Spice Can Be Nice for Kids--and Improve Nutrition

By Keith-Thomas Ayoob, ED.D. March has been declared "National Nutrition Month" by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the national professional association of registered dietitian/nutritionists. Every year has a different theme for consumers and health professionals, and usually it's focused on health and specific nutrition goals. This year the theme is "Savor the Flavor of Eating Right." The campaign has grown every year and is now even promoted by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The current theme might sound fun and frivolous, like something you might expect to see on the Food Network, but having fun with eating is one way I've found to help motivate my patients to make simple, positive dietary changes that last. The families I work with are real people with real food likes and dislikes. Traditionally, it's been assumed that kids won't like food that's too spicy. We tone down the heat and offer nothing too strongly flavored, nothing that could disturb delicate taste buds. There's something to this, as some kids are "supertasters," meaning that they notice flavors a little more than do other people, even other kids, either due to a genetic predisposition or simply because they are blessed with more taste receptors on their tongues. Of course, there are hundreds of other compounds that flavor every food, so it gets complicated, but it's common to assume that kids won't want overly flavored foods. Flaws in flavor thinking There is a reason this thinkin...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news