BOSTON — Getting kids to eat their veggies can be a struggle, especially when it comes to broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and bitter greens. But simply adding a small sprinkle of sugar boosts their appeal to children—and increases how much they actually eat at school—according to preliminary findings presented here today at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (which publishes ScienceNOW). "A major question is how to get people to eat more fruits and vegetables," comments Paul Breslin of Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. "Any research efforts that accomplish that are to be praised."
There have been a lot of efforts to get kids to eat healthier lunches at school, but they haven't had a huge amount of success. The first meta-analysis, published last year, looked at 27 programs—such as teaching the importance of eating well—and found only minimal increases in consumption of vegetables. (Fruit fared better, as you might expect.) Better flavor is the missing ingredient, says Valerie Duffy, a dietician and researcher at the University of Connecticut, Storrs, because kids have more sensitive palates than adults do. "We need to pay more attention to taste and improving preferences for vegetables," so that kids will develop a long-term affinity for vegetables, she said during her presentation.
Bitterness can be minimized in several ways. Even a small amount of sugar spooned into a cup of coffee, for example, will send a strong signal to the brain. Salt blocks the sensation in the mouth, as does acidity. Fat coats the taste buds and prevents the offending molecules from reaching them; that's one reason salad dressings are popular around the world. Duffy and several colleagues conducted a laboratory study of some of these approaches in 37 adults. When the volunteers munched on asparagus, Brussels sprouts, and kale, sweetness was most effective at increasing the appeal of the vegetables. And only sugar was able to change the opinion of people who hadn't liked Brussels sprouts or kale, Duffy told the audience. The findings are described in detail in the December 2012 issue of Chemosensory Perception.
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