My son is eight and doesn’t like most vegetables. I want him to eat better, so I put a small number of veggies on his plate at dinner. He will refuse to eat altogether. Should we force him to eat them or at least try them or punish them for being defiant? I’m at a complete loss as to what to do.
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Im commenting to learn myself as well. Im told to just keep trying it and hopefully they might eat it after a few tries.
Make him veggie fruit smoothies
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Honestly, if he’s taking vitamins and drinking plenty of water, he’ll be fine.
Finely shred them into other foods that he will eat, theyll be so small that he wont know what they are, if he even notices that they’re there. Or you can try to make smoothies with fruit and vegetables for him, its something fun for him and may be easier for you to get him to eat them.
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No, dont force. Push lots of fruit. I used to puree veggies and cook it in my sauces or lasagna or whatever, they got plenty 
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Punishment will most likely make it worse.
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That’s when you learn how to hide them well into the main meal or make a fruit smoothie with veggies where you can’t taste the veggies. But no, not force.
My house children have to taste everything. Then they eat what is on the table. Or wait until next meal. No snack if they don’t.
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I have found that if they participate in the cooking they are more interested in the eating 
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I would try having him try these out… see if he will eat these. There is also a lot of other foods/recipes with vegetables in them that taste good for kids
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My 4yo onky eats certain foods.
He’s now learnt he HAS to at least try them. If he doesn’t like them that’s ok, but he still has to have a try.
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Definitely keep trying. And I personally would not punish for not eating them. That will make meal time more of a fight. I put a new thing in front of my son and I ask that he try like 3 bites (usually he takes like 2) and if he really doesn’t like it then I will not force him to eat it. He’s generally a good eater though and does like a lot of veggies
My 6 year old is the same way. I make him take a few bites of veggies at every meal. I tell him if he doesnt eat it then he doesnt get dessert or he doesnt get his xbox/switch time. Most of the time it works.
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There are a bunch of recipes out there hiding veggies in foods! Check some of those out that way he eats his vegetables and doesn’t know. I’ve made quite a few and if you didn’t tell me there were hidden veggies you would never know.
Tell him he needs to try everything once. Create with him a “no thank you helping” where he has to try everything if he doesn’t like it then fine but he has to try it.
Hide veggies in cookies , brownies , and smoothies he will eat them right up and never even know!
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Force a child to do something they don’t want to 
parent 101 right there ffs
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What I did were make gravy from veggie water at least they get some Benefits
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My kid refuses… shes 5. She will make herself purposely gag and throw up all over everything if I tell her she HAS to eat it. I’ve tried telling her she cant go anywhere (like mawmaws) or shes going straight to bed… she doesnt care she will go to bed. So I’ve realized it does nothing for me to make her eat them.
Try mixing them into other foods without him finding out. Also, my boys love those broccoli tots in the frozen food section of most stores.
Get creative with the veggies there are tons of ideas on Pinterest. Is this a new thing or has he always refused?
My kids have to try everything at least one bite or nothing later
Give him veggie straws
I require 2 no thank you bites unless it’s something they hate.
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I started giving the foods he needs to eat first - then when he eats some of it I give him the rest of his dinner lol
My 8yr old…he been to dr nutrionalist etc about eating issues… Every dr says do NOT force or punish because of it will only lead to emotional disturbances…give multivit and offer veggies other ways in meals alone and avoid alot of fruit even tho “Natural” still contains alot of sugar
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Puree squash and slip into mac and cheese . Cauliflower in potatoes.
I seen chicken nuggets that have a serving of veggies in the breading 
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Make smoothies! Kids always love smoothies and they can get their veggies in with fruits and vitamins in one shot
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My son is the same way. I started making smoothies and adding vegetables in it. My son has sensitive gag reflexes. When he was younger his daycare forced him to eat green beans and he threw up everywhere. You just have to get creative and sneak them in there. As he gets older he will slowly start to like them.
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Blender! Add into everything. Personally I’d also not allow sweets or anything till he’s Willing to start eating veggies. Take him shopping and let him choose what veg he wants.
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Try smoothies , or fruit alot of the same vitamins are found in fruit aswell.
If he has tried it and doesn’t like them, then no don’t force him. Would you want to eat something you don’t like? There are ways of hiding veggies in other foods. Spaghetti sauce is a good one.
