Children Eat More Vegetables With Flavoured (additives, sugar coated) Dips

Many parents have a difficult time persuading their preschool-aged children to try vegetables, let alone eat them regularly. 

Food and nutrition researchers have found that by offering a dip flavoured with spices, children were more likely to try vegetables -- including those they had previously rejected.

Jennifer S. Savage

"Less than 10 percent of 4- to 8-year-olds consume the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) recommended daily servings of vegetables," said Jennifer S. Savage, associate director of the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at Penn State.

"Even more striking is that over one-third of children consume no servings of vegetables on a typical day. We wanted to figure out a way to increase vegetable consumption."

According to ChooseMyPlate, a USDA initiative, children between the ages of three and five should be eating one and a half to two cups of vegetables every day. Vegetables provide fiber and necessary nutrients.

They can also replace less healthy food choices and combat obesity because they are less calorie-dense.

Savage and colleagues found that children were three times more likely to refuse eating a vegetable alone than they were to eat the same vegetable when paired with a reduced-fat flavoured dip and the children were twice as likely to reject a vegetable with no dip than they were if given the same vegetable with plain dip.

The researchers report in a recent issue of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics that they worked with 34 children between the ages of 3 and 5 to determine each child's familiarity with vegetables and which were liked or disliked.

The children were then reintroduced to the same vegetables, this time with a dip, and each child's likes and dislikes were reevaluated.

"Repeated exposure is a way to get kids to like new foods," said Savage. "This has been demonstrated in previous studies. But first you have to get them to taste the vegetable. Plus, the servings do not need to be huge -- the key may be to start by offering really small portions."

In as few as four tasting sessions, Savage and colleagues found that preschoolers consumed more of a disliked vegetable when it was paired with a dip flavored with spices than when it was eaten alone.

The children tasted and rated six different vegetables: carrots, cucumbers, celery, green beans, red peppers and yellow squash. After tasting each vegetable, the children were shown three cartoon faces and asked to pick which one best showed how they felt.

Their choices were "yummy," "just okay" and "yucky." The researcher also noted if the child refused to try the sample. "

"In the next session the children were introduced to five different Miracle Whip-based reduced-fat dips, one plain and the other four flavored with different combinations of spices."

"The most well-liked dips were flavoured "pizza" and "ranch;" the least-liked dips were "herb" and "garlic."

After the initial tastings and ratings, the preschoolers were given veggies and dip together. Thirty-one percent of them deemed a vegetable alone to be "yummy," but when paired with a flavored dip 64 percent of the children found the vegetable "yummy."

On the other end of the spectrum, 18 percent of children refused to eat a vegetable by itself, while only six percent would refuse to eat a vegetable when paired with a flavored dip.

In the last part of this study the researchers offered the preschoolers celery and yellow squash, paired with a preferred flavoured dip.

These vegetables were chosen because they were the least liked of the six tested. The children were offered celery one day and squash on a different day.

As expected, overall, the children ate more of each veggie when paired with a dip than when it was served alone.

The amount of squash eaten by the preschoolers more than doubled when paired with a flavoured dip. The quantity of celery eaten increased 62 percent when paired with a flavoured dip.

"Just because a child refuses to taste a vegetable doesn't mean they don't like it," Savage said. "It's foreign -- the key is to try to get them to taste it in a positive light."

Journal Reference: Jennifer S. Savage, Julie Peterson, Michele Marini, Peter L. Bordi, Leann L. Birch. The Addition of a Plain or Herb-Flavoured Reduced-Fat Dip Is Associated with Improved Preschoolers' Intake of Vegetables. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 2013; DOI: 10.1016/j.jand.2013.03.013/div>

Getting kids to eat their veggies: A new approach to an age-old problem

Every parent has a different strategy for trying to get his or her kid to eat more vegetables, from growing vegetables together as a family to banning treats until the dinner plate is clean. 

New research suggests that teaching young children an overarching, conceptual framework for nutrition may do the trick.

The new findings, published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science, show that a conceptual framework encourages children to understand why eating a variety of foods is ideal and also causes them to eat more vegetables by choice.

Psychological scientists Sarah Gripshover and Ellen Markman of Stanford University hypothesized that preschoolers would be capable of understanding a more conceptual approach to nutrition, despite their young age.

"Children have natural curiosity -- they want to understand why and how things work," the researchers explain.

"Of course we need to simplify materials for young children, but oversimplification robs children of the opportunity to learn and advance their thinking."

Gripshover and Markman developed five storybooks aimed at revising and elaborating on what children already know about different nutrition-related themes, including dietary variety, digestion, food categories, microscopic nutrients, and nutrients as fuel for biological functions.

