(ANSA) - ROME, 13 JAN - Involving children in the preparation of meals in a playful way convinces them to consume more fruit and vegetables, limiting extreme forms of food neophobia, i.e. the selective refusal of certain foods.
These are the results of the survey by the CreaAlimenti and Nutrition research team published in the journal Frontiers inNutrition, on a sample of 99 school-age children.
During the lockdown, forced coexistence produced an increase in the number of meals eaten in the family associated with the choice of vegetables and legumes.
In fact, 95% of the children who consumed these foods the most had eaten both main meals in the family unit and in 35% of the cases it turned out that they ate more than they did in the pre-pandemic period.
As for food neophobia, 97% of children say their selective refusal of food has not changed during the pandemic.
About 70% did not change their eating habits, with some exceptions involving an increase in the consumption of fruit (22.2%), vegetables (19.2%) and legumes (21.2%).
As expected, the restrictive measures had an impact on a sedentary lifestyle, which went from 25.3% to 70.7%.
It is interesting to note that during social isolation, 39.4% of the children were involved in preparing meals and that the percentage who shared all meals with the family increased (32.3% vs. 78.8%).
Parental noncoercive behaviors in reaction to food refusal have been associated with low levels of neophobia.
"One of the causes of the low consumption of fruit and vegetables could be food neophobia - explains research coordinator Umberto Scognamiglio - defined as the reluctance to eat new or unknown foods:
a very common behavior among children with a well-defined onset and evolution.
Our study demonstrates how the educational strategies adopted by the parent at mealtime can decisively influence eating habits and the level of neophobia". (ANSA).