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My son is 9 and only likes green beans an broccoli but I have him try a bite of other vegetables first before I give him those but I keep trying
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Puree veggies and hide them in everything. Meatballs, make some chicken nuggets with ground chicken and add it in there before breading, burgers, brownies, pasta sauces, I literally have added veggies into nearly everything.
Don’t force or punish, it’s not beneficial to the child and its stressful on everyone.
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Either he eats and gets dessert or he doesn’t. If he doesn’t care about dessert, then either he eats the veggies first or he doesn’t eat at all. Kids will not starve themselves unless they have a really severe eating disorder/sensory issue. But you’ll be able to figure that out soon enough.
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At 8 it’s prob way to late to try and force him. My 2 year old hates lettuce but we still offer it. My girls love veggies but I’m convinced it’s bc as babies that’s what they were offered.
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Please dont judge me… I was raised and allowed to eat anything I wanted, I’m thin but not the healthiest I wish my parents would have forced veggies on me… I now have 4 children all athletes my girls are 18 and 16 they love veggies and fruits my boys are 12 and 10 and hate veggies but love video games… they were not allowed to play games till all their veggies are gone… they love veggies now… sometimes when it’s a good thing or good for our children it’s ok to force them…
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Smoothies would be a good way to hid fruits and veggies.
Also, using dressing or dip for veggies. I always personally liked adding cheese to my veggies
Please don’t punish for not eating. Don’t make food a fight. I would continue to encourage him to try veggies in many different kinds and forms
My boys never really liked cooked veggies but would eat raw with dip and salads
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If he likes pasta give these a try!
Grade them up and put them in tacos fry them with the meet he won’t even know they’re there
Might be a sensory issue put them on a separate plate and have him try one bite v8 has some great juices with full servings of veggies also
Be creative! There are smoothies and ways to hide veggies in foods kids like, such as black bean brownies, or chicken nuggets with veggies in the breading, and there’s veggie pasta (it’s colorful thanks to the veggies, meaning it’s fun and healthy).
There’s a lot of recipes to get around this… I’ve literally seen cookies and cakes made and taste like normal but with spinach and carrots and other things. Just don’t let him see you put it in the food.
Sounds bad but I give them a portion of everything and if they don’t eat the veggies I put it in the fridge… no snacks until they eat at least some of them. They will come back and ask for food and I give them the option to eat their dinner again and heat it up. They will eventually eat them so they can have their bedtime snack. If not they don’t get snack and the next day they will eat all of their dinner wanting the snacks at bedtime.
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I’d say focus on serving him the veggies he will eat. I mainly get broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots. Try cooking them in new ways or offering dipping sauces.
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My 15 yr old won’t touch fruit unless it’s in a smoothie.
You could make smoothies and add spinach and other veggies.
Or use frozen fruit and add the naked brand veggie juices in there.
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Our rule is you have to take at least 3 bites to determine you dont like it or won’t eat it.
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If they don’t like it i won’t make them eat it but they have to at least try it first. Im not gonna eat something I don’t like and im not gonna make them. My kids like some veggies though. I recommend them taking a vitamin everyday
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You can buy potato waffles with veggies in them also I mash coliflour into my mash blend veggies into a lot of things kids do not notice I grate veggies into my Bolognese sauce or pasta sauce they don’t know any difference but forcing them you will make good an issue then eating disorders are made be careful how you do this
Best thing i have ever gotten. No taste. I sneak it into sauces, all my kids food. I still encourage them to try but if they dont then at least they are secretly getting them!
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My 3 year old is very picky and sometimes wont eat but we won’t let him up until he eats at least half
There are lots of ways to get him to eat veggies. You can blend it and mix it in his food, mix some v8 in some of his foods, have him grow his own veggies to eat or have him help you prepare his food. There are lots of ways to get creative
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I’m 63 years young😊 My mother forced us to eat vegetables when we were young. I hated vegetables until I was much older because of it. We were made to sit at the table until done. It took me a long time to eat and actually like veggies. I wouldn’t force him to eat them. Maybe hide them in his food. Grind them up and put in meatloaf, spaghetti sauce etc. Or raw veggies and dip.
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You should never force something on your child. There are alternatives you can try and should try.
