Study Shows Parents Have A Lot To Do Why Kids Become Picky Eaters

A recent study involving 300 pairs of parent and child showed that those children who are considered as picky eaters often have parents who would limit the foods that the children can eat. Becoming a food police also does not help because it can even worsen the problem.

Behaviors that Lead to Picky Eating

According to the study published in the Pediatrics journal, there are two things that are usually associated with the pickiest eaters. One is demanding that a child must eat, and two, restricting the foods that they eat. Low levels of picky eating were seen in children who were not pressured to eat and who need not deal with tons of restriction when it comes to food.

Dr. Megan Pesch, the senior author of the study and a developmental and behavioral pediatrician at the Michigan Medicine C.S. Mott Children's Hospital, stated that "Eating is one of the few domains kids can exert some control over."

The study involved families who were eligible for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Head Start program. The parents responded to questionnaires, where they described the level of picky eating of their children. The ages of the children that were targeted by the researchers in the questionnaire were 4, 5, 8, and 9.

The researchers found that those children considered picky eaters did not grow out of the behavior within five years. Pesch admitted, though, that further studies would be needed to ascertain if the behavior will be retained as the children grow older.

The study grouped the children into low, medium, and high picky eaters. The latter group comprised about 15% of the children and were characterized by behavior that shows "nervousness" when it comes to new foods and often shy away from vegetables.

Negative Memories About Food

In an editorial by Nancy Zucker, an associate professor of psychiatry at the Duke University Schoo of Medicine, and Sheryl Hughes, an associate professor of pediatric nutrition at Baylor College of Medicine, they state that picky eaters probably have a lot of negative memories about food. They mentioned discomfort, unexpected taste, and conflict over meals as among the bad food memories of children.

Pesch recommended that kids must not be forced to clean their plates. Parents should not also try to make kids sit at the dinner table until they have already eaten a particular amount of food, as this can be counterproductive on their eating habits.