RESEARCH ARTICLE
Call a Vegetable a Vegetable: Perceptions and Taste Ratings
Janel Reeves1, Sharon Thompson2, *, Alexandria Floyd3
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2017Volume: 10
First Page: 52
Last Page: 56
Publisher ID: TOPHJ-10-52
DOI: 10.2174/1874944501710010052
Article History:
Received Date: 21/12/2016Revision Received Date: 14/02/2017
Acceptance Date: 17/02/2017
Electronic publication date: 29/05/2017
Collection year: 2017
open-access license: This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License (CC-BY 4.0), a copy of which is available at: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. This license permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Abstract
Background:
Research is mixed regarding how nutritional value of food can influence perceptions about taste, particularly among children. This study examined children’s perceptions of vegetable-enhanced snacks and milk substitutes prior to and after tasting.
Methods:
Two taste tests were performed with two groups of elementary age children (n = 29 and n=22). Prior to each tasting, they were made aware of the food being tasted. Participants provided perceptions of taste prior to sampling and also after tasting. Data were analyzed with paired two sample t-tests. In Taste Test #1, children gave spinach brownies higher ratings after tasting (prior: M=2.24; after: M = 2.86, p < .05) and rated cheesy sweet potato crisps lower after tasting (prior: M = 2.45, after: M = 1.48, p < .05). In Taste Test #2, children rated both vanilla soymilk (prior: M = 1.91, after: M = 2.64, p < .05) and zucchini oatmeal cookies (prior: M = 1.73, after: M = 2.46, p < .05) higher after tasting.
Conclusion:
Consumption of vegetable enhanced foods or milk substitutes may be encouraged without deception in order to promote a more nutrient dense diet among elementary-aged children.