New Study Finds Simple Way To Get Teens To Like Vegetables

A new study has found the best way to get teens to enjoy vegetables is to use spices to enhance the flavor. Researchers from Pennsylvania State University in University Park had 100 students from rural Pennsylvania sample vegetables seasoned with just oil and salt and compared the taste to vegetables seasoned with various spices. 

More than half the students in the study said they did not like the vegetables served in their schools, and 75% said they disliked the taste. Students also said that the appearance of the food was "very important" when it came to choosing what to grab from the lunch line. 

Most students surveyed at the start of the study said the taste, the serving size, and the food's appearance were "very important" characteristics of school meals.

When asked to choose between the bland vegetables and the seasoned ones, the students overwhelmingly chose the ones flavored with spices. 

Juliana Fritts said the small study is important because "vegetable intake is still SO low in adolescents and adults." 

This is important because we really need to make sure we are focusing on improving the vegetables served in schools to make sure students take interest in eating them.

Dietary guidelines suggest that teenage girls need to eat four servings of vegetables a day, while teen boys should be eating five servings per day. 

Photo: Getty Images


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