If a child refuses an item, a healthy substitute is much better than a less nutritious food. McLaurin said in addition to increased exposure in the early years, cooking vegetables in a variety of ways is another method to increase consumption. Often if children are involved in the growing and preparation of vegetables they are more likely to eat them. As adults become more health conscious, children also can get involved in reading and understanding labels on different products. Children can be taught to recognize health or nutritional claims on labels.
Older children can learn how to compare similar products by reading the labels.
Under the new labeling regulations, two different types of claims will be allowed. One includes nutrient content descriptors, such as no cholesterol, high fiber or low fat. The second is health claims, which relate directly to seven well- documented relationships with a nutrient or food to a particular disease, such as calcium and osteoporosis. One of the main things for people to watch for is the amount of fat in their diets. The new labels will make it easier to monitor the amount of fat you could be consuming in a particular product.