# Is being a picky eater inherently bad? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [March 8, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728 "2010-03-08T15:44:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![BlinkingDuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eada6e/32.png) [@BlinkingDuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlinkingDuck)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/101 "2010-03-09T17:16:12Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > My parents used to brand me a picky eater because I didn’t like a lot of the stuff they cooked: big, slimy onions and green peppers in everything, lima beans, split pea soup, plain oatmeal. Now they (well, my mom, who’s still alive) turns up her nose at the things I like to eat now: various ethnic foods, vegetarian options . . . once I got out of their house I found all sorts of things that I did like. And I’m much more willing to try new things than my mother is; to her, if it’s not meat-and-three, it’s scary. I’ve made meals for her and had to insist to her that “There’s not a thing in there that you don’t like!” Sound familiar? I didn’t know I was posting on here under the name of Scarlett67… For example…peas. I HATED peas with a vengence. However, when I moved out and ate peas at a nice restaurant…I found out I loved em. Same with beets, green peppers etc. My parents cooked everything to mush…and it tasted bad. I know…I tried the peas again when visiting…blaaaaaaak ---
**Author:** ![sciurophobic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cab0a1/32.png) [@sciurophobic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sciurophobic)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/102 "2010-03-09T17:22:07Z")
Attention self-identifying picky eaters who don’t like the criticism: unless there is nothing you are willing to eat at least one of these 3 cuisines: Chinese, Italian, or Mexican, and you’ll only eat chicken tenders if they’re from one specific restaurant you are not a picky eater. ---
**Author:** ![Alice\_The\_Goon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Alice\_The\_Goon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alice_The_Goon)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/103 "2010-03-09T17:23:05Z")
I know two people I would classify as pathological picky eaters, therefore pains in the ass. One is bizarre in her pickiness, such as she can eat hamburger but not \*in \*something, any meat has to be thoroughly overcooked, tough and dry, including her Thanksgiving turkey, the seperate foods on her plate couldn’t touch at all, etc. The other one can’t eat with anything except a spoon, at all times. If she doesn’t have access to a spoon, she just won’t eat. Her boyfriend carries a spoon around in case she needs to eat and doesn’t have one. She also doesn’t eat any kind of salad, which may not be pathological, but I find it bizarre. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/104 "2010-03-09T17:25:05Z")
> [@BlinkingDuck](#): > > I didn’t know I was posting on here under the name of Scarlett67… > > For example…peas. I HATED peas with a vengence. However, when I moved out and ate peas at a nice restaurant…I found out I loved em. Same with beets, green peppers etc. > > My parents cooked everything to mush…and it tasted bad. I know…I tried the peas again when visiting…blaaaaaaak This is common. I’m not sure if it’s Sturgeon’s Law (most cooks really aren’t that good), or different tastes in food between the 50’s-70’s (when a lot of our parents learned to cook) and now, or what. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/105 "2010-03-09T17:27:14Z")
> [@sciurophobic](#): > > Attention self-identifying picky eaters who don’t like the criticism: unless there is nothing you are willing to eat at least one of these 3 cuisines: Chinese, Italian, or Mexican, and you’ll only eat chicken tenders if they’re from one specific restaurant you are not a picky eater. Do I get extra credit if I’m eating sushi right now? ---
**Author:** ![BrightNShiny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@BrightNShiny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrightNShiny)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/106 "2010-03-09T17:36:35Z")
> [@Odesio](#): > > As someone pointed out earlier, there’s no objective definition of picky. It’s like pornography, we know it when we see it. I would classify vegetarians and especially vegans as picky eaters. I do not classify someone who was on a restricted diet for health reasons to be a picky eater. > Odesio Right. So the majority of Hindus are picky eaters.:rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/107 "2010-03-09T17:46:12Z")
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#): > > I know two people I would classify as pathological picky eaters, therefore pains in the ass. One is bizarre in her pickiness, such as she can eat hamburger but not \*in \*something, any meat has to be thoroughly overcooked, tough and dry, including her Thanksgiving turkey, the seperate foods on her plate couldn’t touch at all, etc. The other one can’t eat with anything except a spoon, at all times. If she doesn’t have access to a spoon, she just won’t eat. Her boyfriend carries a spoon around in case she needs to eat and doesn’t have one. That isn’t picky; that’s mentally ill. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/108 "2010-03-09T18:00:15Z")
> [@BrightNShiny](#): > > Right. So the majority of Hindus are picky eaters.:rolleyes: It’s worse than that. Food taboos are common in many cultures and religions. A lot of people are squeamish about foods that are taboo in their religious or cultural tradition. I suspect for most people, there’s at least one food they wouldn’t eat if given the opportunity. What if you won’t eat something not because there’s a specific health reason why you can’t, but just because you don’t think it’s very healthy? Picky or not? I won’t eat liver because it’s too high in cholesterol (also because I hate liver). I could physically eat liver (if I managed to keep it down) once in a very great while without physical harm, but I choose not to. Is that being picky? I don’t eat kids’ sugary cereals because I know they aren’t very good for you. Picky? ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/109 "2010-03-09T18:15:47Z")
