Picky Eaters?

I just finished reading Picky Eaters? They Get It From You, published in yesterday's New York Times. According to a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 78 percent of childhood neophobia, or aversion to trying new foods, is genetic and the other 22 percent is environmental. It makes sense to me that food neophobia is in part genetically determined. But 78 percent? I don't buy it. Caroline is only 14 months old and already shows signs of what some would call picky eating. She loves tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese but doesn't care for meats, beans, or egg yolks. She still hasn't shown interest in beets and she won't let cheddar cheese (a food she once loved) touch her lips. I wasn't a picky eater and Geoff wasn't either. Which raises my first question. What does it mean to be a picky eater anyway? And if your child is a picky eater, how do you make sure she gets all the nutrients she needs? Do you hide vegetables in pasta noodles like Jessica Seinfeld (author of Deceptively Delicious) suggests in the article? Caroline is cautious when something new is put in front of her. And it's a good thing. I'm glad that she doesn't eat everything in sight. Even though I am a first time mom of a 14 month old, I firmly believe that repeated exposure and modeling is how to get children to eat fruits, vegetables, and other foods they don't like the first time. It is frustrating and stressful when Caroline won't eat something that I've prepared for her. As tempting as it sounds, I refuse to start loading pancakes with pureed vegetables. How will she ever learn to enjoy beets if they are always disguised as pink pancakes? Instead, the lesson she learns is that pink pancakes taste good (especially with maple syrup). But wait. Isn't adding carrots to my pumpkin carrot muffin recipe essentially the same thing? I don't think so and here's why: my intent is not to deceive or trick Caroline into eating carrots. When Caroline refuses to eat something that I've prepared, I remind myself that children may need up to 20 exposures to a new food before they are even willing to try it. When it comes to most fruits and vegetables, four or five exposures has been enough. And when she sees me (or Geoff) happily eating something she's never tasted, she is usually curious enough to try it. Meats and beans are another story. She only has four front teeth (with two more coming in now) and well, have you ever tried to eat a piece of steak or a chickpea using just your four front teeth (two top and two bottom)? I do think that children get their picky eating habits from their parents. I'd just reverse the numbers - 22 percent genetic and 78 percent environmental.

Caroline's Lunchbox Menu, October 12: Breakfast - applesauce, O's; Lunch - tofu, buckwheat and corn pancakes from Westwind Milling Company, Green Zebra tomatoes, corn (frozen from Titus Farm); Snacks - blueberries (frozen from Walton Orchards), Ak-Mak crackers

Childcare Center Menu, October 12: Breakfast - applesauce, cinnamon pita bread; Lunch - turkey sausage sandwiches, cucumbers, grapes; Snacks - celery, cream cheese, saltines