(Provided photo)

Parents have been quite picky with their questions about what to do if their toddler won’t eat their vegetables.

Well, let me see if I can toss up some tips, and not just asparagus tips, about children not eating vegetables.

First, not liking vegetables probably gets its origin from the strong preference infants, children and even their parents have for sweet-tasting foods, making less sweet vegetables a less-desirable option.

Add in toddlerhood where toddlers say ‘no’ to express their autonomy or self-control even when they might want to say ‘yes.’ Understanding this key toddlerhood concept of toddlers wanting self-control allows you as a parent to better understand things you can do to encourage vegetable eating. For example, the vitamins and nutrients found in most vegetables can also be found in other foods that your child may want to eat including meat, fish, and other fruits — so forcing vegetables is not the answer.

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Suggestions to increase vegetable consumption

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First, if you do want your child to at least try vegetables, don’t give in to your toddler’s food preferences. Even though a toddler will want to eat the same things day after day, don’t go there.

¯ Instead offer a variety of foods. For example, you could ask them to choose from among two or three options per meal or you might ask a preschooler to help you prepare the vegetables for the family meal and that may be all it takes to get your young child to consider eating a vegetable.

¯ Studies have shown it can take 10 tries with the same new food before a child will accept it, so keep trying. Smaller portions of a vegetable on bigger plates can be more palatable to a toddler, especially if paired with foods your child likes.

¯ Making a fun face with vegetables such as cucumber eyes, a tomato nose, a green bean mouth and shredded carrots for hair may also get your child to give veggies a try.

¯ Parents, you need to set a good example. Eat with your child and eat the vegetables you want your child to eat – and if you aren’t getting them to try a new vegetable, watching their peers eating that new vegetable might be the secret weapon that can get your child to eat it too.

¯ Don’t forget that raw vegetables can be a choking hazard for young children so make sure they are cut into small enough pieces, so a choking problem doesn’t occur.

Hopefully, tips like these will whet your appetite when it comes to getting toddlers to eat their vegetables.

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Lewis First, MD, is Chief of Pediatrics at The University of Vermont Children’s Hospital and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Vermont’s Larner College of Medicine. You can also catch weekly on WOKO 98.9FM and NBC5.