We’ve probably all resorted to nagging our kids to eat healthy foods. I’ve always made my boys try everything, at least once. They learned they loved broccoli, but not brussel sprouts. It never really worked for foods they didn’t like, but once they realized they liked something, they were willing to eat it more often. I guess it wasn’t really the nagging that worked, though, according to research.
American psychologists from Pennsylvania State University and the Appalachian State University told the journal Appetite: “The use of pressure contributes to lower intake and can foster negative responses to foods. In fact, children were more likely to increase their intake of an initial unfamiliar food if they were not pressured to eat it.”
Part of me doesn’t really believe this. My kids rarely eat something they don’t like or haven’t tried unless I ask bribe them to try it. Child psychologist and author Dr Richard Woolfson said: “The answer is gentle encouragement rather than a full-scale battle. The more anxious a child gets, the more tense they become and then they lose their appetite.” I believe that. I’ve seen parents badgering and yelling at their kids to eat their food. I’d lose my appetite if someone were constantly nagging and yelling at me. I guess this means I keep putting out the food they don’t like and just stare at them until they eat it?
How do you get your kids to eat foods they say they don’t like or have never tried?
