Research This is how parents motivate children to eat more vegetables

Is there a trick to motivate children to eat vegetables??
Many parents have problems motivating their children to consume vegetables. But vegetables contain nutrients and vitamins that are important to the human body. Researchers found a simple and fast way to increase children's daily vegetable intake.

Researchers at Deakin University found in their study that there is an easy way to increase daily consumption of vegetables in children. Children eat more carrots when they are given the vegetables as a whole. If the vegetables are cut small, the children eat less vegetables. The doctors published a press release on the results of their study.

Experts have now discovered that parents should no longer cut vegetables (such as carrots) if they want their children to eat more vegetables. (Image: Matthias Stolt / fotolia.com)

Experts examine 72 children
Children often refuse to eat their vegetables during their meals. However, there is an easy way to motivate children to eat vegetables. For the randomized controlled trial, the experts examined 72 primary school children. These subjects received 500g of peeled carrots on one day, and on another day they received the same amount of chopped carrots.

Children eat more whole carrots
The kids had ten minutes on both days to consume as many carrots as they wanted. The results of the study showed that eating whole carrots resulted in greater consumption. Many children ate their carrots longer than usual, and most ate a complete carrot, explains author. Gie Liem of the Deakin's School of Exercise and Nutrition Sciences.

Consumption of whole carrots led to increased consumption by up to ten percent
In other words, the results mean that children on average consume about eight to ten percent more vegetables when consumed as whole vegetables compared to consuming cut carrots, the expert adds.

Parents should not cut vegetables
So if parents want their kids to eat more vegetables, especially as a snack in between, then they should not cut the vegetables down. In the future, parents should just give their children a whole carrot to school, if they should eat more vegetables, the researchers advise.

Most children eat far too few vegetables
The results of the study were very important because, for example, fewer than ten percent of Australian children are eating the recommended guidelines of five servings of vegetables a day. Liem. There is a simple solution to a big problem for most parents.

Vegetable consumption can protect against obesity
High consumption of vegetables during childhood is important for optimal health and development of children. In addition, eating vegetables helps children avoid obesity and associated chronic diseases later in life, the researchers say. (As)