The development of healthy eating habits from infancy into adulthood

Title : The development of healthy eating habits from infancy into adulthood

Abstract:

Children’s vegetable consumption falls below current recommendations, highlighting the need to identify strategies that can successfully promote better acceptance of vegetables. Recently, experimental studies have reported promising interventions that increase acceptance of vegetables. The first, offering French and German infants a high variety of vegetables at weaning, increased acceptance of new foods, including vegetables. The second, offering an initially disliked vegetable at 8 subsequent meals markedly increased acceptance for that vegetable. So far, these effects have been shown to persist for at least several weeks (at 15 months) and several years (3 years). In this study, we present long-term follow-up data at 6 and 18 years obtained through questionnaire and experimental approaches. At 6 and 18 years, observations in an experimental setting showed that children who had been breast-fed and children who had experienced high vegetable variety at the start of weaning ate more of new vegetables and liked them more. They were also more willing to taste different vegetables than formula-fed children or the no or low variety groups. The initially disliked vegetable was still liked by 57%, and 65% of children, respectively.

This follow-up study suggests that experience with chemosensory variety in the context of breastfeeding or at the onset of complementary feeding can influence chemosensory preferences for vegetables into adulthood. It shows the effectiveness of breastfeeding, early experiences with vegetable variety during complementary feeding, and of repeated experience with an initially disliked vegetable in promoting vegetable acceptance into childhood. The effects are long-lasting and provide the foundation for evidence-based recommendations to help parents promote healthy eating habits to their children.

Biography:

Prof. Dr. Andrea Maier-Nöth holds a professorship at the University of Applied Sciences in Albstadt-Sigmaringen, Germany, is a scientific consultant in the field of health psychology and nutrition for children and the author of many scientific publications, specialist journals and books. The focus of her expertise is the topic of “Shaping a healthy and sustainable eating culture”. The scientist has spent many years working intensively in the field of development of early healthy food preferences in children - in particular its influence on long-term healthy eating behavior. As Managing Director of Eat-Health-Pleasure GmbH and croomel GbR, Prof. Dr. Maier-Nöth develops preventive nutrition concepts to promote the health of pregnant women and young children into adulthood.

Ms. Maier-Nöth holds a doctorate in health psychology and nutritional sciences and a bachelor's and master's degree in food technology and nutritional sciences. She is an internationally active expert in the field of child nutrition with a special focus on a holistic approach - i.e. physiological, psychological and socio-cultural aspects. She advises universities, public institutions and food manufacturers and is involved as a speaker and lecturer at congresses and training events on the subject of health, prevention and nutrition. She also lectures as a visiting professor at universities in Switzerland and Germany. In her professional career, she has worked for universities and companies in various countries (Germany, Switzerland, France, USA, New Zealand, Ireland) in the field of research and development.