoa Foods, we're all about helping you nurture your baby's palate and cultivating a love for wholesome, nutritious food. This includes making mealtime fun, and consistently experimenting with new textures and flavors.
Here are some tips and tricks to encourage your little ones to embrace the wonderful world of vegetables. After applying these tips, your baby or toddler might actually WANT to eat their peas, just like JJ!
Gradual Introduction
Offer a small amount of vegetable puree once a day initially. You can gradually increase the frequency and quantity as your baby becomes more comfortable with eating solid foods. We recommend starting with one of the Kekoa Foods’ Starter Packs.
Variety is Key
Expose your baby to a range of vegetable flavors and textures, from pureed peas to steamed broccoli florets. This will help them adapt to different tastes and increase their acceptance over time. Kekoa Foods’ baby pouches focus on pairing flavors that expand babies’ palates at an early age. Take our Curry Vegetable Mango baby food puree as an example, the expanded flavors from garlic and spices further develop your child’s palate and support their transition to table food.
Be Persistent
If at first, you don't succeed, try, try again. Research shows it may take up to 10 tries before a baby accepts a new food. So, keep offering those veggies! Exposing your baby to a variety of flavors with baby food pouches is the perfect place to start.
Lead by Example
Babies learn by watching their parents. Make sure they see you eating and enjoying vegetables. This makes them more likely to want to try them. It’s really a win-win for everyone. We can all find ways to incorporate more vegetables into our diet. If it sets an example for our kids to do the same, even better.
Make it Fun
Present vegetables in engaging ways. For example, use cookie cutters to create fun shapes or serve a colorful variety of veggies to make a "rainbow" on their plate. Firm vegetables like cucumbers, carrots and zucchini work best. These veggie shapes are a pre-school lunch box favorite!
Mix and Match
Combine vegetables with other foods your baby already enjoys. For instance, add finely chopped veggies to their favorite whole grain cereal or stir some into a scrambled egg. Hey, this trick works for adults too.
Keep it Positive
Praise your baby when they try a new vegetable. Positive reinforcement can increase their willingness to try new foods in the future. Remember to keep it both positive and unintimidating. Don’t put too much pressure on the healthier foods vs. any other type of food on their plate because your child will pick up on this difference.
Teaching babies to love vegetables may take time and patience, but it's a journey worth taking. Remember, every baby is unique, so it's essential to go at their pace and make the experience enjoyable.
Sources:
Mennella, J. A., Jagnow, C. P., & Beauchamp, G. K. (2001). Prenatal and postnatal flavor learning by human infants. Pediatrics, 107(6), E88. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11389286 ↩
Forestell, C. A., & Mennella, J. A. (2012). Early determinants of fruit and vegetable acceptance. Pediatrics, 130(6), 1247-1254. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23166344/ ↩
Maier, A. S., et al. (2007). Breastfeeding and experience with variety early in weaning increase infants' acceptance of new foods for up to two months. Clinical Nutrition, 26(6), 728–735. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17588763 ↩
Ventura, A. K., & Worobey, J. (2013). Early influences on the development of food preferences. Current Biology, 23(9), R401-R408. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3783280/ ↩
Fildes, A., et al. (2016). Parent-administered exposure to increase children's vegetable acceptance: a randomized controlled trial. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 116(6), 946-954. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26718034 ↩