Food preferences start well before a child is born. Activation of taste buds is said to start around the 30-week mark of pregnancy. Stimulations of the taste buds start in the womb through the amniotic liquid. These stimulations also occur after birth through breast milk which changes composition as a result of the mother's diet.
Picky eaters, defined as “the rejection of both familiar and new food” is often common in childhood, and we are seeing more and more prevalence of it carrying on into adolescence or adulthood. Researchers based out of Bowling Green State University, have assessed college students, looking at relationships between picky eating behaviours, and dietary consumption. They also looked at how this relates to the psychosocial effect, which is commonly associated with outcomes like social phobia, quality of life, and picky eating distress. Results from 488 Midwestern undergraduate students identified 190 (almost 40%) as picky eaters. Most picky eaters (65%) reported consuming a diet of fewer than ten foods. The results on psychosocial effects showed the prevalence of social phobia. Those identified as picky eaters were associated with increased overall and situational distress and lower quality of life. Many expressed certain challenges such as finding acceptable food, not eating, other people they were eating with, and excessive meal planning.
As a whole, this study gives a good insight into the consequences of picky eating in young adults. It is said that this may help future research to see how something like picky eating can be related to other eating behaviours.
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