What+is+the+neophobic+stage%3F
Neophobia means fear of the new. When this term is used with children in their response to food, it refers to the fear of new foods. The neophobic stage is seen from around the age of 18 months; it peaks at about two years, and then gradually becomes less strong through the toddler and pre-school years.
It has been suggested that this food refusal response is of evolutionary benefit. Infants who are just starting to be mobile will not put new ‘non-foods’, that might be poisonous, into their mouths.
At the onset of the neophobic stage the toddler might reject foods that are only slightly different from those that they usually eat, for example:
- a broken biscuit may be rejected, but a whole biscuit accepted
- toast that is burnt around the edges may be rejected, but uniformly coloured toast will be accepted.
Rejection of previously accepted foods.
In a way the term fear of new foods is a little misleading, because at this age toddlers tend to start to reject food that they have eaten before, as well as refusing to try new foods.
The disgust response.
Food is also likely to be rejected at the neophobic stage because of its texture. Toddlers might find the texture of some foods slimy or lumpy, or too chewy. The texture of a food can be inferred by the way that it looks. So toddlers are more likely to reject foods of certain texture on sight.
If the children are:
- very sensitive to the feel of food in the mouth
- forced to eat foods that they have rejected
Most adults can remember their feelings of disgust at being made to eat a food that they did not like. These foods are usually those with an odd texture e.g. cauliflower cheese, tomatoes, liver. see Factsheet 2.3