FEATURE — Have you ever tried to change your diet or try a new, healthy food only to find yourself saying, “I don’t like it” (or as my 2-year-old says, “No, taste yucky”)? Often, these reactions to a new food put on the brakes for trying again. 

Taste preferences are considered the second driver of food selection, with the first driver being convenience. Thus, the way food tastes is a major reason why we eat the foods that we do. It can also be a major barrier if eating healthier “tastes yucky” to you.

The barrier is not so much in having taste preferences but in how we view taste preferences. If we view them as unalterable, then we can be stuck in them. We may not offer a food item to our child or family member again if the first exposure was met with a firm, “I don’t like that.” Or maybe we individually have “never” liked a certain vegetable, fruit or whole grain item and thus aren’t willing to ever taste it again simply because of this firm belief. 

Well, let’s shed some light on this ever-present problem, especially if you are feeding others. Taste preferences are learned and can be changed with repeated exposure. Our likes and dislikes are developed over a lifetime of experiences with food. I have made the mistake of trying new recipe after new recipe in hopes of finding that golden combination of flavors so my children would start eating beans. I finally stuck to a recipe I personally liked, offering it frequently and repeatedly enough for them to “learn” to like it. It has now become a family favorite. 

Research shows that the number of times required for a person to be exposed to a particular food before liking it is faster in infancy and slower in adulthood. Infants may require one to five exposures before liking a food. Preschoolers to school-age children require between five and 15 exposures and adults may require 20 times or more. But remember, learning to like a new food is not impossible at any age. We can all learn to like new foods. 

Not liking a new food at first should be viewed as part of the learning process. I have watched as one child chewed up carrots only to spit them out again, day after day. I thanked him for trying and praised him for chewing it up. After all, he was tasting!

Most parents (including myself, at times) give up on serving some food items if the first or second exposures were not successful enough. I have been there, and it certainly can be frustrating. Changing our own beliefs and seeing these moments as part of the learning process and as successes, not failures, can help change the emotional responses we have towards tasting. It also allows the process to continue on to success. 

What does “frequently” look like? Well, it’s definitely not one to two times per month. We need to be exposed to a new food – even with at least a grain-sized amount – frequently enough to become familiar with it over time. The size of the taste or the number of tastes in one sitting are not important; frequency of exposure is. So having even a very small taste of a food we are learning to like can have a positive influence and can prevent issues like gagging or feeling excessively pressured during this process. 

There are other strategies that can be used. For example, hunger is a strong determinant to increasing the willingness to try new foods. As such, remove snacking or grazing to encourage better tasting at the table when it is time for a meal. You could also use flavors that have already been accepted, like dressings or spices, to increase the willingness to try. And finally, use language that encourages without being coercive; individualized positive reinforcement is always helpful.

You may come up with your own ideas and ways to begin this process. Remember that it is worth the effort. Enjoying and preferring the taste of healthy foods is a powerful motivator for long-term, healthy eating.

The information in this article was developed from a webinar presented by Keith E. Williams, PhD. He is the director of a feeding program at Penn State Hershey Medical Center and a professor of pediatrics at Penn State College of Medicine. His webinar can be accessed by clicking here.

Written by ANNELIES NEWMAN, RDN, CD. 

This article was originally published in the September/October 2023 issue of St. George Health and Wellness magazine.

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