The Dr said try them on a food 10 times after that let it be or make smoothies with them
As him why he dont like them and explain to him the importance of veggies
If we have a vegetable my son doesn’t like he has to eat at least one piece of my choosing. We’ve done it so often now he actually said hes starting to like broccoli. He’s 10 and we’ve been doing this for two years. If he doesn’t eat it he doesn’t get a snack/dessert after dinner.
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Make food out of veggies! He doesn’t need to eat plain veggies. Get creative 
My rule when my kids were little was always “you have to eat one.”
My kids are now 15 and 13. My daughter doesn’t like Brussel Sprouts. My son doesn’t like asparagus. A few months ago, my husband made dinner and made both. As we were making our plates, I noticed my son had asparagus. My daughter had a Brussel Sprouts. There were barely any veggies left for my husband and me. I was like, “Hey! What are you doing?!? You don’t even like that!” They were both like, “Yeah. I know. But, it’s good for you. So, I can just eat it. They aren’t that bad. “
Every time we make salad, my daughter eats a piece of green pepper. And every time she makes a face. Then she laughs and says, “I keep trying to like these…but I just don’t.
I’d say the rule worked well.
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Do not punish. I used to eat dirt. My mom took me to the doctor he said their was something in the dirt my body needed. My daughter’s babysitter made her eat Lima beans needless to say they spewed over the table an everyone’s plate.
This is the first post I’ve ever related to on this page, lol. I’m going through something similar.
Veggies where the very first foods I introduced and I waited a few months to introduce fruits … All of my kids eat almost any veggie and eat pretty much anything my son is 5 and eats raw onion lol in my opinion pickiness is created by parents …
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Try foods that look like other foods. They have cauliflower pizza, cauliflower nuggets, make a fruit smoothie with veggies in it.
At 8 I would absolutely make him sit there and eat them. I’ve made mine sit at the table all night before until they were gone. If they don’t have an allergy then there’s no reason they can’t eat them. In our house they have to at least try each veggie two times before they can say they don’t like it, but even then kids will always pick other things over veggies if we allow it.
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I read that as long as they eat plenty of fruit, of several varieties, that it’s not a huge nutritional concern.
My son was real picky until I started having him cook with me. When he helped make it, he started eating it.
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I don’t force my daughter, however she knows that if she doesn’t finish dinner that’s all she’s getting. I also give her a portion of everything we are having. No snacks no dessert nothing. I’ll never force her to eat it but if she wants ice cream or cake or whatever we have on hand she has to eat everything on her plate.
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I always made my son at least try one bite. It won’t always be successful, but the habit of trying new things is what the main goal was. I also started making smoothies for him. I started with a mostly fruit one at first and gradually added more veggies until he got the the point that he tolerates green smoothies fine. A tip for trying smoothies is to get dark berries to add to turn the smoothie purple and I keep small cubes of beet in my freezer. Adding a few cubes turns it a bright pink without changing the flavor.
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My 7 year old daughter is the same way… but she loves smoothies! And I don’t let her watch me make them! 
She has no clue she eats all of these wonderful green veggies 
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Have him try it, if he doesn’t like it, then don’t put it on his plate the next time
Sneak them into his food!
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My grandmother would put veges on my plate, nothing else. I had to eat all veges before i got meat or dessert.
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I hate the"make’em eat it rule"! My husband is a stickler for this. You can hide veggies in a number of ways though. Try that instead. Some juices contain veggies and fruits.
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They make pasta out of veggies now. One serving meets 1/2 the daily recommended veg requirements. Also ‘hide’ veggies in their food. Making spaghetti? Shred a carrot or 2 into the meat while it’s cooking-he won’t even see it once you add the red sauce. I also add shredded zucchini and eggplant-both of these cook down to almost nothing, you still get the vitamins and it doesn’t change the taste. I also add spinach to it (you can tell him it’s the Italian spices). I shred a carrot into tuna (my older kids are 17 and 16 and still love tuna this way).
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Be glad he is alive to eat. His eating habits will change many times over his life
Lately we’ve been having my 4 year old son pick out one vegetable a week to try. We also have him help us make it and that seems to help a lot. So far he hasn’t liked any he’s picked out but he’s tried them and that’s all I’m asking him to do! My 3 year old daughter is a different story and actually gages if she smells certain vegetables. 
But I do hide a lot zucchini and spinach in their foods and that helps a lot!
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My rule is if you’re not hungry enough to finish all of your dinner, veggies included, then you must not be hungry enough for a snack later. I do stick to veggies that don’t make him flat out GAG. lol. And I hide veggies in things as often as possible.
