Fruits and vegetables provide important vitamins, minerals, and fiber that support children's growth and overall health. But getting young children to eat them isn't always easy! Some children prefer familiar foods, while others need time to get comfortable with new colors, textures, smells, and tastes.
Instead of focusing on how many vegetables your child eats, try making fruits and vegetables an enjoyable part of everyday meals and snacks. The goal is to build curiosity, offer variety, and create positive experiences with food—not to make every plate look perfect.
If your child loves crackers, pasta, or bread, serve a small portion of a fruit or vegetable alongside a familiar food. Keep offering foods in different ways over time, without requiring your child to taste them. Looking, touching, smelling, or helping prepare a food are all ways to become more familiar with it.
Talk About What You Notice
Instead of asking, “Did you eat your vegetables?” try talking about the food itself.
-
“This carrot is crunchy!”
-
“Which fruit do you think smells the sweetest?”
-
“The blueberries and strawberries are different colors. What else do you notice?”
-
“Would you like your cucumber cut into circles or sticks?”
Keep It Low-Pressure
Children may need repeated opportunities to become comfortable with a new food. Avoid forcing bites or using dessert as a reward for eating vegetables. Continue offering a variety of foods and let your child decide whether and how much to eat from what's offered, while following any individualized feeding guidance they may need.
Try This Today
Invite your child to build a colorful snack plate using two or three fruits or vegetables you already have at home. Let them choose the colors, arrange the foods, and explore them at their own pace. No rainbow required—and no pressure to eat everything!