Answers

Why won't my child eat new foods?

Written by Matt MaLossi, parent behind How They're Wired.

Why it happens

• For some children it's texture. In 259 three-year-olds, children who rejected more foods in a taste test also disliked touching certain textures, and parent-reported touch sensitivity went with parent-reported food refusal.[1]
• Pressure doesn't help. A review of 10 interview studies with 372 parents linked pressuring a child to eat with a tense mealtime climate and strained relationships.[2] In 207 mothers followed from age 2 to 5, using food as a reward at about 3.7 years went with more fussy eating at age 5, and structured feeding at 2 and 3.7 years went with less fussiness later.[3]

How temperament shapes this

Some kids eat anything. Others check every new food with their eyes, nose, and fingers first.

• If your child is wary of anything new. In a twin study of 1,932 pairs at 16 months, genes explained about 58% of the differences in fear of new foods and about 46% of the differences in general food fussiness. The home environment explained about 22% and 46%.[4] Our reasoning This is the same wariness some children show with new people and places, here with food.
• If your child notices textures and feelings a lot. A research review describes a trait called environmental sensitivity. Children who are higher in it are more affected by both stressful and supportive surroundings.[5] In UK samples of children and teens aged 8 and up, roughly a fifth to a third scored high.[6] Our reasoning A child who notices more may notice textures, smells and the mood at the table more. We found no study that tests this for food.

One thing to try

When to ask for more help

Ask your pediatrician if your child gags or vomits with foods, accepts only a very short list of foods, seems to be losing weight or growing slowly, or if mealtimes are taking over family life.

What the research can and can’t tell us

• The twin study measured toddlers at 16 months, and the percentages describe differences between children in a group, not how much of any one child's eating is inherited.
• The touch study shows a link, not that touch sensitivity causes food refusal. It used three-year-olds and vegetables in the taste test.
• The review of repeated tasting covered children aged 2 to 5, mostly in childcare, and used vegetables. It does not tell us what works for children aged 6 to 10.
• The pressure evidence is mostly parents' accounts and parent questionnaires. The longitudinal study found influence in both directions: fussier children also get less structured feeding.
• The sensitivity research is still developing. The review concludes sensitivity is best seen as a continuum, and the high, medium and low groups are an approximation, the scale is for ages 8 and up. Any link between sensitivity and food is our reasoning.
• We give no amounts, nutrition advice or food rules, and we found no research-based cutoff for when picky eating needs a referral. Only a clinician can say whether a child's eating is a disorder.
• Offering the same food in a different form and playing with textures away from the table are common practice. Matching a step to a child's temperament is our reasoning. We found no trial that tests it, and the descriptions above are tendencies, not boxes a child fits into.

More questions parents ask

• Why does my child melt down in public places?
• Why does bedtime turn into a battle?
• Why is saying goodbye so hard for my child?
• Why is everything such a battle with my child?
• Why does it feel like my kid never hears what I'm saying?
• Why does my child hit, bite or push other kids?

Sources

1. Observational study van den Brand, Hendriks-Hartensveld, Havermans, Mourmans, Fleischeuer, Broers & Nederkoorn. Food rejection is associated with tactile sensitivity and tactile appreciation in three-year-old children. Appetite, 204, 107769, 2025. View study259 three-year-olds and their parents. It shows a link, not that touch sensitivity causes food refusal.
2. Review of interview studies Wolstenholme, Kelly, Hennessy, Heary et al. Childhood fussy/picky eating behaviours: a systematic review and synthesis of qualitative studies. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, 17, 2, 2020. View study10 qualitative studies, 372 parents, mostly of preschoolers. Parents' accounts, not measured outcomes.
3. Longitudinal study Mallan, Jansen, Harris, Llewellyn, Fildes & Daniels. Feeding a fussy eater: Examining longitudinal bidirectional relationships between child fussy eating and maternal feeding practices. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 43(10), 1138–1146, 2018. View study207 first-time Australian mothers, followed from age 2 to 5. Mother-report questionnaires.
4. Twin study Smith, Herle, Fildes, Cooke, Steinsbekk & Llewellyn. Food fussiness and food neophobia share a common etiology in early childhood. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 2017. View study1,932 twin pairs measured at 16 months. It describes toddlers, not older children.
5. Research review Greven, Lionetti, Booth, Aron, Fox, Schendan, Pluess, Bruining, Acevedo, Bijttebier & Homberg. Sensory processing sensitivity in the context of environmental sensitivity: A critical review and development of research agenda. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 98, 287–305, 2019. View studyA critical review. The authors say knowledge is still lagging and better measures are needed.
6. Measurement study Pluess, Assary, Lionetti, Lester, Krapohl, Aron & Aron. Environmental sensitivity in children: Development of the Highly Sensitive Child scale and identification of sensitivity groups. Developmental Psychology, 54(1), 51–70, 2018. View study3,581 children and teens in UK samples. The scale is for ages 8 and up. Whether the groups are real categories is still being tested.
7. Meta-analysis Nekitsing, Blundell-Birtill, Cockroft & Hetherington et al. Systematic review and meta-analysis of strategies to increase vegetable consumption in preschool children aged 2–5 years. Appetite, 127, 138–154, 2018. View study30 articles, 44 intervention arms and 4,017 children aged 2 to 5, mostly in childcare settings.

The full list of everything we cite is on the Sources page.

General information for parents, not medical advice or a diagnosis. Read our statement.