Why listening to children could be the key to getting more vegetables onto the family dinner plate.
We all know that eating vegetables is important for good health. Vegetables provide essential vitamins, minerals, fibre and other beneficial plant compounds that support growth, development and long-term wellbeing. Yet, despite decades of nutrition education and public health campaigns, vegetable consumption among Australian children remains below recommended levels.
So, perhaps it is time to ask a different question.
Instead of simply telling children to eat more vegetables, what if we asked them how we could make vegetables more appealing?
This was the thinking behind the KiiDSAY project (Kids initiative inspires Dietary Success in Adults and Youth), which explored the views and ideas of school-aged children about how to encourage their friends and families to eat more vegetables.
And what the children had to say was both interesting and inspiring!
Listening to children: a different approach to nutrition education
Children are often the recipients of nutrition advice, but they are not always invited to participate in conversations about how healthy eating initiatives should be designed.
Our research recognised that children have valuable insights into their own food preferences, family eating habits and school environments. By listening to their experiences, we hoped to identify practical ideas that could help inspire greater vegetable consumption.
The study involved 26 children, aged 10–12 years, from four primary schools in New South Wales. All had previously participated in a school-based nutrition education program.
Through seven focus group interviews, we invited the children to share their thoughts, experiences and suggestions about encouraging their peers and families to eat more vegetables.
Four key themes emerged from the discussions:
- Taste: How vegetables taste, look and are prepared can influence whether children are willing to eat them.
- Family environment: Parents and family members play an important role in shaping children’s food preferences and eating habits.
- Healthy eating: Children understood the importance of healthy eating and had ideas about how to make it more enjoyable.
- Change makers: Children saw opportunities to influence the food choices of their friends, families and wider communities.
These findings remind us that improving children’s diets involves much more than providing nutritional information. It also requires supportive environments, positive experiences and opportunities for children to participate.
What did the children suggest?
Perhaps the most valuable aspect of this research was the practical advice offered by the children themselves.
1. Make vegetables enjoyable through cooking
Children suggested more opportunities to prepare food at home and at school. Cooking activities can help children become familiar with different vegetables, experiment with flavours and develop confidence in preparing healthy meals.
Introducing vegetables through creative recipes that enhance, mask or combine flavours may also help overcome initial reluctance.
Importantly, cooking together can turn healthy eating into a shared and enjoyable experience rather than another instruction from adults.
2. Start with familiar flavours and build from there
One particularly interesting suggestion from the children was to introduce recipes progressively, beginning with fruit-based recipes before moving towards vegetable-based recipes — because most children like fruit.
This provides an opportunity to build children’s confidence and familiarity with food preparation while gradually introducing new tastes and ingredients.
It is a reminder that small, achievable steps may be more effective than expecting children to embrace unfamiliar foods immediately.
3. Create positive family and school environments
Children identified the importance of their surroundings and the people who influence them.
Parents, teachers and other positive role models can help establish healthy eating habits by demonstrating healthy food choices, involving children in meal preparation and creating opportunities to enjoy nutritious foods together.
Schools also have an important role to play. Supportive food environments, practical nutrition education and opportunities to participate in cooking activities can help reinforce healthy behaviours.
4. Empower children to become change makers
One of the most encouraging findings was that children recognised their potential to influence others.
Children are not simply passive recipients of health messages. They can share ideas, encourage their friends, influence family food choices and contribute to creating healthier environments.
When we give children a voice, we also give them an opportunity to become active participants in improving their own health and wellbeing.
Why does this matter for long-term health?
Developing healthy eating habits during childhood can help establish foundations for health throughout life.
Vegetables provide dietary fibre and a wide range of bioactive compounds that contribute to normal physiological functioning and overall health. Encouraging greater vegetable consumption is therefore an important component of childhood nutrition and long-term chronic disease prevention.
However, knowledge alone does not necessarily translate into behaviour change.
Our findings highlight the importance of considering the social and environmental influences on children’s eating behaviours. This is consistent with approaches such as Social Cognitive Theory and the Ecological Model of Health Behaviour, which recognise that individual behaviours are influenced by family, peers, schools and the wider environment.
In other words, if we want children to eat more vegetables, we need to make healthy choices accessible, enjoyable and supported by the people and environments around them.
A message for parents, educators and health professionals
The KiiDSAY project offers an important reminder: sometimes the best way to develop effective health interventions is to start by listening to the people we are trying to help.
Rather than relying solely on traditional nutrition education, we should consider involving children in choosing recipes, preparing meals, experimenting with flavours and sharing their ideas with others.
At home, this might mean inviting children to choose a vegetable at the supermarket, help prepare dinner or experiment with a new recipe.
At school, it could involve practical cooking activities, vegetable gardens, peer-led initiatives and creating positive food environments.
These small opportunities can help children develop food skills, confidence and a more positive relationship with healthy eating.
The take-home message
If we are serious about improving children’s vegetable consumption, we need to move beyond simply telling them what they should eat.
We need to listen to their ideas, involve them in the process and create family and school environments that make healthy eating an enjoyable and shared experience.
Children have ideas. Children have influence. And children can be powerful change makers.
Perhaps the next big step towards healthier eating starts not with another nutrition lecture, but with inviting a child into the kitchen!
About the research
The KiiDSAY project was a project that Associate Professor Fay designed when she was undertaking her PhD.
The full-text version of the KiiDSAY project can be found here on PubMed.
Associate Professor Fay has also written a series of children’s books, the But Why series, and one of the books is dedicated to encouraging children to eat from a rainbow of fruits and vegetables — But Why…. EAT like that?
If you are interested, go to: https://drfay.com.au/shop/
For more information about Associate Professor Fay, please visit her website: https://drfay.com.au/
Dr Fay Karpouzis PhD is an Adjunct Associate Professor at RMIT University. She holds a PhD, MSc (Hons), Grad DC and BSc (Anat), and is a Lifestyle Medicine Fellow (FASLM).