Many families will agree that healthy options can look unappealing to children when they’re on holiday. Over half of the families we spoke to found it a real challenge to enjoy healthy meals together when dining out with their children. We want to provide healthier, fun and attractive meals for children, which is why we’ve created FoodieKiDs, a new programme to inspire new ways for parents to educate and inspire their children with fun ways to interact with healthy food.

Below, we’ve gathered three simple yet effective tips from dietician Mirna Sabbagh, a prominent nutritionist and consultant in Dubai who has studied food habits in the U.S. and Lebanon and helps thousands of individuals and families to train the body and mind, and to focus on a positive outlook for healthy living. Here, Mirna shares her advice on creative ways to encourage children to eat vegetables.

Freedom to experiment

Some of my top tips for children to eat well while on holiday would be to give them the option to choose themselves. Let your children experiment with different meal options - it helps them feel mature and they might choose one or two meal options that are super healthy and actually really enjoy them.

Get them involved in food preparation

Offer your children items that allow them to get involved in actually preparing their own meal. For example, you could give them a selection of ingredients and ask them to create a salad where they can mix in their own ingredients. When children are involved in mixing in their own sauces and selecting their own ingredients, they are much more likely to actually go for it and eat it, than if you simply put a plate of salad in front of them.

Make the experience exciting

When it comes to vegetables, variety is key. You can make the experience far more exciting by asking your children to investigate unusual vegetables with different flavours, shapes or dips. You would be so surprised by how much just offering a dip would actually get children to try it and enjoy the vegetable and even talk to their friends about it.

To explore more of our wonderful menu options that your little ones can enjoy during your family holiday, speak to our Concierge team at Jumeirah Dubai Collection.