A study found that if parents are grimacing when they eat their vegetables it can put off their children eating vegetables. On the opposite side of the coin, if a child sees their parents smiling when there are eating vegetables it does not necessarily encourage children to eat more vegetables. At least parents should look like they are enjoying the experience!
And the difference is not huge. A report of this study, in The Times newspaper today, tells me that children like broccoli 8% less when they see their parents eating broccoli and not liking it.
In the study they didn’t use parents and children but researchers and observing participants. I’ve extended that to parents and children which is the purpose of this study.
In a remarkable statistic mentioned by The Times it is said that in the UK, in 1950, less than 1% of the population was clinically obese whereas today, almost 30% of British citizens are considered to be clinically obese. This figure includes 25% of 10-year-old children.
Yes, it is shocking and depressing to know that there appears to be a demarcation between older people with older standards like myself and younger people with more modern standards. This difference is shown in how people respond to obesity; becoming fat.
I am 75 years old and I hate obesity. I don’t like feeling fat. This drives me to keep a good BMI. That and the knowledge that I am healthier if I keep my weight down to a minimum. That kind of thinking doesn’t seem to apply to many people today.
It is generally agreed by the expert and by many citizens that eating more vegetables is healthier. It is both healthier for the person and the planet. Eating more vegetables means eating less meat and eating less meat means helping to save the planet from global warming.
The leading author in the research project mentioned, Dr. Katie Edwards of Aston University’s School of Psychology, said that, “This might imply that watching someone eating a raw vegetable with positive facial expressions does not seem an effective strategy for increasing vegetable consumption”.
The research, apparently, focused on adult people but Dr. Katie Edwards believes that the findings are likely to be true for children as well. She added that, “If a child sees a parent showing disgust whilst eating vegetables this could have negative consequences on children’s vegetable acceptance.”
The research discusses the concept of trying to encourage and coax children to eat more vegetables in the interests of their health and I would add (as mentioned) to help contribute to minimising global warming.
It is believed that the consumption of ultra-processed foods in the UK is the main reason why there is an obesity epidemic in the country.
In the meantime, parents should at least not look disgusted when they eat vegetables in front of their children! But smiling while doing so does not necessarily encourage them to eat vegetables. One tactic has apparently been to give children vegetables for breakfast! I can’t see that working.
Allowing fast food outlets to open shops near schools is something which has been discussed. I think there should be no such outlets anywhere near schools. That might be one small step in the right direction.
Parents lead the way on this. They must be good examples to their children. I would respectfully argue that a lot of them are not in that they find convenience foods very convenient! Too convenient.
And if convenience is the driving force, then this leads me to suspect that Britain is lazier than it was in the 1950s after the war. I sense that British people are indeed lazier than they were 70 year ago. Standards have dropped.
Ultimately, keeping one’s weight down is about self-discipline and not being lazy. It’s about being active both mentally and physically. It’s being switched on to health problems and not allowing oneself to be self-indulgent. These are old-fashioned concepts which appear to be thoroughly outmoded today. It is one more symptom, I would argue, in a gradual breakdown of societal norms in the UK and possibly in other countries. I have discussed that in another article on a different website.
