Does your toddler eat salad?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 2 yr old and 4 yr old happily eat salad if it has dressing on it. We usually use spinach so it's a legitimate vegetable, not just romaine or iceberg.

Iceberg lettuce is basically crunchy water (hehe, hence the name!). There's no real nutritive value in eating it. Romaine is better than iceberg, but spinach has a lot more nutrients (iron, phytochemicals). Darker color = more nutrients.

[Anonymous]

DS has always loved salads of all kinds. For pickier eaters, you could try a sweeter salad. I like good greens with goat cheese, sliced strawberries and poppy seed dressing. If you want protein, you can always add some bite-sized pieces of grilled or sauteed chicken.

[Anonymous]

My kids will eat crunchy salad, iceberg, romaine, endive, shredded carrots/beets etc. I think they have a problem chewing and eating baby greens an spinich-y type things. I need to work to make them a salad, as opposed to just dumping baby greens in a bowl with vinigrette like I do for DH and myself.

[Anonymous]

We just had salad tonight for dinner. I usually make some hard boiled eggs for protein and we also have a variety of nuts and seeds to choose from. That being said, the kids use divided plates and have everything in it's own little pile instead of in a big salad like have. Makes no difference to me.

[Anonymous]

Actually, iceberg lettuce is a good source of Thiamin, Vitamin B6, Iron and Potassium, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Folate and Manganese.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Actually, iceberg lettuce is a good source of Thiamin, Vitamin B6, Iron and Potassium, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin K, Folate and Manganese.

It may be a myth that iceberg lettuce is provides no more nutrition than water, but it's not accurate either to say that it's a "good source" of iron or most of what you listed. In a one cup serving, it has a mere .7 grams of fiber, 1% RDA of iron, 3% RDA of vit c, etc. Not very impressive. http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-lettuce-iceberg-i11252

[Anonymous]

We have a salad a few nights a week with dinner, just lettuce tomatoes and cucumbers most of the time. I give DS 2.5 just tomatoes and cucumbers with dressing. He will sometimes ask for bites of my lettuce, depends on the day wether he eats it or spits it out. We usually have a protien, starch and veggie along with the salad so there is more for him to eat. Although he doesn't eat many veggies so tomatoes and cucunbers would probably be it along with meat, fruit and starch or bread and butter

[Anonymous]

we eat salads lots of dark greens and fruits and veggies in it

my son loves it

[Anonymous]

Are you talking about serving your children salad for dinner as a meal or as a side dish? I don't think typical salad has many calories or even nutrients.

[Anonymous]

Like many PP, our 3.5 year old doesn't eat the leafy greens, but will eat assorted salad parts. so I frequently make salads for dinner, and just keep out some of the parts to feed her.

[Anonymous]

1. No, my toddler does not eat lettuce. He always tries it, but then doesn't like to eat it. He doesn't like skins on fruit, either, so I'm guessing it is a texture thing.

2. As far as the nutritional value of lettuce goes, PPs above are only getting part of the story. A pretty good rule of thumb is: the darker the leaf, the higher the nutritional component of your leafy vegetables. However, while iceberg lettuce has less vitamins and nutrients than other types of leafy vegetables (and even other types of lettuce, such as romaine), it's not like it's the same as water. And the calorie count is very low. This is what I got when I looked up the nutritional value. This differs from some of the things quoted above, so who knows if it is right, or they are right but this sounds about right:

Iceberg lettuce is a green leafy vegetable which has zero fat, zero cholesterol, and only 15 calories per serving. Per average serving Iceberg lettuce contains two percent of our daily Iron requirement, six percent of our vitamin C requirement, four percent of our daily requirement of vitamin A, two percent of our daily calcium requirement, and one gram of protein.

[Anonymous]

Agree with 22:34. 3yo daughter loves salad, and we eat salad a couple of times a week with chicken or other protein, but it's really not enough calories for a child. She'll have the salad as a side (like a veggie), with carbs, protein, other veggie, etc.

[Anonymous]

Only off of my plate... If I give him his own he will not eat it, but if I am eating it he takes my bowl from me and eats the whole thing.

[Anonymous]

DD is 2.5 now, and has been eating and enjoying salad for about a year now.. It's not an every day thing, and it usually accompanies something else.. She doesn't usually get more than lettuce, tomato, and some cheese usually.. But I put cucumber in salads sometimes.. She actually used to gnaw on cucumber slices all the time when she was teething!!! Now she's actually not much of a fan..

[Anonymous]

2.5 year old daughter will eat it but mostly cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes.
4 yo son wont touch it but will happily eat any vegetable cooked.