Secrets of the world's HEALTHIEST children

Healthy eating is the norm in homes, schools and restaurants in Japan

YOU want your young child to get into the habit of eating healthy food so you prepare a bowl of steamed spinach for them.

"Try this," you say. "It's delicious. It's good for you." Your child takes one look, scrunches up their face, folds their arms and shakes their head. Not a chance.

It is a scene that is repeated countless times a day, all around the world, even in Japan.

Unfortunately, the foods kids like the most are usually the least nutritious.

Surveys of children across cultures have revealed that the most popular foods are chips, chocolate, pizza, cake and ice cream. And the least favourite? Vegetables.

Many children seem to suffer from what experts call "neophobia" or the reluctance to taste unfamiliar foods which often arises around the age of two and gradually declines after the pre-school years.

So how can we persuade our children to eat healthy foods such as fish and vegetables?

At first it may seem totally impossible. We live in a world where children seem genetically engineered to dislike vegetables and prefer pizza, biscuits and lots of sugar. They are bombarded with fast-food ads and there are bad role models everywhere, while many families barely have enough time to sleep let alone prepare healthy meals every day of the week.

In Japan it is easier to expose children to healthier eating patterns because, unlike many other developed nations, it is more the norm in homes, in schools and in restaurants.

So parents in the UK and the rest of the Western world may need to try harder.

Here are some tips from Japanese parents to help your child enjoy healthy eating:

1 Don't call it "healthy" food. There is some intriguing new research suggesting that labelling food as "healthy" or "power food" can focus a child's opposition to it. Instead make nutrient-rich, less processed meals rich in vegetables the norm in your home.

2 Serve vegetable soups and stir fries as a regular option at the dinner table. They are a great way to boost vegetable intake and children often love them.

3 Don't demonise high calorie/ nutrient-poor snacks such as biscuits, crisps, ice cream, sweets and cakes. Just keep them mostly out of the house and let your child enjoy them occasionally in reasonable portions, ideally away from home.

As the Japanese saying goes, "There is no evil in food one likes to eat".

 

The food that kids like the most are usually the least nutritious

4 Make fruit and veg your family's default snack. Try apple and banana slices, mandarin and orange segments, carrot and celery sticks, avocado slices and baked sweet potato chips.

5 Make fruit the default dessert in your house for yourself and your children.

6 Stock your kitchen with a wide variety of fresh, frozen and canned fruit and veg.

7 Put into pasta and pizza sauces and tacos, and shred courgettes or carrots into spaghetti Bolognese, casseroles, and home-made bread.

You should also add chopped vegetables to lasagne, and use pureed cooked vegetables such as sweet potatoes to thicken gravies, stews and soups.

Vegetables add texture, nutrients and a great flavour to all kinds of dishes. It's not a case of hiding vegetables in a child's meals but more about offering them dishes with more flavour and ingredients.

8 Many vegetables taste great with a dip or a dressing. Try offering your child pieces of raw or lightly steamed broccoli, baby carrots, sugar snap peas, celery sticks, red and green peppers or cauliflower with a modest portion of olive oil, hummus, yogurt or a salad dressing with no added sugar. Children love to eat food with their fingers, so they will enjoy dipping into tasty dips and sauces.

9 Decorate plates or serving dishes with fun-shaped vegetable slices or fingers. Your children will love them.

 

10 Take your child to a food market to see the wide range of vegetables on offer then ask them to pick out a few to take home.

11 Involve your child in preparing, washing and serving food.

You could even buy a colourful apron for them to wear.

12 If you have a garden, involve your child in growing some vegetables. If you don't have a garden, try keeping herbs in pots on the windowsill or grow cress in eggshells or on a pad of cotton wool.

You could even use pebbles or stones to create a miniature herb garden in a shallow plastic container.

13 When you're in the supermarket, ask your child to pick out a healthy new food for the whole family to try.

14 Offer foods as part of a normal, relaxed routine.

15 Always make mealtimes a pleasant experience. Remember, a child's taste changes and foods they hate one day can become favourites the next.

16 Don't pressure your child to eat certain foods and don't let mealtimes become a battle because this can turn into an emotional drama. Be aware that there will always be foods that they are not going to eat.

  

Involving your child in preparing, washing and serving food could have a positive impact

17 Don't use food as a reward for good behaviour.

18 Don't demand that your child clears his or her plate.

19 Have set mealtimes for stability and regularity. It makes sense to have these rituals in family life.

20 Try cooking methods that can bring out the flavour of vegetables, such as roasting. Also try raw vegetables.

• Extracted from Secrets Of The World's Healthiest Children by Naomi Moriyama and William Doyle (Piatkus, £13.99). To order your copy, please call The Express Bookshop on 01872 562310, send a cheque/PO payable to Express Bookshop to Express Bookshop, PO Box 200, Falmouth TR11 4WJ or visit www.expressbookshop.co.uk. UK delivery is free.