Vegetables

Recently I was exposed to the BYU Channel while waiting for an appointment. The show that was playing was about an older woman going around instructing households on the importance of dinnertime and showing them recipes to use for the occasion. The families she would visit would usually be characterized by younger children who had no interest in eating as a family or by couples who had simply gotten out of the habit of eating together at a regular time. In the episode I watched, the two families she visited had the same problem: no one liked to eat vegetables, and because the mother/wife usually included some sort of vegetable in the dinner plan, the children/spouse stopped eating it, opting instead for cold cereal or ramen.

Since then I've often wondered what sort of depravity could lead an individual, young or old, to prefer sugary, soggy corn meal or plastic strands of bleached wheat over the crisp snap of fresh green beans, the velvety light sweetness of sliced cucumber, or the hearty clout of a baked potato. Texture and taste aside, vegetables are absolutely jam-packed with vital nutrients that are particularly important for growing children.

And that's what led me to think of how I would prevent that situation when I have my own children. One my friends' son, who is nearly one and a half years old, has been showing a great dislike for vegetables. Of course you can't just simply tell him about the role of Vitamin A in preventing macular degeneration, so how else can you start him off on the right foot? I say the band-aid approach is probably the best method here. Sure, they may dislike the increased vegetable load in their diet, but tough love, baby. Like childhood piano lessons, they'll thank you later - I should know.