health
What is Fussy Eating?
Fussy eating (also known as picky eating
or food fussiness) is an unwillingness to
eat familiar foods or try new foods, as
well as having strong food preferences.
This can apply to particular tastes and
foods (such as bitter foods or vegetables)
as well as food textures (such as pureed
or crunchy foods). Fussy eating is very
common in young children, particularly
two to six year olds, with up to 50 per
cent of parents describing their young
children as fussy eaters.
What Causes Fussy Eating?
Fussy eating is a normal part of growing
up and is influenced by both genetic
and environmental factors. It may
reflect your child’s growing sense of
independence as refusing food can be a
way of asserting themselves. Additionally,
children naturally become more fearful
of new foods (food neophobia) from two
to six years. This is thought to be an
adaptation to help survival, as it stops
children eating foods that could be
potentially poisonous. From birth, infants
also have a natural preference for sweet
tastes and tend to reject bitter or sour
tastes, such as green vegetables or citrus
fruits. Most children eventually lose this
taste aversion and learn to like bitter and
sour foods, but every child is different
and some require more exposure to
these foods before they learn to accept
them. While food fussiness has a
genetic basis, a child’s behaviour is also
influenced by their environment and
experience. There are many ways fussy
eating can be prevented and managed.
How Can Fussy Eating be Prevented?
Some fussy eating is normal and
children usually grow out of it but there
are many ways to expand a child’s diet
from the very start.
• Pregnancy & Breastfeeding:
Infants are exposed to lots of
different tastes both in utero and
through breastmilk. Having a
healthy varied diet during pregnancy
and breastfeeding can help your
child accept a variety of foods.
• Complementary Feeding
(starting solids):
Waiting to start complementary
feeding until six months of age is
advised for many reasons and can
also reduce the risk of fussy eating.
It’s important to include bitter-
tasting vegetables, like broccoli,
among your child’s first foods
so they become accustomed to
these tastes early on. The more
foods your baby tries before food
neophobia sets in the better!
Finally, it’s important that your
child is eating a variety of textures,
including lumpy foods, by at least
nine months of age.
• Modelling Behaviour:
Children learn from and respond
to what they see. If they see the
people around them eating a variety
of foods, they are more likely to
do the same. Try to eat healthy
balanced meals with your child as
often as you can and model the
behaviours you want them to copy.
• Rewards:
If we use ice-cream as a reward
for eating vegetables, vegetables
become bad and ice-cream
becomes good. Using food as a
reward also encourages children
to associate specific foods with
love and praise which can lead to
them overeating foods that are high
in sugar, fat and salt. Instead of
food, try using story time, a game,
stickers or a trip to the park as a
reward for good behaviour.
• Fresh Foods:
Some studies suggest that
providing fresh food to infants, and
avoiding the use of ready-made
baby foods, is protective against
later fussy eating.
How Can Fussy Eating be Managed?
If your child is a fussy eater there are
lots of ways you can positively manage
this normal part of growing up, such as;
• Meal Timing:
offer three meals and two-three
healthy snacks every day at
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approximately the same time. When
you have regular meal and snack
times, your child will have a more
predictable hunger pattern and is
less likely to refuse food.
Praise, Not Pressure:
It’s important to encourage your
child to try foods and to praise
them when they do, but pressuring
your child to eat can lead them to
associating mealtimes with stress
and anxiety and may cause them to
eat even less. Offer small portions,
praise them when they finish it, and
then offer some more.
Don’t Make a Fuss:
It’s normal to worry when a child
refuses to eat but children can
sense tension or anxiety and this
can make the situation worse. How
much your child eats in one meal
or even in one day is not important.
It’s more helpful to think about
what they eat over the course of
a week to see if they’re getting a
balanced diet.
Exposure:
Some children need to be offered
a food up to 15 times before they
finally accept it. Try offering a new
food alongside accepted foods
so the meal still looks familiar.
Sometimes changing the way you
serve it can help too, for example a
child may reject cooked carrots but
enjoy raw grated carrot.
Eat Together:
Your child learns that different foods
are safe and enjoyable by watching
others. Sometimes a child will eat
for someone they like or look up
to, such as a friend or grandparent,
without any fuss so invite others
to eat with you. Give your child
the same foods as the rest of the
family (but without salt) and make
mealtimes an enjoyable experience
by chatting together and getting rid
of distractions (such as the television
and mobile phones).
Offer Choice:
As fussy eating is sometimes due
to your child’s increased sense of
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