Third of British toddlers tried chips before carrots and almost half ate crisps before trying greens like cabbage, research claims

A THIRD of British toddlers tried a chip before a carrot, while almost half tried crisps before eating greens such as cabbage, new research claims.

A nationwide survey of parents of under-fives has revealed the extent to which many are losing the battle to feed their children veg, with seven in ten admitting their kids do not get enough greens in their diet.

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In fact, according to the mums and dads surveyed, as many as 36 percent of modern children tried a chip before they tried a carrot, while almost one in five (18 percent) ate a burger before they had even tasted broccoli.

And the data suggests almost half (47 percent) say their toddlers were eating crisps before they had tasted greens such as cabbage, while a further 16 percent had sampled pizza before they had tasted peas.

The report shows that, while a staggering 88 percent of British toddlers have eaten sausage and 85 percent have enjoyed chicken nuggets, just 42 percent have tried kale, under half (49 percent) have eaten mange tout and a mere 61 percent have been fed a courgette.

A further 87 percent have eaten fish fingers, but just 48 percent have tried an aubergine, according to the study.

Overall, seven out of ten (69 percent) of the 1,507 parents of under-fives polled by Ella’s Kitchen, are concerned their children aren’t eating enough vegetables and a staggering 46 percent of parents who are weaning their children admit their children are not getting enough vegetables.

According to the study, 80 percent of parents found the weaning stage incredibly stressful, in terms of making sure their kids got the nutrients they needed.

PARENTS PREFER KIDS TO HAVE HEALTHY DIET

In fact, almost a third would rather their children had a healthy varied diet than slept through the night.

Mark Cuddigan, CEO Ella’s Kitchen said: “We know that introducing a variety of vegetables early during weaning, helps little ones learn how to love new veggie tastes, but we also know it’s not always an easy task – shown by the research.

“It can take up to eight tries for little ones’ tiny taste buds to learn to accept the taste of all types of veg, so we encourage parents to keep trying. It’s never too late to grow a little veg lover.”

As many as 38 percent of parents told little fibs such as carrots make you see in the dark and 28 percent have pretended that veggies aren’t veg.

Over half of parents (54 percent) utilise the classic technique of pretending the fork/spoon was an airplane or train, a third sing a song and three in ten play “peekaboo” while feeding to encourage the veg love, engaging all the senses with the wonderful world of weaning.

Overall, as many as 58 percent of mums and dads admit that they have embellished the success of their weaning journey by exaggerating about the different fruits and vegetables their children have eaten.

While 64 percent of parents don’t bother to give their kids vegetables that they don’t like, they are willing to try different tactics to get them to eat vegetables.

Mark Cuddigan said: “Ella’s Kitchen’s Mission is to improve children’s lives through developing healthy relationships with food and are here to help every little one enjoy good food by making the weaning journey fun.

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