The “No-Thank You” Serving
In A Recipe for Life, which became available this week, I explain what it means to have a “no thank you” serving of a food you dislike.
We’ve all heard for years that if you want to live a long life “eat green vegetables.” Many people have aversions to vegetables since they can have strong flavors. If you do not have a fondness for vegetables, try having a “no thank you?” serving each time a different vegetable is served. A “no thank you” serving is having a bite or two (one or two teaspoons) of something you do not particularly like each time it is served.
An easy way to try this is to have a bite of a vegetable a friend orders when you eat out. Many years ago I avoided eating avocados and I would even pick them out of salads. As the research amplified the benefits of the good fats in avocado I told myself I need to train my taste buds to like them. One evening, a friend and I were out to dinner, and she ordered a salad with an overabundance of avocado slices. With my friend’s permission, I took two bites of her avocado. I would have a bite or two of avocado each time I was with her, and eventually I started loving avocados.
Eating a bite or two of food that is foreign or not to your taste can change the way you feel about that food over time. Eventually your taste buds will change and you might find yourself loving certain vegetables. Like most children, I was not a vegetable lover. Even being a registered dietitian was not encouragement enough to expand my horizons. Eventually I employed the “no thank you” serving to train my taste buds to like vegetables and over time I found myself loving them!
Try the “no thank you” serving when you are not fond of a nutritious food and you might be pleasantly surprise!
