Picky Eaters
Tuesday August 29, 2006
"Eat your peas."
"No, there's applesauce mixed with them."
"There is not; they're just next to the applesauce."
"But they'reTOUCHING!"
Does this sound like your house at dinner time? Before you get too annoyed with your child, consider the possibility that he or she is extremely sensitive to the tastes and textures of different foods. Such sensitivity is one aspect of Dabrowski's sensual overexcitability. While it may seem unreasonable for someone to refuse to eat foods that are simply touching one another, children (and adults) with this overexcitability are so sensitive to tastes that the experience of eating two foods with two flavors or two textures is not a pleasant prospect. It can be as unpleasant an idea to them as the idea of eating bugs is to the rest of us. Some textures may be so unpleasant that almost any food with that texture is avoided. The gooey texture of macaroni and cheese or peanut butter, for example, is just too unpleasant. The opposite reaction is also possible -- that gooey texture could be another child's favorite texture! There may be some food that your child will eat every day without every tiring of it. The sensual sensitivity is not as common as the emotional sensitivity, but it's not rare either! How common is it? Take the poll and let's find out!
Poll:Does your child have strong sensitivities to foods?
More polls from your guide
"No, there's applesauce mixed with them."
"There is not; they're just next to the applesauce."
"But they'reTOUCHING!"
Does this sound like your house at dinner time? Before you get too annoyed with your child, consider the possibility that he or she is extremely sensitive to the tastes and textures of different foods. Such sensitivity is one aspect of Dabrowski's sensual overexcitability. While it may seem unreasonable for someone to refuse to eat foods that are simply touching one another, children (and adults) with this overexcitability are so sensitive to tastes that the experience of eating two foods with two flavors or two textures is not a pleasant prospect. It can be as unpleasant an idea to them as the idea of eating bugs is to the rest of us. Some textures may be so unpleasant that almost any food with that texture is avoided. The gooey texture of macaroni and cheese or peanut butter, for example, is just too unpleasant. The opposite reaction is also possible -- that gooey texture could be another child's favorite texture! There may be some food that your child will eat every day without every tiring of it. The sensual sensitivity is not as common as the emotional sensitivity, but it's not rare either! How common is it? Take the poll and let's find out!
Poll:Does your child have strong sensitivities to foods?
- Yes, my child won't eat food that's touching other food.
- Yes, my child could eat the same food every day.
- Yes, my child either strongly likes or dislikes certain tastes or textures.
- No, my child doesn't seem to have any particular sensitivities to foods.
More polls from your guide
Comments
Indeed most of the kids are a bit picky when it terms of food especially vegetables. Well, I’m glad to share that my kid is kinda exemption. He loves eating peas, cabbage, carrots , and just almost any vegetable. But the funny thing is, he doesn’t like bread.
My son is the same as chris52’s - broccoli and asparagus, especially. No bread - I mean no pizza, cinnamon buns, sandwiches, anything with bread! So strange. However, we have a hard time with fruits. I think it may be the texture or acidity, depending on the fruit.
My children are picky eaters too.It’s really tough to make them eat something they don’t like.