The researchers discovered that kids who eat selectively are unusually sensitive, and that this sensitivity affects their eating and their emotional health.
"They have a stronger sensitivity to the world outside and to how their body feels," Zucker said. "That sets them up to have more vivid experiences -- more intense food experiences, more intense emotional experiences. None of that is pathological, but it could be a vulnerability for later problems."
These findings should take some of the blame off of the parents, since it's not just a matter of controlling an unruly child, Zucker said.
In this study, researchers looked at more than 3,400 children ages 2 to nearly 6 who were treated at one of Duke's pediatric primary care clinics. Of those, over 900 kids were screened by an in-home evaluation, and their parents filled out psychiatric assessment forms and reported on their eating patterns.
About 20 percent of the kids who were screened had some form of selective eating, researchers found. Of those, 3 percent exhibited signs of severe selective eating and 17 percent were moderately picky eaters.
Children who ate within the normal range of childhood likes and dislikes weren't considered picky eaters. "Kids who disliked broccoli were considered normal," Zucker said.
For severe picky eaters, eating out is too challenging, Zucker said.
"Their sensitivities to smell and other foods are so extreme that eating around other people and all the different smells at a restaurant are too overwhelming," she said.
On the other hand, moderate picky eaters have a limited list of foods they like, but they can manage eating out. "He might not be able to order off the menu, but he's still fine being around food," Zucker said.
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