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Home | Do Something! | The Campaign | Jamie Speaks | Food Most Fowl | Porridge To Pizza | Find Out More
Build your children a healthier future with these smart and subtle tactics for persuading reluctant eaters to have a try. The payoff? A child with better concentration and more energy, who sleeps well at night.
Chop unfamiliar fruits — mango, papaya, kiwi — into tiny pieces and use as a topping for breakfast cereal. Little pieces are more tempting than a whole fruit. Try fruit kebabs — thread small chunks of fruit, like apples, bananas, satsuma segments, pineapple, grapes — on to wooden skewers. Eat raw.
Cook vegetables in unusual ways to make them more interesting. There are some great recipe ideas on the 5 A DAY website. Try crunchy Brussels sprouts stir fry or red kidney bean chilli.
If your kids turn up their noses at cooked vegetables, try blending them into soups, stews or sauces. Or offer them raw — lots of kids prefer carrots, cabbage or cauliflower crunchy.
If you have younger children who like their food made to look like ships, smiling faces or friendly bunnies, then let your imagination range. You're on to a winning way of getting new foods off the plate, and into their mouths.
Ask young kids — and even some older ones — to help you make a chart, or download one from the NHS 5 A DAY. Let them add a sticker every time they eat a portion of fruit or veg. Offer a small reward — not sweets! — when they have five in one day. Or give a prize when they try something they've never eaten before.
On days when you have time to spare, ask kids to help you make a meal. Let them do bits of preparation by themselves. Older children can cook a whole dish from scratch. Give them loads of praise and encouragement. It's all about having fun!
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