As a mum and nutritionist, I know that one of the most important things for making healthy food choices is our relationship with food, and that definitely starts in childhood.

We may not always consider this as parents, but how children feel about fruit and vegetables has a direct effect on whether they decide to eat them or not. And it's not just about the taste, the reality is that often children don’t actually know if they like the taste or not but still might assume they won't like it. Every single parent, myself included has said the phrase “but how do you know you don’t like it, just try it, it's lovely!”  We’ve all looked at our kids and wondered why they don’t want to eat a delicious honey-glazed roasted vegetable, thinking “you don't know what you’re missing”.

But consider it from the child’s point of view; some fruit and vegetables look rather weird. Nature designed them to be nutritious; not necessarily to appeal to a child.

Add to that the fact that children are genetically programmed to love really sweet flavours like breast milk; less sweet foods like vegetables become harder to love. I am confident in saying that most people didn’t like all the foods they ate as adults when they were children; it took time.

While adults might think fruit and vegetables are beautiful, children probably don’t; in the world they live in, they want sparkles, fun shapes and crazy bright colours. Fruit and vegetables have a lot of catching up to do, to compete with the treats being promoted to children everywhere they look.

The good news is that there is a lot we can do about it. As parents we can have a profound influence on how our children feel about food; starting with letting them see us enjoy these nourishing foods. The more they see us eat and enjoy them, the more they will get the message that they are tasty. Continuous gradual exposure, without pressure, is also hugely important. Just have fruit and veggies around, serve them regularly even if children aren’t ready to eat them yet.

Encourage kids to get involved in the kitchen, let them help you cook and chop -using child safety knives and always under supervision; let them play with vegetables, use potatoes for painting, any positive interaction they have with these foods will help develop the healthy relationship with food we’re looking for.

And a personal favourite of mine, which is what the latest BEAR campaign is all about – encourage your children to grow their own fruit and vegetables. It doesn’t have to be difficult; all you need is a windowsill, a pot and some compost. BEAR want as many children as possible to get involved in the GRRROW with BEAR campaign and is sending out free strawberry and carrot seeds. All you need to do is collect three packs of YoYos and follow the simple instructions.    

Having done it with both my children since they were toddlers, watching them grow food is brilliant. Not only do they find the process interesting and fun, it helps them develop a great relationship with fruit and vegetables. My son was so fascinated by the fact that a whole fruit could grow from a tiny seed, and watching him pick and eat the cherry tomatoes he grew in a little pot was quite special. I’m sure it's one of the main reasons he loves them so much. He’s just planted the strawberry seeds BEAR sent us and he eagerly checks his pot every day to see the progress. The joy when he saw a tiny green shoot pop up from the compost was beautiful to see and he was already planning what he was going to do with his strawberries!

I know it’s challenging; as parents, we have so much to contend with, and it can feel like such hard work to try and get our kids to like these foods. I may be a little biased, being a nutritionist but I feel it's truly worth it and an investment in their health.

There aren’t many things we can do for our children that will be as beneficial as teaching them to love nutritious food. It doesn’t have to be difficult or stressful; for the kids or the parents, finding ways to make it fun is where the magic is.

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