Presentation Is Key To Getting Your Children To Eat Fruits And Veggies

With the junk food and cola easily available to children these days, parents are having difficulty in feeding these children with the proper diet such as fruits and vegetables. However, parents should not be discouraged, but instead, be creative in finding ways to present fruits attractively enough to invite the children for a bite.

Based on a research conducted by a Dutch on one hundred individuals with ages four to seven years old, children ate more fruits if they are presented artistically.

In one of the experiments, some apples and grapes were inserted to a stick that was later pierced on a watermelon for artistic presentation, while the other apples and grapes were simply left on an ordinary white plate. The kids were expected to take the ones that were better presented.

The next step in the experiment was to group the kids into three groups. One group would be allowed to eat only from the plate with the appealing presentation. Another group would be allowed to eat only from the plate where the apples and grapes are simply left on it. The last group of kids may choose from the two plates: the artistically design plate or the simply white plate.

Another experiment used the same groupings and the same choices, but this time all of the groups were could eat from either plate. The result of the survey is that kids consume twice of the apples and grapes from the artistically presented plates than those left simply on the white plates. Those who were restricted on only one plate did not have any consequence on the appetite.

It is recommended by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that children should eat at least one to two cups of fruit per day.

Unfortunately, survey shows that majority of the American kids do not consume the recommended amount of fruits. Only 6 out of 100 adolescents are compliant with the minimum amount of fruits intake based on the Centers for Disease Control data.

Let us help and encourage our children to take in more fruits by making the extra effort in presenting the fruits artistically. Currently, the research does not explain why this is so. It may take a while before the researchers can actually find the reason why, but until that day comes, parents are better off knowing that children eat more, if it is prepared elegantly inviting.

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