What's the best way to get your kid to eat more vegetables? Smother the broccoli in sauce, cut cucumbers into fun shapes, or ban dessert until they've eaten their spinach? A new study reveals what could be the best approach—simply teach them about nutrition.
Scientists from Stanford University have found that even very young children can benefit from a conceptual framework that encourages them to understand why eating a variety of foods is healthy, the researchers said. The result: kids eat more vegetables by choice.
"Children have natural curiosity—they want to understand why and how things work," the researchers explained. "Of course we need to simplify materials for young children, but oversimplification robs children of the opportunity to learn and advance their thinking."