> [@CrazyCatLady](#): > > I think you’re misunderstanding what he’s saying. People who are leery of trying foreign foods because they might be nasty typically aren’t thinking "this is foreign, so it’s probably nasty, " they’re thinking “I have no freaking clue what’s in this and it looks/smells nasty, so odds seem good it would taste nasty.” This tends to be especially bad with people who have been repeatedly assured they’ll just love something and found it nasty. The more times this happens, the less likely they become to believe anyone who says “oh, try it, you’ll like it” without any further explanation. > > What I’ve found over the years is that if you explain exactly what’s in something and what the unfamiliar ingredients taste like, and acknowledge that something looks or smells weird, folks like that are often willing to try a little bit of it. They don’t mind trying something _if they understand what they’re getting themselves into_, but they don’t want to fly blind. Exactly. The “just try it, you’ll like it” crowd are a bunch of dirty stinking liars who derive perverse pleasure from watching people gag and spit their food out on their napkin. One should never take their bald unvarnished word about wether something is edible or not - sure, they _might_ be telling the truth this time, but it’s not a safe bet. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/110 "2010-03-09T18:30:33Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Exactly. The “just try it, you’ll like it” crowd are a bunch of dirty stinking liars who derive perverse pleasure from watching people gag and spit their food out on their napkin. One should never take their bald unvarnished word about wether something is edible or not - sure, they _might_ be telling the truth this time, but it’s not a safe bet. If you won’t tell me what’s in it, I won’t try it. The only reason I can think of why you wouldn’t tell me what’s in something if I ask is that there’s something that I don’t want to eat in there that you’re trying to trick me into eating. Oh, and I think ‘hiding’ ingredients in food might be acceptable for a parent to do to their own minor child in some circumstances, but is never acceptable to do to an adult. ---
**Author:** ![CandidGamera](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/candidgamera/32/2878_2.png) [@CandidGamera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CandidGamera)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/111 "2010-03-09T18:31:08Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I don’t believe there is any ‘inherent’ in anything we’re discussing here - I think it’s a flaw or red herring in the debate. > Picky eating is or is not bad depending on whether it happens to make bad things follow in whatever the situation happens to be. > > I probably ought to admit at this point that I just don’t really understand what it must be like to be a picky eater - I mean, there are some things I like better than others, but I just _don’t grok_ the “I don’t like this, therefore I can’t eat it” thing. I’m not saying it’s not a real problem for those that experience it, I just don’t get it, is all - so I try to live and let live as far as possible. > > Where picky eating _is_ bad (IMO) is when people say something like “We (large social group) can’t go to this restaurant because I (individual) don’t like anything on the menu”. It’s fine if you want to eat what you want to eat, but when that choice starts to restrict lots of other people, it’s unreasonable (although exceptions probably exist - if for example the menu is unusually biased somehow) Great username/thread combo. Here’s an example. I don’t eat seafood. I’ve tried fish; I don’t like it. I refuse to try crustaceans or mollusks. I don’t go to seafood restaurants. If my friends wanted to go to one, I’d tell them in all honesty to go have fun. I’m not here to hamper their fun, but neither am I going to eat something that revolts me just to go along with the group. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/112 "2010-03-09T18:43:36Z")
Someone upthread gave a good definition of “picky eater”: if it’s easier to list the things you WILL eat than the things you won’t. I think it’s a bit disingenuous to call someone who doesn’t like liver, green peppers, mushrooms, or coconut a “picky eater.” You can still order off pretty much any restaurant menu or eat in someone else’s home and still avoid those items without making a stink. There’s also a difference between (1) quietly picking out the green peppers and setting them on the side of the plate and (2) declaring that you won’t even touch something that’s been in the same kitchen with a green pepper, no way, nohow. To my mind, a “picky eater” is one of those people who will eat only plain pasta, white bread, corn (the only vegetable they will eat), mashed potatoes (but NO LUMPS EVER), potato chips, bologna . . . in other words, a limited list of very simple foods. If it’s not on the list, they’re not eating it. And yes, of course we all have food preferences. A “picky eater” makes their existence public knowledge when their preferences are so limited as to affect where/what they can eat AND/OR when they get obnoxious about it. It’s possible to be a picky eater and not have it affect others. I don’t think we’re talking about those people here. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/113 "2010-03-09T19:05:57Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > Exactly. The “just try it, you’ll like it” crowd are a bunch of dirty stinking liars who derive perverse pleasure from watching people gag and spit their food out on their napkin. One should never take their bald unvarnished word about wether something is edible or not - sure, they _might_ be telling the truth this time, but it’s not a safe bet. “Safe bet?” I’m not sure if you’re cracking a joke, or if food actually scares you. ---
