Picky: How American Children Became the Fussiest Eaters in History

The picky eating habits of contemporary U.S. children were far from inevitable, according to this enlightening study from historian Veit (Modern Food, Moral Food). For much of history, children had the same varied diets as adults, she explains, detailing how 19th-century kids happily gobbled up vegetables, organ meats, and spicy relishes. Back then, however, it was common for children to die from disease, and well-intentioned if misguided reformers blamed parents for allowing children to eat indiscriminately. They encouraged feeding children bland foods, laying the groundwork for the idea that kids require different diets than adults. Over time, the advent of shelf-life-extending technologies, processed foods, and targeted advertising made snacking commonplace, dampening children’s appetites around mealtime. Changing beliefs about child-rearing also played a part; in the 1950s, for example, Dr. Benjamin Spock popularized the idea that it was psychologically risky to urge children to eat food they didn’t want. These and other developments have perpetuated the notion that children are naturally picky eaters—a myth, Veit expertly argues, that promotes unhealthy diets that leave kids undernourished and overweight. She buttresses her case with intuitive solutions like limiting snacking and avoiding offering alternatives to rejected meals. The result is a rigorous and persuasive call for change. (Feb.)