1. Can Reduced Intake Associated with Downsizing a High Energy Dense Meal Item be Offset by Increased Vegetable Variety in 3–5-year-old Children?
- Author
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Carstairs, S., Caton, S.J., Blundell-Birtill, P., Rolls, B.J., Hetherington, M.M., and Cecil, J.E.
- Subjects
Male ,digestive, oral, and skin physiology ,pre-school children ,lcsh:TX341-641 ,Health Promotion ,portion size ,eating behavior ,Article ,variety ,Eating ,Food Preferences ,Food ,Child, Preschool ,Vegetables ,Humans ,Female ,Child Nutritional Physiological Phenomena ,Energy Intake ,lcsh:Nutrition. Foods and food supply ,Meals - Abstract
Large portions of energy dense foods promote overconsumption but offering small portions might lead to compensatory intake of other foods. Offering a variety of vegetables could help promote vegetable intake and offset the effect of reducing the portion size (PS) of a high energy dense (HED) food. Therefore, we tested the effect on intake of reducing the PS of a HED unit lunch item while varying the variety of the accompanying low energy dense (LED) vegetables. In a within-subjects design, 43 3&ndash, 5-year-old pre-schoolers were served a lunch meal in their nursery on 8 occasions. Children were served a standard (100%) or downsized (60%) portion of a HED sandwich with a side of LED vegetables offered as a single (carrot, cherry tomato, cucumber) or variety (all 3 types) item. Reducing the PS of a HED sandwich reduced sandwich (g) (p <, 0.001) and total meal intake (kcal) consumption (p = 0.001) without an increased intake of other foods in the meal (LED vegetables (p = 0.169), dessert (p = 0.835)). Offering a variety of vegetables, compared with a single vegetable, increased vegetable intake (g) (p = 0.003) across PS conditions. Downsizing and variety were effective strategies individually for altering pre-schoolers&rsquo, intakes of HED and LED meal items, however, using variety to offset HED downsizing was not supported in the present study.
- Published
- 2018