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Research suggests that part of children’s food preferences stem from their experience in utero (Lam, 2015). The amniotic fluid absorbs the foods ingested by the mother and is shared with the fetus. Children are also more likely to be disposed to certain flavors such as bitterness if their parents harness this same experience. Food preferences and exploration is largely tied to a child’s environment as well as genetic factors. Family life shapes how children grow, develop and explore the world around them. It’s important for families to help create environments that harness an attitude of optimism and physical as well as emotional support. There are a number of ways parents can help children feel comfortable in trying new foods. Parents and therapists can help their child or patient by providing an environment that supports the use of physical senses in trying new foods. Pairing language with food experiences helps children learn and feel comfortable with new foods. This includes having a child use their senses to touch, hear, see, smell and taste different foods. Language and discussions that involve describing the colors, shapes, textures, flavors and sizes of foods can help children in learning the various ways we can describe and perceive food. Parents can model supportive eating habits such as verbal reinforcements for trying something new whether it was touching, tasting or chewing and swallowing. Parents can avoid placing initial labels on foods such as “yucky” when trying a food for the first time. Increasing exposure and trialing foods in various ways can help support an attitude of optimism that can carry over into early childhood. Overall it’s important for parents to emotionally support their children as they embark on their exploration of trying new foods. Children should never be shamed or coerced into trying new foods as this adds undue pressure onto the child, creating a negative experience related to food.

Reference

Lam J. (2015). Picky eating in children. Frontiers in pediatrics, 3, 41. https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2015.00041