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This version of NSU News has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of NSU News, visit news.nova.edu.
This version of SharkBytes has been archived as of February 28, 2019. To search through archived articles, visit nova.edu/search. To access the new version of SharkBytes, visit sharkbytes.nova.edu.
Vegetables Do Matter!
Submitted by: Marilyn Gordon, Ed.D., RD, CSSD, LDN
Registered Dietitian, Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics, Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist
Every October is celebrated as Vegetarian Awareness Month. The human health and planetary benefits have been written about previously and you can read them by referring to the Shark Bytes Online Newsletter, October 2010 at https://nsunews.nova.edu/october-vegetarian-awareness-month/ . The annual “A Day for Children” health fair was held in August on NSU’s main campus. It had an estimated attendance of more than 5,000 children and parents even with the inclement weather and competition of the local Dolphin football game.
A new concept for the children was an open-air fruit and vegetable produce market. This was a collaborative effort of the NSU Nursing Department with volunteer nursing students and Marando Farms www.marandofarms.com , a local organic produce farm. The idea was to expose children at a young age to various fruits and vegetables that they have not seen or tasted before. In close proximity, there was a table hosted by NSU Division of Clinical Operations with printed information about the health benefits of fruits and vegetables in the diet as well as ways that parents can model healthy eating behaviors for their children.
Children should be introduced to vegetables right after iron-fortified rice cereal, somewhere between 6-8 months of age. If fruit is introduced before vegetables, the child learns to prefer the sweet taste and is less likely to accept vegetables which can be bitter, astringent, and pungent in taste. After 25 years of nutrition counseling, I have met young children, teenagers, college students, and adults who eat virtually no vegetables. This is a health hazard since most of the important vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants, and phytochemicals which promote good health and prevent disease are found in vegetables. Vegetables are high in nutrition but low in calories so they are an ideal replacement for higher calorie foods. Suggested daily vegetable intake ranges from 1-3 cups per day.
Consistent exposure to a variety of vegetables at all ages is important as many times a person needs to taste them multiple times before including them into their weekly menu. Often if parents dislike vegetables, they do not serve them to their child which limits their exposure. Everyone should take action; parents, schools, daycare programs, after school programs, and higher educational institutions. Let’s begin offering vegetables at meals and snack time instead of convenient, nutrient-devoid, processed foods.
Vegetables really DO matter!