She responded something like, “Yeah, and then at 4 years old it’s all over, they don’t want to eat anything anymore.”
This isn’t the first time I encounter this sort of attitude, and have heard the same type of comment from moms of grown-ups, “Yeah sure, you’re happy your kid is eating vegetables etc, but it’s not going to last, you’ll see.”
I dare say this attitude bugs me to no end. I guess it does because the subtext I’m hearing is, “Just give up on it now, it’s no use offering your kid a wide variety of foods because he may reject it all down the road."
And my answer would be: isn’t it worth it to offer babies and children good real foods, even if they taste it and enjoy it just once? Even supposing (and I don’t even believe that supposition to be valid) that tomorrow, Pablo starts rejecting every single vegetable or food he eats now, he has been eating good, real, flavorful and balanced foods for the past 18 months, and those 18 months are completely worthwhile. It’s not lost or wasted. The enjoyment, the positive food experience, the introduction of colors, textures, flavors, scents, all that is in his brain somewhere, it’s a seed that is planted and will somehow grow and takes its course.
It would be almost like saying there’s no point in playing with your infant or showing him things because later on, he may be completely disinterested in these same things and not even remember them.
A few months ago, I blogged about my friends at Gopher Springs Farm, and their desire to grow quality sustainable foods from the soil up, making the best possible compost to get the richest possible soil to plant seeds in and let them grow, their roots strong, fulfilled.
It’s kind of the same thing here. We know in child development the first three years are so crucial in every aspect, how we relate to our babies, how they learn, how the type of attachment we create during that time will define them in many ways. And I believe this applies to food and the education of taste. Those first couple of years of life, exposing them to a wide variety of real foods, getting them engaged, interested in the eating experience in all its sensory glory, showing them the excitement of trying something new, nurturing their open-mindedness about flavor and textures, sharing meals with them as an opportunity to be in the moment and focused on the pleasure of eating and doing so in each other’s company... All these things make up this rich soil, this crucial foundation in their mind and their body. It’s planting the seeds of a life of balanced, enjoyable eating. It's never too late to start the education of taste, it can be done at 1 or 6 or 50, but if you have the opportunity to start early, why not do it?
I don’t even think it is true that all children start to reject all “good” foods at 3 or 4 or 12. That is definitely not the case for most French children (including myself), who are expected to eat “everything” – and they do, mostly (Karen Le Billon explains this in detail in her aptly named French Kids Eat Everything.)
Yes, neophobia (the fear of new foods, an interesting scientific study on it benefits of cooking in parcels before. It is very playful for kids, Pablo is always excited to be getting a cadeau (present) for dinner, the excitement when you unwrap it, the fun of pouring the sauce over it, of having your own little mystery package. You couldn't sugarcoat it any better than that... (sans sugar, that is).
Parcels of black cod & Brussels sprouts in garlic cream
Adapted from Petit Larousse des Recettes aux Légumes du Potager by Valérie Lhomme
Serves 4
Age for babies: 8-10 months, if necessary, mix it into a puree (you could mix the cod/Brussels sprouts and a head of baked garlic adding formula milk to desired consistency)
Prep time: 20 mn
Cook time: 35 mn