Question: I am struggling with ideas for adding fruits and vegetables in my family's diet without everyone turning their noses up at them. What ideas do you have?
Answer from Liz:My kids are little (ages 7, 5 and 4 as of this writing).I began as soon as my kids were eating solid food to incorporate veggies and fruits and made sure that pretty much every meal and snack had some plant-based food in it.

They still have their moments of pickiness, and so I tell them no treat until they've finished their vegetable, for instance.I NEVER cave in to any cries since they were about 18 months old.They learned they cannot throw tantrums to get their ways (time outs come in handy here).

For older kids, you just have to get everyone together as a family and explain why fruits and vegetables are so important and what can you do as a family to get in our 7-13 servings per person daily.Let everyone think of ideas and decide what to do from there.

General ideas include having the kids help you wash and cut up fresh vegetables for the week, so everyone can grab and go, having a bowl of fruit at the ready near an entryway in addition to the kitchen and dried fruits bagged up at the beginning of the week as easy snacks or add-ons to lunches.

If you need something to help bridge the gap, then you’ll want to look into a whole foods based supplement called Juice Plus, which comes in capsules for people over age 12 and gummy-type chewables for those who are younger. Incidentally, my kids and I have been taking these for quite a while and we are all eating more vegetables especially since we started.