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NEW RESEARCH SUGGESTS picky eating among children may signal emotional troubles – though for the most part the problem is not worth fretting over.
Preschool-aged children who are extremely selective about what they eat and dislike even being near certain foods are more likely than others to have underlying anxiety or depression, the study found. But only 3 percent of young children studied were that picky.
Less severe pickiness, dubbed “moderate selected eating” in the study, was found in about 18 percent of kids. These are children who will only eat a narrow range of foods. Kids with either level of pickiness were almost two times more likely than others to develop anxiety symptoms within two years, the study found.
More typical pickiness, including kids who just refuse to eat their vegetables, is probably merely “normal dislike,” said eating disorders specialist Nancy Zucker, the lead author and an associate psychiatry professor at Duke University’s medical school. These are the kids who typically outgrow their pickiness as they mature.
Zucker said young children with moderate pickiness are probably more likely to outgrow the problem than the severe group, although more research is needed to confirm that.
The study was published today in the journal Pediatrics.
More than just not wanting to eat broccoli
Dr Arthur Lavin, a Cleveland paediatrician said picky eating is among the top concerns parents bring to his office, and that the study “helps us understand who we should be concerned about.”
“There’s more going on here than just not wanting to eat broccoli,” said Lavin, a member of an American Academy of Paediatrics committee on psycho-social issues. He was not involved in the research.
The study focused on about 900 children aged 2 through 5 who were recruited from primary care doctors affiliated with Duke’s medical center in Durham, North Carolina.
Researchers did in-home interviews with parents to evaluate kids’ eating habits and any mental health issues. Follow-up evaluations were done two years later in almost 200 children.
Compared with children who aren’t fussy eaters, depression and social anxiety were at least two times more common in kids with severe pickiness; attention deficit behaviour and separation anxiety symptoms were more common in moderately selective kids.
A battleground
Severe selective eating described in the study is akin to a condition called avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder, added in 2013 to the latest edition of a widely used psychiatric manual, the study authors said. It can occur in all ages; some of those affected are extra-sensitive to food tastes, smells and textures.
Zucker said severe pickiness may be the first clue for parents that a child is experiencing anxiety or depression and that they may want to seek help from a mental health specialist.
Moderate pickiness is less concerning but affected kids can make family meal-times a battleground, she said. To avoid that, Zucker suggests that parents try introducing new foods at random times during the day.
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“Kids with either level of pickiness were almost two times more likely than others to develop anxiety symptoms within two years, the study found.”
Serious question…….do they develop the anxiety symptoms from being made/forced to eat something they don’t like, maybe the interaction between parent and child over food creates the anxiety rather than the pickiness itself.
Just asking.
Dr Sugar is bidding some secrets, he is sponsored by Coca Cola
I would say that is the case. I never fight with my kids over food. I cook different dishes to keep everyone happy. Due to being a picky eater as a kid I know how they feel. My mother was great with me as she too was a picky eater as a kid. My dad however force fed me cornflakes – I still hate the things, I also sat at the kitchen table for 12 or so hours refusing to eat macaroni and cheese.
More likely a sign of anxiety about some part of their life that is manifesting itself in their eating habits.
I would hate to be a kid these days. no swinging on lamp posts. kick the tin. releaveo, hide and seek. …you could talk to adults and run if you seen a police man coming……even though you did nothing….happy days but I guess they have an app for all this now.
I ate whatever I was given because if I didn’t my brothers would.
Being picky shows a lack of acceptance. If you are getting stressed as a child over peas on your plate then it probably means that you are learning bad lessons.
Be thankful for what it put in front of you and eat. Accept it and get on with it.
Anxiety is nearly always learnt off a parent and it is nearly always set before the age of 5 when your own dictionary and reference framework is mostly built.
Anxiety is learned from a parent? What a load of BS, and very dismissive of people who have anxiety disorders.
It nearly always is learnt off a parent that is not dismissive of people with anxiety disorders. It doesn’t mean that there parents were bad people either.
Ireland was such a beat down society for so long that it is a cultural thing.
That is a ridiculous statement and even basic psychological research on anxiety disorders undermines what you’re saying. Firstly there are multiple types of anxiety disorders, each with different symptoms and unique causes. Secondly, gender is a factor, with females being more likely than males to suffer from an anxiety disorder, which suggests there is a biochemical and genetic factor at play. Thirdly the fact that anxiety can strike a person at any time in their life, be it early childhood or middle age, disproves the notion that it is “learned” from parents. As does the fact that in lots of families, one child may suffer from an anxiety disorder while his or her siblings do not.
