Children's Taste Study to Increase Vegetable Intake in Preschoolers

Not Applicable

Completed

• Conditions: Pediatric Obesity
• Interventions: Other: Variety Intervention

• Registration Number: NCT03043118
• Lead Sponsor: Penn State University

Brief Summary

Studies have shown that when exposed to a variety of food and flavor options people tend to consume more than when only one item is presented. This strategy has been used to increase vegetable intake in adults and during snacktime in children. Increasing vegetable consumption in children is important because higher vegetable intake has been associated with reduced risk of disease and because vegetables can help prevent weight gain by lowering the energy density of a meal. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of using herb and spice blends to create flavor variety in carrots as a model vegetable in a laboratory test meal. We predict that children will consume more vegetables and that the energy density of the meal will be lower when a variety of seasoned carrots are presented in comparison to a single flavor. A secondary goal of the study was to determine other influences that may predict children's liking and intake of seasoned vegetables, such as previous exposure, infant feeding practices, and genetic bitter sensitivity.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2015-02
• Study First Submitted: 2016-10-06
• Primary Completion: 2016-11-02
• Study Completion: 2016-11-02
• Study First Submitted QC: 2017-02-01
• Study First Posted: 2017-02-03
• Status Verified: 2022-04
• Last Update Submitted: 2022-04-04
• Last Update Posted: 2022-04-05

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: All
• Target Recruitment: 48

Inclusion Criteria

• Acceptance of test meal foods
• Generally healthy

Exclusion Criteria

• Food allergies
• Medications (prescription or OTC) that can affect taste, smell or appetite
• Medical conditions

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: CROSSOVER

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Variety	Variety Intervention	Children receive three servings of vegetables each prepared with a different herb and spice blend.

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Change in Total Food Intake	Baseline and 1 week	Consumption is measured by pre- and post- weights of all meal items offered in both the variety and no variety conditions
Chang in Vegetable Intake	Baseline and 1 week	Consumption is measured by pre- and post- weights of carrot offered in both the variety and no variety conditions
Change in Meal Energy Density	Baseline and 1 week	Calculated from the total calories consumed divided by the grams of food eaten

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Spice Intake Questionnaire	Baseline	A survey of maternally reported herb and spice consumption during pregnancy and breastfeeding as well as current home use
Home Spice Checklist	Baseline	A comprehensive checklist of 34 herbs and spices for parents to fill out at home to evaluate children's overall herb and spice exposure
Infant Feeding Practices	Baseline	A survey of maternally reported feeding practices, include breastfeeding, formula feeding, and introduction to solid foods.
Liking of Broccoli with Herbs and Spices	Baseline	Liking is measured using a child friendly 5-pt hedonic scale; pilot data for future studies looking to apply this technique to green vegetables
Liking of Carrots with Herb and Spice Blends	Baseline	Liking is measured using a child friendly 5-pt hedonic scale

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

The Pennsylvania State University; 🇺🇸 University Park, Pennsylvania, United States