**Author:** ![Anne\_Neville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/114 "2010-03-09T19:07:13Z")
> [@Scarlett67](#): > > It’s possible to be a picky eater and not have it affect others. I don’t think we’re talking about those people here. You can use any food issue to create drama and make yourself the center of attention. You could even use a real food allergy this way. You can use any food issue to make rude comments about what other people are eating. Nobody should do those things. > [@](#): > > There’s also a difference between (1) quietly picking out the green peppers and setting them on the side of the plate and (2) declaring that you won’t even touch something that’s been in the same kitchen with a green pepper, no way, nohow. True, but not everybody can pick the green peppers (or whatever) out of their food and eat the rest of it. Someone with a severe food allergy couldn’t do this, nor could some people who keep kosher. I don’t know if the Muslim or Hindu dietary laws allow you to eat a dish that you’ve picked pork or beef out of. And there are things that you physically can’t pick out of a dish after it’s cooked, like eggs, milk, or meat stock. There are, of course, polite and impolite ways to ask if a food has an ingredient you can’t have, and you should always try to be as polite as possible. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/115 "2010-03-09T19:38:31Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > “Safe bet?” I’m not sure if you’re cracking a joke, or if food actually scares you. Try the third option: what I actually said. Not all things that are purported to be good-tasting are. And the “you should eat everything and like it” crowd are the _worst_ folks with regard to telling you that foods will be tasty, for pretty obvious reasons. A rational person could quite easily develop a distrust of the food recommendations of such people. And it’s not necessarily because they’re _really_ lying - sometimes their tastes are simply different. My personal experience with this is with hot spicyness. I’m very sensitive to it - far more than most people, and more than some people seem able to even comprehend. So when a person says, “Oh, it’s not all _that_ spicy, it’s really mild, try it!” I _immediately_ assume that it’s going to burn my soul from my body and leave me a melted cinder. Not because the spice-lovers are sadistic monsters, but because all their taste buds have been burned off, and they’re simply not _qualified_ to recommend food to me on the basis of its spiciness. Now, sometimes I try the stuff anyway - often with the expected consequences (which typically baffle the spice-lover). Fortunately for me my friends aren’t assholes who insist that everybody is morally obligated to like everything they do. ---
**Author:** ![Ravenman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ravenman/32/2929_2.png) [@Ravenman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ravenman)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/116 "2010-03-09T19:56:45Z")
It actually sounds like the second option, in that you really, really don’t want to even take a chance on tasting something that you might not like, because it may not “be safe.” ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/117 "2010-03-09T19:59:52Z")
> [@CandidGamera](#): > > Great username/thread combo. > > Here’s an example. I don’t eat seafood. I’ve tried fish; I don’t like it. I refuse to try crustaceans or mollusks. I don’t go to seafood restaurants. If my friends wanted to go to one, I’d tell them in all honesty to go have fun. I’m not here to hamper their fun, but neither am I going to eat something that revolts me just to go along with the group. I’m in the same boat re: seafood. But, I have always found that you can always get a good steak at a seafood restaurant. Heck, I can find stuff to eat at sushi places. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/118 "2010-03-09T20:07:08Z")
> [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > True, but not everybody can pick the green peppers (or whatever) out of their food and eat the rest of it. Someone with a severe food allergy couldn’t do this, nor could some people who keep kosher. I don’t know if the Muslim or Hindu dietary laws allow you to eat a dish that you’ve picked pork or beef out of. And there are things that you physically can’t pick out of a dish after it’s cooked, like eggs, milk, or meat stock. I never included food allergies or religious restrictions in my definition of “picky eater.” As far as I am concerned, those are entirely different situations and (along with vegetarianism/veganism) absolutely legitimate reasons to (politely) refuse a food. I was talking about people who simply “don’t like” and/or refuse to try most foods. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/119 "2010-03-09T20:19:01Z")
> [@enipla](#): > > I’m in the same boat re: seafood. But, I have always found that you can always get a good steak at a seafood restaurant. Heck, I can find stuff to eat at sushi places. I used to go for sushi with a guy who loved sushi–as I did. And his wife, who didn’t. So she ordered a few pieces of tempura & a few mai tais. And I found that mai tais go quite well with sushi! ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2010, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728/120 "2010-03-09T21:10:31Z")
> [@Ravenman](#): > > It actually sounds like the second option, in that you really, really don’t want to even take a chance on tasting something that you might not like, because it may not “be safe.” If you ignore everything I actually say, I’m sure it can sound like whatever you like. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-being-a-picky-eater-inherently-bad/531728.md?page=7)