The researchers assigned some preschool classrooms to read nutrition books during snack time for about 3 months, while other classrooms were assigned to conduct snack time as usual. Later, the preschoolers were asked questions about nutrition.

The children who had been read the nutrition books were more likely to understand that food had nutrients, and that different kinds of nutrients were important for various bodily functions (even functions that weren't mentioned in the books).

They were also more knowledgeable about digestive processes, understanding, for example, that the stomach breaks down food and blood carries nutrients.

These children also more than doubled their voluntary intake of vegetables during snack time after the three-month intervention, whereas the amount that the control group ate stayed about the same.

When the conceptual program was pitted against a more conventional teaching strategy focused on the enjoyment of healthy eating and trying new foods, the results showed that both interventions led to increased vegetable consumption.

Yet, the children in the conceptual program showed more knowledge about nutrition and a greater overall increase in vegetable consumption.

Further research is needed to determine whether the conceptual intervention encourages healthy eating habits outside of snack time and whether it's effective over the long-term, but Gripshover and Markman believe that the intervention shows promise.

"In the future, our conceptually-based educational materials could be combined with behaviorally-focused nutrition interventions with the hope of boosting healthy eating more than either technique alone," they conclude.

Journal Reference:

1. S. J. Gripshover, E. M. Markman. Teaching Young Children a Theory of Nutrition: Conceptual Change and the Potential for Increased Vegetable Consumption.Psychological Science, 2013; DOI:10.1177/0956797612474827

Healthy Fruit and Vegetagles versus Pesticides

To see the full Infographics picture, simply click on the image or follow this link.

We know a healthy diet requires a lot of fresh fruit and vegetables, but these seemingly healthy choices may also contain pesticides.

Check the facts but keep it in perspective!

Saturday Light Humour: 10 Lies Every Parent Should Tell

It's tough being a parent these days. Don't let anyone tell you different. You need to be sharp minded, quick witted and street smart to keep up with these kids.

You need a full toolbox of skills and expertise to get you through the day. One of the best motivational tools we have in our toolbox is the White Lie.

I know what you're saying, 'Isn't that a bad thing to do?' Well maybe, but White Lies are sometimes really motivating, provide quick benefits and are readily available. Why do we need White Lies? Well, because the truth doesn't always produce the a positive outcome.

1. "The tooth fairy called. She said the way you're behaving, you might as well keep the tooth." Parents threaten kids with consequences all the time, but it helps to have a strong third party on call to bring perspective. From Halloween on, throw all your disciplinary needs onto Santa's lap. Outside of that, be creative.


2. "Monsters like to eat dust bunnies. I bet you're going to get lots of monsters in this room." Call it a cleanliness incentive plan but don't leave them alone in the room after. They may never want to go in there again. Offer to stay and help.


3. "Mommy and Daddy aren't fighting; we're rearranging the kitchen." Kids might not buy this one, but in our desire to be right, we jump into fights even if it means exposing our kids to adult conflicts. Need to scream? Get them or yourself out of the house first. Kids feel frustration and anger too, so it's good to show them how to deal with it.


4. "Mommy and Daddy aren't fighting; we're playing leapfrog. On the bed. Without our clothes." In case the makeup sex gets out of hand. Having a good lock on the door is good and making time for yourselves as a 'couple' is even better.


5. "Reading books will make you a millionaire." In today's screen-dominated world, kids must grow up knowing that books, not blogs, will unlock the secrets of their universe. Show them by example and sit with them when they are reading. Make it a 'close', comfortable or cozy thing to do.


6. "Don't worry, sweetie, that can't happen here." Yes, of course it can. Murder, terrorism, earthquakes, etc. they can strike almost anytime, anywhere, especially in the US, but parents must put it into perspective. Balance the bad news trolls with the good news fairies!


7. "I know everything." Before teachers, coaches, and the moody kid down the street get to voice their distorted opinions, parents must establish themselves as a child's go-to encyclopedia for all of life's questions. You don't have to believe that you are the font of all knowledge but your child does. Help them research and investigate questions and use books as well as Google.


8. "That guy is homeless because he didn't eat his vegetables." If you really stretch it, there's science to back this up, given the importance of nutrition to brain health. More important, this lie demonstrates and teaches cause and effect. It gives your child the understanding and power to determine his destiny.


9. "I'm not afraid." Your smile is their Kevlar shield, your hug a proof of love and that everything will be OK if we stick together, share our concerns and work on problems together. No matter how bleak reality might threaten to become, we don't need to face them alone.


10. "This is Mommy's special juice, and it's poison to children." Happy hour is sacred ground and you need to treat yourself to something nice, now and then. Just don't blackout when you're in charge!