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In the News, Summer 2023: Longer Meals Increase Children’s Fruit/Vegetable Intake
A small study conducted in Germany found that increasing the duration of meals by 50% (an average of ten minutes) significantly increased children’s consumption of fruits and vegetables. The randomized clinical trial involved 50 parent-child dyads, in which the children were aged 6 to 11 years. Each dyad was served two “typical” German dinners – consisting of cold cuts, bread, cheese, fruits and vegetables (cut into bite-size pieces), and dessert – in a family meal laboratory. In the control meal, they sat at the table for their customary length of time; in the other, the time period was extended by 50%.
On average, the children ate about 100 grams more fruits and vegetables during the longer stay at the table – about as much as a small apple or small bell pepper. Intake of meat, bread, and dessert remained the same. The longer family meals also led to a slower eating rate and increased satiety.
Despite the study’s small sample size and limited duration, its findings have promising implications for improving children’s health, as low fruit and vegetable intake can increase risk for chronic disease. As researcher Ralph Hertwig pointed out, “The duration of the meal is one of the central components of a family meal which parents can vary to improve the diet of their children.”
Sources: How to get your children to eat more fruits and vegetables. Max Planck Institute for Human Development, April 18, 2023. mpib-berlin.mpg.de/press-releases/how-to-get-your-children-to-eat-more-fruits-and-vegetables.
Dallacker M, Knobl V, Hertwig R, Mata J. Effect of longer family meals on children’s fruit and vegetable intake. JAMA Network Open, 2023; 6(4):e236331. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.6331.
Published in the Journal of Health and Healing™
Summer 2023 | Volume 47, Number 2
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