Parenting is a quixotic task; if anything resembles tilting at windmills, it is trying to get it right as a parent. Yes, parenting is rewarding and uplifting, but also rigorous and difficult. Parents are required at various times to possess the diplomacy skills of Kissinger (in solving disputes), the creativity of Michelangelo (in finding ways to occupy time that don’t involve a flat screen), the patience of a medieval Cathedral builder, and the energy and drive of Edmund Hilary (in order to keep up with the expansive life force that kids express. Any one of these qualities is deserving of a Nobel Prize in and of itself but underlying all of this there is the simple yet infinitely challenging task of getting your child to eat well. At least new research has some advice to offer on this latter front.
In the new study pre-teen children and adults were presented with pictures of food arranged in 48 different combinations. The varied combinations included changes in food, food placement, and positioning of an entrée.
What emerged is that compared to adults children prefer a plat that contains more elements and colours but also prefer more figurative designs in the way their food is presented on the plate.
This is good news as we all know that a “rainbow†of food featuring the many coloured vegetables and fruits, complete with the health-promoting plant chemicals that generate those colours, comprise a healthy diet.
The bad news is that parents now need to bring to the kitchen the colour sense of a Matisse and the presentation skills of an Andy Warhol. Why not? After all, it’s just another string to add to an already bristling bow.