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My daughter helps me cook, and tries everything we make. If she likes it, she gets it on her plate. If she doesn’t, I don’t force her to eat it. You’d be surprised how many things kids actually like when they are willing to taste them. We found out she likes mushrooms, peppers, carrots, broccoli, and even onions.
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I am 58 years old, and refuse to eat vegetables. I haven’t eaten them my entire life. The one time I was forced to try green beans I vomited. It was a bad experience just the smell of green beans makes me sick now. I have zero health issues from not eating vegetables.
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I do make my kids eat vegetables. I dont load them up on it. But i do make them. They need all the good stuff possible for their growing bodies. And over time they slightly start to like and prefer them or they know to eat the veggies 1st and get it over with. I also make other food out of veggies. Their fav is coliflower tortillas… do they know it a vegetable tortilla? Nope… 
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My son was the same now I buy green machine and he drinks all of it. Green machine is a juice with fruits and green vegetables. I got tired of throwing vegetables away he took literally hours to eat and would cry. He has gradually started eating different vegetables like avocados and has tried new ones. Good luck give him time. I remember hating most vegetables at that age.
I didn’t make my kids eat veggies. I asked them what THEY wanted for dinner & made that, they now like & eat more veggies than I do…I would never punish a child for not liking veggies:( Give him a vitamin or make him foods with veggies in tbem.
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I was told pushing foods on kids can cause eating disorders. 8 is still young. I agree with an above comment. Smoothies are great to give them veggies and not taste like it. Or even a multi- vitamin. I would also try making him try just one bite. Keep offering a lil every night too. It will change. My daughter who just turned 9 hated all veggies but now loves a few. It will get better.
Find creative ways to sneak it into your meals. Finely shredded carrot, zucchini, spinach, broccoli can be easily hidden in marinara sauces. Blended soups, ground meat blends, pancakes, e.t.c.
Dont force someone to eat something they don’t like.
My 6 year old hate them and doesnt eat any type of veggies. I have to make things like spaghetti with past that has veggies in it or my daughter also loved the flavored V8 juice
Keep offering them, and encourage them to try them. Kids taste buds change all the time. I wouldn’t force it. Everyone has things they don’t like, and that includes children. In the meantime, give him a multivitamin to make up for what he’s lacking.
Forcing food and punishments for not eating creates unhealthy eating habits and negative associations to food.
When I was little, we ate what was on our plate or we didn’t eat. If we refused a few meals we eventually got hungry and ate what we were given, eventually discovering that we actually liked certain veggies and my mom would only continue to make what we liked. I’m not THAT old so it’s not too outdated an option. Forcing them to eat just doesn’t work. Giving them the option to eat or be hungry, eventually they’ll choose to eat. I lucked out with kids who love veggies. Lol.
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No would you want to be force what i did was you havs to at least try to taste one bit then if you dont like them you dont have to eat them just give him more of the other choices or pbj always a go to
There’s a product called Easypeasie veg sprinkles. They’re basically dried, ground veg which you can sprinkle onto and mix into food. It won’t help him to eat whole veggies but it’ll help get him the nutrition if that’s what you’re worried about.
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Offer them and if he doesn’t eat them and later asks for a snack give him back the veggies. My kids didn’t have a problem eating in the beginning but now my son has gotten picky so I cut out snacks between meals and if he wants something I offer what he didn’t eat for dinner if he’s still hungry after that. But don’t FORCE him to eat the veggies or he will hate them more. And when he does eat them make a big deal about it and praise him.
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I do a two bite rule, you have to take at least two bites.
There is lots of food with hidden veg in or you cud hide veg in mash or cottage pie lasagne etc and wait till he is older to offer on a plate x
The key to developing healthy eating habits starts as an infant. My kids love veggies but that was their first and only options for a long time. Fruits were given as special treats.
Definitely try the blender thing, or include them in their eating choices. Give your child three options to choose from. Also make sure when you are serving veggies they are flavorful.
Roasted broccoli with garlic and parmesan is a game changer
My mom used to give us 3-4 bites of veggies that she made us eat. That way we still ate some veggies but also weren’t overloaded with them.
I did what my dad did for me I thought them about the facts of fruit and veggies and we planted and grew some and taught them to cook my son who hated veggies grew to love them and he is going on 11 and can cook up a storm.
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