GARDENING INFLUENCES TOTS VIEWS ON VEGETABLES

Findings of a study presented at the 85th Annual Meeting of the American Dietetic Association in October 2002 suggest that letting preschoolers get their hands dirty in a garden might influence a shift in their attitudes towards vegetables. Researchers at Texas A & M University in College Station discovered that when 4 and 5 year olds spent 30 minutes per week planting and tending a garden, they became less likely to refuse vegetables when offered them. Young children often think food comes from a grocery store. The author, Saundra G. Lorenz, says that letting them work in a garden and watch edible things grow allows them to "make a connection to their food source". Allowing young children to garden may be an easy way to get them to eat vegetables Lorenz noted.