Version 1
: Received: 9 September 2024 / Approved: 10 September 2024 / Online: 10 September 2024 (17:08:46 CEST)
How to cite:
Monsur, M.; Mansur, M.; Trina, N. A.; Cosco, N. Hands-On Gardening in Childcare Centers to Advance Pre-school-Age Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Liking in Semi-Arid Climate Zone. Preprints2024, 2024090754. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0754.v1
Monsur, M.; Mansur, M.; Trina, N. A.; Cosco, N. Hands-On Gardening in Childcare Centers to Advance Pre-school-Age Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Liking in Semi-Arid Climate Zone. Preprints 2024, 2024090754. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0754.v1
Monsur, M.; Mansur, M.; Trina, N. A.; Cosco, N. Hands-On Gardening in Childcare Centers to Advance Pre-school-Age Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Liking in Semi-Arid Climate Zone. Preprints2024, 2024090754. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0754.v1
APA Style
Monsur, M., Mansur, M., Trina, N. A., & Cosco, N. (2024). Hands-On Gardening in Childcare Centers to Advance Pre-school-Age Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Liking in Semi-Arid Climate Zone. Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0754.v1
Chicago/Turabian Style
Monsur, M., Nazia Afrin Trina and Nilda Cosco. 2024 "Hands-On Gardening in Childcare Centers to Advance Pre-school-Age Children’s Fruit and Vegetable Liking in Semi-Arid Climate Zone" Preprints. https://doi.org/10.20944/preprints202409.0754.v1
Abstract
Hands-on gardening is linked with healthy eating behaviors, increased outdoor activities, and overall well-being. Although these positive associations are widely established for adults and school-agers, little evidence can be found on how such relationships may extend to early childhood, especially in the preschool years (3-5 years). One recent study conducted in North Carolina (NC) showed that participating in hands-on gardening significantly increased preschoolers’ accurate identification of fruits and vegetables (FV) and FV consumption compared to children who did not participate in hands-on gardening, but no association was found between participation in hands-on gardening and children’s liking (eating preferences) of FV. FV identification and liking during the early years may lead to lifelong healthy eating behaviors and preferences, making hands-on gardening a critical health intervention in early childhood environments, especially in childcare centers where a majority of the 13 million children in the United States between the ages of 0 and 5 spend most of their waking hours. This research aimed to investigate how hands-on gardening in childcare centers may impact preschoolers’ (3-5 years old) FV knowledge (identification) and liking in a semi-arid climate zone with a high concentration of Hispanic families by conducting experimental research with eight childcare centers and one hundred forty-nine children (n=149) in Lubbock County located in West Texas. Findings showed changes in average liking scores are generally positive in the experiment group of children who participated in hands-on gardening (compared to the control non-gardening group), implying improved liking. The findings indicate that the benefits of hands-on gardening in childcare centers for enhancing healthy eating preferences are evident even in a semi-arid climate zone, where high temperatures and limited rainfall present significant gardening challenges. This research underscores the importance of integrating hands-on gardening into childcare programs, highlighting its potential as an effective obesity prevention strategy not only within the U.S. but also in other regions with similar environmental constraints.
Keywords
gardening; childcare; fruit and vegetable (FV) liking; FV knowledge; preschool-aged children or preschoolers; obesity; semi-arid climate
Subject
Public Health and Healthcare, Public, Environmental and Occupational Health
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.