Fussy eating is a sure sign, of someone who is fussy about what they eat.
I find this story hard to swallow.
Fussy eating can also be a sign of intelligence.
Ever think the problem is parents overly psychoanalyzing and using ‘popular psychology’ to try to diagnose emotional disorders that don’t actually exist in their children?
Or maybe your child really does have ‘Oppositional defiance disorder’…
So the moral of the story is feed them chicken nuggets and all that lovely processed food, they won’t have mental issues just unhealthy and overweight. Sound job.
Most fussy eaters don’t eat that crap full stop. My 4 yr old daughter does not eat dinners full stop. She would have plain pasta or a homemade pizza with just cheese on it – she won’t eat chicken on its own and only likes homemade chips cooked in the oven. But she would eat fruit and dairy until it’s comes out of her ears. Fussy means they don’t particularly like the texture of certain foods. Where as my 3yr nephew would eat Salmon, tuna, roast dinners but would never go near fruit. I don’t believe in forcing a child to eat something they really don’t want to and I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s why they developed the mental issues. most adults were forced to clear their plates when younger and 2 out of 3 will experience a mental health issues throughout their lifetime
I loved most veg, I was underweight. I didnt like anything with garlic, raw onions, peppers, courgettes, which ruled out all Chinese, all Indian and stir frys, sweet n sours, all pasta dishes, pizzas (don’t like tomato puree but love tomatoes) I lived off bland food. I still hate all of the above. I looked forward to sunday roast. My mother would give me plain pasta or plain rice.
So really now who would end up fatter? A child who ate all their dinner and got dessert or one who only picked at food and got no dessert? most people I know who are picky eaters are slim.
thats a ridiculous study
Not really. Teach people to accept what is put on their plate and be grateful and eat up with thanks.
You don’t get to pick the nice options often in life.
I’ve seen mothers cooking 3 different options for their kids, that is just wrong, she is making a fool of herself in the kitchen and they are learning not to accept things.
I think it is not down to this alone but it indicates a pattern of being spoilt and fussed over that can often lead to a child not learning how to deal with problems in life on their own and how to handle the numerous mind blowing shit that it will throw at you.
I was so fussy as a kid I’d only eat the middle of chips! Now at 50 I’ll eat most things
Give them a good slap on the arse and they won’t be long about eating their veggies.
Some kids – Autistic in particular – have a genuine problem with eating certain foods, or eating in company or foods mixed together.
There are, however, many studies that find humans are happier with less choice. I’m no expert but I’ve seen kids with real problems when it comes to food. In those cases it correlated with other problems but clearly wasn’t causal.
New study reveals “people are just not allowed to have opinions on food anymore”
Picky eaters cause mental health issues for friends when they go out for dinner.
That’s all your getting.
FFS heard nothing more ridiculous!!!
Wonder what the incidence of picky eaters is in the developing world? More of a first world problem methinks.
…… And adults who are fussy eaters!!!!!!!
Check out the parents before you say the kids are nuts!
Refuse to believe this!! I myself was and still is a picky eater!! My mum said I use to eat everything off the spoon one day I just stopped aged 2, not a vegetable has passed these lips since! I lived on mash potato and oxo as a kid lol only as I got older did I want chips chicken, there is still a ton of stuff I won’t eat don’t like the look of it or the smell, there is nothing wrong with me mentally because of this! I do take vitamins but of course they are no substitute for the real greens lol
Load of Bollox
This could also have read as ‘kids with mental health issues more likely to be fussy eaters’.
“New Research Says” hate this phrase as an opening to a story or conversation it is overused,overstated, unless it is linked to serious independent clinical trials with peer reviews then I might give it some credit.
Scare Mongering Daily Mail style.
Causation or correlation? Kids who have a problem with food texture and strong flavours quite possibly have a sensory processing issue (ie have an extreme sensation where others have v mild) which can often go hand in hand with other issues such as ASD which often also results in anxiety issues up to and including depression. I wouldn’t necessarily call it “fussy eating” though – disliking something and having a severe sensory repulsion to something is v different.
I am a fussy eater and I turned out all right. I know of people who are fussier eaters than me, one who only eats of the kids menu in restaurants
Here is the link to the full article, really should be included int he news article above. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2015/07/28/peds.2014-2386.full.pdf
Never liked the feeling of porridge when I was young as it reminded me of snot…
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