Girls follow mom’s lead when eating fruits, vegetables
Girls follow mom’s lead when eating fruits, vegetablesWhen mothers add more fruits and vegetables to their plates, their daughters do as well, new research reports. Furthermore, moms who ate diets heavy in fruits and vegetables were less likely to pressure their daughters to eat more, and their daughters were less likely to become so-called “picky” eaters.Many parents worry about picky eating in their children. In this study, girls who were picky eaters typically ate less fruits and vegetables than healthy eaters.
However, all girls — whether they picked at their food or not — lacked important nutrients such as calcium and magnesium, according to study author Dr. Amy T. Galloway.
Furthermore, picky eaters also ate less fat and sugar, and were less likely to be overweight than girls who were not picky eaters.
“Picky eating has both costs and potential benefits,” said Galloway, who is based at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. “Our findings show that all girls would benefit from consuming more fruits and vegetables, so it may not be worth it for parents to single out picky eaters.”
During the study, Galloway and her colleagues interviewed 173 mothers and their 7-year-old white, non-Hispanic daughters about eating habits, and whether mothers pressured their girls to eat more. When girls turned 9, the researchers contacted them again and determined if they were picky eaters, meaning they only ate a few foods, often refused to eat family meals, and were picky or fussy about what they ate.
Overall, mothers who ate more fruits and vegetables had daughters who ate more fruits and vegetables, Galloway and her team report in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
Girls whose mothers put pressure on them to eat at age 7 were more likely to be picky eaters at age 9. Picky eaters ate less fruits and vegetables, and were at greater risk of not getting enough vitamins E and C than were non-picky eaters. Picky eaters also ate less fiber.
However, picky eaters were less likely to be overweight and were not underweight. All girls in the study lacked vitamin E, calcium and magnesium, Galloway said.
“Most of the girls in our study, regardless of whether they were picky eaters, did not consume recommended quantities of fruits and vegetables,” she said. “Our findings indicate that (picky eating) might not be as big of a problem as we have assumed.”
SOURCE: Journal of the American Dietetic Association
Dr. Keith &Laurie Nemec comment on Girls & MomsThis study shows two things. One, that children follow their parents’ example. Two, that girls whose mothers put pressure on them to eat became picky eaters and ate less fruits, vegetables and were more prone to vitamin deficiencies.
This study shows two things. One, that children follow their parents’ example. Two, that girls whose mothers put pressure on them to eat became picky eaters and ate less fruits, vegetables and were more prone to vitamin deficiencies.In the second study, kids follow parents using alternative therapies, showing that children tend to do what they see their parents doing.
So with these two studies one powerful truth can be seen. If you want to change your children, change yourself first. If you want your children to do or be something or someone, you must do or be it first and then model it to them and they will learn by example. As the eating study showed, if mothers forced their children to eat fruit and vegetables, they were much less likely to eat them. On the other hand, if the child always saw their parents eating fruits and vegetables and enjoying them and looking forward to eating the, the children would naturally start to want them also.
St Francis of Assisi once said, “Go and make the world disciples of Christ and if necessary (and usually it was not) use words.”
Kids do not buy into the “Do as I say, not as I do”.
They will change when your heart changes. If you want them to love eating vegetables, then you love eating vegetables. If you want them to not try to fit in and be like everyone else at school, then you must not try to fit in to a world system and be like everyone in the world.
One more thing, remember children have a keen sense of knowing if their parents are just going through the motions or if it is genuinely in their heart. Follow your heart and they will also.