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An exploratory trial of parental advice for increasing vegetable acceptance in infancy

Fildes, AM; Lopes, C; Moreira, P; Moschonis, G; Oliveira, A; Mavrogianni, C; Manios, Y; ... Cooke, L; + view all (2015) An exploratory trial of parental advice for increasing vegetable acceptance in infancy. British Journal of Nutrition , 114 (2) pp. 328-336. 10.1017/S0007114515001695. Green open access

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Abstract

Research suggests repeatedly offering infants a variety of vegetables during weaning increases vegetable intake and liking. The effect may extend to novel foods. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of advising parents to introduce a variety of single vegetables as first foods on infants’ subsequent acceptance of a novel vegetable. Mothers of four-six month old infants in the UK, Greece and Portugal were randomised to either an intervention group (n=75), who received guidance on introducing five vegetables (one per day) as first foods repeated over 15 days, or a control group (n=71) who received country-specific ‘usual care’. Infant’s consumption (grams) and liking (maternal and researcher rated) of an unfamiliar vegetable were assessed one month post–intervention. Primary analyses were conducted for the full sample with secondary analyses conducted separately by country. No significant effect of the intervention was found for vegetable intake in the three countries combined. However sub-group analyses showed UK intervention infants consumed significantly more novel vegetable than control infants (32.8g ± 23.6g vs. 16.5g ± 12.1; p=0.003). UK mothers and researchers rated infants’ vegetable liking higher in the intervention than control condition. In Portugal and Greece there was no significant intervention effect on infants’ vegetable intake or liking. The differing outcome between countries possibly reflects cultural variations in existing weaning practices. However, the UK results suggest in countries where vegetables are not common first foods, advice on introducing a variety of vegetables early in weaning may be beneficial for increasing vegetable acceptance.

Type: Article
Title: An exploratory trial of parental advice for increasing vegetable acceptance in infancy
Location: UK
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1017/S0007114515001695
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0007114515001695
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2015. Copyright © The Authors 2015
Keywords: Vegetables, weaning, infancy, food preferences, children
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Population Health Sciences > Institute of Epidemiology and Health > Behavioural Science and Health
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1469278
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