Food neophobia

What It Means

Food neophobia is a reluctance, or outright fear, of trying foods a child hasn't eaten before. Peer-reviewed reviews describe it as a normal developmental stage that shows up in boys and girls alike: it can appear slightly in the first year, often grows stronger between 18 and 24 months, peaks around ages 2 to 6 and then eases. It centers on new foods, while picky eating is the broader habit of eating a narrow range of foods.

How Parents Say It

• "She won't even let it touch her plate."
• "He screams if it looks new."
• "If it's not chicken nuggets, forget it."

The Breakdown

The neophobia curve by age, per peer-reviewed reviews

What helps at the table. These come from HealthyChildren.org's tips for picky eaters and Ellyn Satter's Division of ResponsibilityDivision of responsibility in feedingEllyn Satter's feeding model: the parent decides what, when and where food is served, and the child decides how much to eat and whether to eat. See more, which Buhata's picky eating page covers in full.

1. Serve one family meal and don't cook a second one when a new food is refused.
2. Put a familiar food on the plate next to a small portion of the new one.
3. Use food bridges: new foods that share a color, flavor or texture with ones your child likes.
4. Let your child help pick a fruit or vegetable at the store.
5. You decide what, when and where; your child decides how much and whether.

When to talk to the doctor. Call the pediatrician if your child is losing weight or not growing as expected, if the list of accepted foods keeps getting shorter, or if eating gets in the way of daily life. The pediatrician can check growth and decide whether a feeding problem needs a closer look.

Good to Know

Researchers link strong food neophobia with a less varied diet, including fewer fruits and vegetables, so steady, pressure-free chances to try new foods are worth the effort. No official source in the fact check gave a set number of tries before a child accepts a new food, so treat any number you read elsewhere with caution.

Related Terms and Categories

• Division of responsibility in feeding

  Ellyn Satter's feeding model: the parent decides what, when and where food is served, and the child decides how much to eat and whether to eat.

• Sensory processing

  How the brain takes in and responds to what a child hears, sees, touches, tastes and smells.

• Toddler

  A child from 1 to 3 years old, the stage CDC's parenting guidance places between infancy and the preschool years.

Parenting and child development