Children Eat More Fruits And Vegetables If They Are Homegrown

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Children Eat More Fruits And Vegetables If They Are Homegrown

_http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070418163652.htm_

(http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070418163652.htm)

 

ScienceDaily (Apr. 19, 2007) — If you are looking for a way to encourage

your children eat their fruits and vegetables, search no further than your

backyard, suggests new Saint Louis University research.

 

 

Preschool children in rural areas eat more fruits and vegetables when the

produce is homegrown.

" It was a simple, clear finding, " said Debra Haire-Joshu, Ph.D., director of

Saint Louis University's Obesity Prevention Center and a study author.

" Whether a food is homegrown makes a difference. Garden produce creates what we

call a 'positive food environment.' "

Researchers interviewed about 1,600 parents of preschool-aged children who

live in rural southeast Missouri. They found that preschool children who were

almost always served homegrown fruits and vegetables were more than twice as

likely to eat five servings a day than those who rarely or never ate

homegrown produce.

The American Dietetic Association recommends between five and 13 servings of

fruits and vegetables a day.

In addition, children who grow up eating fresh-from-the-garden produce also

prefer the taste of fruits and vegetables to other foods, the parents told

researchers.

The study, in the April issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic

Association, found the garden-fed children were more likely to see their

parents

eating fruits and vegetables.

A greater variety of fruits and vegetables -- more tomatoes, cantaloupe,

broccoli, beans and carrots -- also were available in the homes of families who

nearly always had homegrown produce.

The implications of the research are important because they point to a

simple way of getting kids to eat healthier, Haire-Joshu said. Plant a garden

or

encourage your school to do so.

" When children are involved with growing and cooking food, it improves their

diet, " Haire-Joshu said. " Students at schools with gardens learn about math

and science and they also eat more fruits and vegetables. Kids eat healthier

and they know more about eating healthy. It's a winning and low-cost strategy

to improve the nutrition of our children at a time when the pediatric

obesity is an epidemic problem. "