Building on earlier work, researchers at Cornell University have published new findings offering more evidence that renaming vegetables with fun titles, such as "power punch broccoli," notably increases children's consumption of healthy foods.
ABC's Good Morning America reports:
The study, published in the Journal Preventive Medicine, exposed more than 1,000 kids in seven New York elementary schools to lunchtime veggie choices with and without innovative names like "Silly Dilly Green Beans" or "Tiny Tasty Tree Tops."
Students in the study ate twice as much veggies if they had new labels compared to veggies listed only as "Food of the Day."
In the second part of the study, the proportion of students picking hot servings of veggies with special labels nearly doubled over two months. Conversely, in schools that didn't display their veggies with new names, the percentage of students who selected a veggie serving went down by 16.2 percent.
While the study was conducted in school cafeterias, researchers say the findings could be useful to parents trying to get picky eaters to gobble up veggies at home.
Previously: New federal nutrition standards mean healthier school lunches, Poll shows strong support for extending national nutrition standards beyond the school cafeteria and Persuading kids to make healthier choices in the lunchroom
Photo by U.S. Department of Agriculture
