Getting a teen to eat better

[Thinkcalmthoughts]

My 13yr old daughter is becoming really picky with food and would rather eat rubbish and takeaways like most teens do
I would love her to try new foods and eat more healthy ie more fruit and veg any tips on how to get her to eat better

She is active as does dancing and enjoys cross county at school xx

[Justbookedasummmerholiday]

Maybe print off some research about the nutrition necessary to be good at dancing +cross country?
Ds 16 has been into boxing for a few years and grasps that he needs to eat certain foods to succeed - he is doing great and has the physique of a fit much older ds!!

[Northernsoul58]

When I was young my parents agreed to one day a week when my sister and I could cook whatever we liked. My sister had a World Food recipe book and we would choose really exotic dishes from around the world and try to replicate them. Not always successfully. Why not suggest something similar, where once a week you buy an ingredient none of you have had before (duck, venison, goose egg, whatever!), and build a meal around that. You can then incorporate veg and fruit in the meal.
For example, it's not in season now, but try cooking rhubarb (add in the last five minutes) with cubes of lamb, with a lamb stock cube a dash of lemon juice and quarter teaspoon of cinnamon.

[BeyondThePage]

Just wait for 6th form in our case - she decided to become veggie - so now we are the devils incarnate, eating flesh - sooooooo unhealthy... (she would have existed on KFC and Dominos before veggiefication)

[millifiori]

Would she tolerate home made smoothies or banana milkshakes for breakfast? That gets a couple of her 5 a day in. Then try making healthier versions of fast food. Homemade burgers with pureed veg stirred in (I puree red onion and defrosted frozen spinach with a bit of tomato puree - the colours turn brown together, so they can then be hidden in the mince.) Or pizza with extra veg pureed into the tomato topping, and then some diced red pepper, onion and sweet corn scattered on top.

[Ollivander84]

Will she eat it if you put it in front of her? I'm lazy with fruit and veg but if someone actually puts berries/chopped up apple etc in front of me, I eat it!
Apple with peanut butter
Fajitas with onions and pepper
Banana pancakes (banana and egg mashed together) with Greek yoghurt and berries
Avocado, red onion, feta on toast

[Thinkcalmthoughts]

She does like fruit and most veg and will eat meat etc
If I made fruit and put it out for her yea she probably would eat it
It's more when she comes in from school straight in the kitchen for food then cause most of the time my mum watches her till I come home from work and she hardy eats her dinner due to the rubbish she ate before hand
Will.need to sit have a chat with her to see exactly what she likes and doesn't lol

[ifonly4]

In this instance, it sounds like it's a case of not having rubbish in the house in the first place or the parent being present enforcing eating routines. DD was brought up to always have fruit in the afternoon so 90% of the time she had this on arriving home, after that I tended to let her have another option of her choice but that was it.

[millifiori]

Are you around at breakfast time? I try to ensure DC always start the day with something balanced - some protein, one of their five a day and ideally a complex carb though with DS2 it's usually a white bagel.

Can you also provide a healthy snack for during the day or in the fridge for when she gets back? We go through phases of just not having any junk food in the house - no biscuits or crisps - just chicken, cheese, wholemeal bread, big fruit bowl and nuts. Not all the time, but a few months of each year.

[specialsubject]

While smoothies are better than nothing, mushing stuff up destroys the fibre so not ideal for those able to eat normally. And she is a teen, not a toddler - playing hide the veg is an insult to your time.

Lose the crap in the house and leave materials for making a decent sandwich when she gets home hungry. At 13 she is well overdue if she cant sort this out. Grandma can encourage.

[Scabbersley]

My dd is a keen runner. She is also picky, but knows she has to eat chicken, salmon, lots of veg. She has banana and oat smoothies in the morning. Where does your dd get takeaways from?

[Wormulonian]

If she is very hungry when she gets in from school could she have her main meal then? You could leave a healthy home cooked meal to heat up (on the stove or microwave) in the fridge and a pot of fruit salad. She could have something lighter like a wrap, sandwich or toast later for "supper". My teenage DC used to be ravenous when they got in at around 4.30/5pm so we would often have dinner then.