Making children eat vegetables is quite a tedious task. But researchers at the University of Leeds say that the key to feeding children veggies is to introduce them early in the diet and more often.

Researchers found that young children were open to new vegetables until the age of two. Moreover, they said that sweetening the vegetables so that the children could eat them without being fussy does not work.

"For parents who wish to encourage healthy eating in their children, our research offers some valuable guidance," said Professor Marion Hetherington, of the Institute of Psychological Sciences at the University of Leeds.

"If you want to encourage your children to eat vegetables, make sure you start early and often. Even if your child is fussy or does not like veggies, our study shows that 5-10 exposures will do the trick."

According to the researchers, even picky eaters eat a bit more of a new vegetable every time they are offered it.

For the study, the researchers gave artichoke puree to 332 children from three countries. All the children were from weaning age to 38 months.

Minimum 100g of artichoke puree was given between 5 and 10 serving to the children. The puree was either basic; sweetened, with added sugar; or added energy, where vegetable oil was mixed into the puree.

The findings revealed that the children became used to the food that resulted in more servings. Moreover, younger children ate more artichoke than older children.

"This is because after 24 months children become reluctant to try new things and start to reject foods - even those they previously liked," researchers said.

The research has been published in the journal 'PLOS ONE'.