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Should You Stop Saying “Eat Your Veggies They’re Good For You”?
Stanford research illuminates a deliciously elegant way to dial up the plants on your way.
Eat your veggies! This phrase has been uttered countless times at dinner tables around the world, including mine. Is there a better way to dial up the veggies on our plates?
Pop Quiz. Which would you rather load up on?
A) Healthy Carrots
B) Harissa Roasted Carrots with Toasted Hazelnuts & Pomegranate Seeds
What if, instead of “selling” veggies based on health, we focused on taste? Would you and your kids eat — and enjoy — more veggies?
Research out of Stanford suggests that the answer may be yes. Studies in college cafeterias found that health-centric labels failed to encourage veggie consumption, often faring worse than neutral, descriptive labels. Taste-centric labels consistently fared best.
This pivot away from health, toward taste, makes perfect sense given the way we make food choices. In spite of healthy intentions, we tend to prioritize taste and convenience above all else.
