What is fussy eating?
Fussy eating, also known as picky eating, describes a range of behaviours in children related to food. It typically involves:
- Selective food choices: A child may eat only a limited variety of foods. Consistently refuse to try anything outside this range.
- Strong preferences: A marked preference for specific textures, flavours, or food types, often accompanied by aversions to foods with different textures or tastes.
- Reluctance to try new foods: A significant resistance to new foods or changes in food preparation, often coupled with a tendency to reject unfamiliar items outright.
While many children go through phases of fussy eating. It is important to learn how to distinguish between typical selective eating and behaviours that might warrant further intervention.
Distinguishing typical fussy eating from problematic feeder
| Typical fussy/picky eater | Problem feeders | |
|---|---|---|
| Food variety and acceptance | Consumes at least 30 different types of food | Have a limited variety of foods they eat, usually fewer than 20. |
| Response to food jagging | Will generally accept the food again after a break, even if they avoided it for a while | Are unlikely to accept that food again, even after a break, resulting in a steadily decreasing range of acceptable foods |
| Response to new foods | Can tolerate having new foods on their plate and may touch or taste them, even if they’re hesitant | May cry, resist, or become very distressed when new foods are introduced, refusing any interaction with the food |
| Dietary diversity | Eats at least one food from most food texture and nutritional groups | May completely reject entire categories of food based on texture or nutritional group |
| Mealtime dynamics | Often eats different foods from the rest of the family but usually joins family meals | Almost always eat different foods from the family and often do not join in family meals |
| Acceptance of new foods | Typically needs 20-25 steps in a gradual process to accept a new food | Require more than 25 steps in a gradual process to accept a new food |
| Frequency of being identified as a picky eater during well-child check-ups | Sometimes reported as a ‘picky eater’ during check-ups, with picky eating behaviours lasting less than 2 years. | Consistently identified as a ‘picky eater’ across multiple check-ups, with these behaviours persisting for more than 2 years. |
The causes of fussy eating
Fussy eating can stem from various factors:
- Developmental stages: Young children เว็บพนันออนไลน์ UFABET สมัครง่าย โปรโมชั่นมากมาย are often wary of new experiences, including new foods. This cautious approach can be linked to evolutionary survival mechanisms where unfamiliar foods were once perceived as potentially harmful.
- Sensory sensitivity: Some children more sensitive to the texture, taste, or smell of certain foods, making them more selective in their food choices.
- Parental influence: Children may model their eating behaviours based on their parents’ habits. If parents are picky eaters or express strong dislikes for certain foods, children may adopt similar behaviours.