Eating more fruits and vegetables: A new approach

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In general, children consume fewer than the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables on a daily basis. Children who are at risk for obesity, hypertension, or elevated cholesterol tend to consume even fewer servings of fruits and vegetables than their peers. It is very difficult to successfully encourage an increased consumption of fruits and vegetables in children who are at risk.

The article by Couch et al explores a different strategy for increasing the consumption of fruits and vegetables. They use the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH)-type diet in the treatment of children with elevated blood pressure. The treatment group did demonstrate lowering of their blood pressure following the use of the DASH-type diet. A side effect of the DASH diet, however, was an increased consumption of fruits and vegetables when compared with a control group that received routine outpatient hospital-based nutritional care. If this can be duplicated in larger studies, it is an additional treatment modality that not only will lower high blood pressure but will also increase the consumption of fruits and vegetables in children with obesity, hypertension, and/or elevated cholesterol.