Modifying children's food preferences: the effects of exposure and reward on acceptance of an unfamiliar vegetable

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate two interventions (one reward-based and one exposure-based) for increasing children's acceptance of an unfamiliar vegetable compared with a no-treatment control. It was predicted that the exposure condition would increase liking for, and consumption of, the vegetable relative to either the reward or control group. Design: Using a randomized controlled design, participants were assigned to one of two intervention groups (exposure or reward) or to a no-treatment control condition, for a 2 week period. Liking for, and consumption of, red pepper was assessed before and after the treatment period. Setting: The study was conducted in three primary schools in London. Subjects: Parental consent was obtained for 49 out of a possible 72 children. Interventions: Interventions comprised eight daily sessions during which participants in the exposure group were offered a taste of sweet red pepper and told that they could eat as much as they liked. Participants in the reward group were shown a sheet of cartoon stickers and told that they could choose one of them on condition that they ate at least one piece of the pepper. Results: The exposure-based intervention significantly increased both liking (P ¼ 0.006) and consumption (P ¼ 0.03) compared with the control group. The outcome of the reward intervention was intermediate and did not differ significantly from the exposure or control conditions. Conclusions: Repeated exposure to the taste of unfamiliar foods is a promising strategy for promoting liking of previously rejected foods in children.

Variety is the spice of life: Strategies for promoting fruit and vegetable acceptance during infancy

“…The Start Healthy Feeding Guidelines which were recently developed by an expert panel of pediatric health and nutrition professionals in response to the need for practical, evidence-based advice on introducing solid foods to infants and toddlers concluded that there was no evidence that supports the need to restrict or avoid any foods for weaned infants who are not at risk for allergies [38]. The present study suggests that by introducing a variety of fruits and vegetables, both within and between meals, infants might be more accepting of fruits and vegetables, the consumption of which is generally low in the pediatric population [28], and the acceptance of which is difficult to enhance beyond toddlerhood [39,40]. Because mothers were apparently unaware of changes in acceptance, they may give up too soon when introducing these foods [10,11].…”

Personal, social and environmental predictors of daily fruit and vegetable intake in 11-year-old children in nine European countries

“…Liking and preferences were also related to likelihood of daily intake of both fruit and vegetables, and such taste preferences have repeatedly been shown to be a good predictor of food choices (Domel et al, 1996;Resnicow et al, 1997;Lien et al, 2002;Neumark-Sztainer et al, 2003;Bere and Klepp, 2004). Repeated exposure to many different kinds of fruit and vegetables at early age might be a good strategy to improve liking (Wardle et al, 2003;Patrick and Nicklas, 2005). Positive self-efficacy was a third personal factor related to daily intake of fruit and vegetables.…”

Ethnic differences in 1-year follow-up effect of the Dutch Schoolgruiten Project – promoting fruit and vegetable consumption among primary-school children

“…The aim of the Schoolgruiten Project was that all children should eat the piece of fruit or vegetable together in their own classroom. Apart from increasing availability and accessibility, this F&V scheme was also supposed to increase the children's exposure to F&V. Repeated exposure is an important determinant of taste preferences 23 .…”