Any picky eaters out there?

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  • I have always been a picky eater and recently found out that I'm a super taster (so vegetables are bitter and diet/no calorie sweeteners are extremely revolting). I have no idea how to diet around this as I'll eat fruits and salty stuff any day. I'm currently trying to set a diet that fits my picky eating but I also tire of food really, really, REALLY easily!!!!! Anyone else here like me???
  • Count me among those for whom this thread has been illuminating. I'm the opposite of a picky eater. I like exotic foods with very strong flavours. Also a food snob and into fine dining. Fast food and comfort food do nothing for me, but give me creme brulee or marinated squid or a fiery Thai curry and it's game over.

    F.
  • Wisertime and DanRae, we would probably all get along pretty well!

    And freelancemomma can have all the "foodie" food we don't like!
  • I have always been a very picky eater and unwilling to try new things. I only wanted unhealthy, greasy and ultra-carby food - NO veggies. However, I've found that my weight loss journey has pushed me into trying new things and I've played around with recipes until I've found healthy food that I enjoy. Apparently, I will eat cauliflower roasted in the oven (but still HATE broccoli with a passion) and love grilled asparagus. Who knew?
  • So true Skinnieminnie Wannabe!!!
  • Oh my god. Excuses, excuses. Being thin doesn't give the luxury of being a "picky eater." Lol. Food is fuel. Eat what is good for you. Eat what keeps you strong, active, and healthy!
  • Quote: Oh my god. Excuses, excuses. Being thin doesn't give the luxury of being a "picky eater." Lol. Food is fuel. Eat what is good for you. Eat what keeps you strong, active, and healthy!
    Honey, there may be truth in what you say - I'm sure people without food aversions do have an easier time losing weight - but you need to research Sensory Processing Disorders before making such a generalization. This is not something people choose to have.
  • Moving right along . . .

    I think I'm going to do better now. Found out I'm going to have surgery next week to repair a hernia (for the 2nd time) and I really want this to be turning over a new leaf.

    There are a reasonable number of healthy foods I can put into my body if allowed to prepare them in a way that I find less intimidating, so that's one thing I'll do.

    Eating small nibbly meals especially in the summertime is another way that I can get more of a variety of foods, not make a big deal out of eating, etc. For myself and other picky eaters I've encountered online, sometimes the norm in society of a formal meal can be problematic - especially for those of us needing to lose weight (and a small group of people who are unhealthily thin due to not being able to eat very many foods).

    The thing is, with a big sit-down meal, it's great if it happens to be something the person with food sensory issues has no difficulty eating. Problems arise, however, when the food is unpleasant to the picky eater. She finds herself upset, depressed, stressed over it. And wanting to sneak later and have what she would prefer.

    Or if the big meal is something she likes very much, sometimes there's a great temptation to overeat - almost out of relief, like "Whew! A meal I can just enjoy!"

    So I'm going to try a "healthy grazing" approach and take most of my meals by myself as much as possible.

    I should probably do a blog about all this....
  • Would any other picky eating dieters be interested in a support thread?
    I could sure use one. It's not a problem at every single meal, but when it does rear its ugly head I get kind of bummed.

    If there are other ladies here who struggle with the extra challenge of sensory issues re food that make it more difficult to find healthy stuff to eat, let's band together. Even venting is okay. Or baby steps. No judging, no guilt.

    Any takers?
  • Quote: Any takers?
    Me

    I haven't posted before but this thread has really inspired me. I've been diagnosed with dyslexia/dyspraxia and am fairly sure I'm on the autism spectrum. When I was a kid I had really problems learning how to use a knife and fork (poor hand eye co-ordination and muscle control) so found eating a struggle.

    Things are a lot better now but textures get to me, I've got a whole load of clothes with labels cut out and I can't bare to wear anything 'scratchy'. I can't eat anything slimy or rubbery. Egg whites are my nemesis, the texture is always horrible no matter how they're cooked and they taste *wrong*. I still literally pick at food I haven't prepared myself (as politely as possible), I can't eat a sandwich without opening it up to check there's nothing I dislike inside.

    That said I love green veggies, and have slowly worked my way up to eating spicy food.

    I love the idea of support from other people who understand I'm not just being difficult or childish.
  • I've always been a picky eater. Drove my mother and family crazy. Then I started developing food intolerances. First lactose, then all corn products, a year ago I started having trouble with soy. Thankfully, that one has gotten better. Between the intolerances and my unwillingness to eat certain things, my overall diet is pretty limited. Luckily, I can't eat most processed junk food because it has corn in it. (You'd be amazed at what has cornstarch in it.) So I'm not even tempted by that.

    Except for potatoes, I like my veggies raw, so that means lots of salad. I just need the motivation to do the work involved. It's so much easier to eat a pretzel or pita chip.
  • It's not so much a particular aversion, it's more so a texture problem.

    I went to culinary school and basically, you HAVE to eat what you make, even if it disgusts you, you have to know how it tastes, so a lot of my old aversions are some of my loves now.

    My problem is mixing of textures, and strangely textured food.

    Example of mixing textures, I love onions, I like ground beef, BUT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD WHY ARE YOU MIXING RAW ONIONS INTO GROUND BEEF FOR HAMBURGERS?!?! Another example, chunky pasta sauces, I LOVE bolognese but I hate when it's made with chunky bits of tomato and onion that still kind of 'crunch'. Also, I love bell peppers, onions, etc but don't you dare put it on my pizza.

    I HATE all forms of beans, all of them!!! Also mushrooms (they're slimey), olives, raw carrots and peas (split pea soups is awesome though).
  • An update - I have found that my appetite is really blah these last few weeks. That's not unusual for me in the summertime. It can go either way - towards weight loss when I eat less, or towards gain when the only things I can even stand to eat are junky.

    Fortunately this time I think it's in the direction of loss. I had surgery in June and ate rather light after that.

    As for pickiness, I'm in a state of very strong desire to refuse to eat anything that I find repugnant if there's any way of getting out of it right now. I'm just matter-of-fact about it, try not to come across as rude, but make it clear that I'll provide my food and just enjoy a beverage for social purposes on some occasions. Otherwise I stress out over it all.
  • This is only my second time on this site and probably my fourth forum to be a part of, but I must say, I have never felt more at home than I do when I first read your posts. I 100% understand where MIZERIA is coming from. I also have a texture issue and it kills me. I will not eat things like grits aka wet sand or oatmeal, which is just slimy for no reason. Jello wiggles in your mouth, yuck! And yogurt makes me gag. I have a huge problem with food touching on the same plate; I hate soggy or wet bread. Tuna fish is out of the question as far as I’m concerned.
    These are not the worse of being picky, but being picky has stopped me from trying new foods.
    Trying to “diet” while being picky is insane.
  • Quote: Me

    I haven't posted before but this thread has really inspired me. I've been diagnosed with dyslexia/dyspraxia and am fairly sure I'm on the autism spectrum. When I was a kid I had really problems learning how to use a knife and fork (poor hand eye co-ordination and muscle control) so found eating a struggle.

    Things are a lot better now but textures get to me, I've got a whole load of clothes with labels cut out and I can't bare to wear anything 'scratchy'. I can't eat anything slimy or rubbery. Egg whites are my nemesis, the texture is always horrible no matter how they're cooked and they taste *wrong*. I still literally pick at food I haven't prepared myself (as politely as possible), I can't eat a sandwich without opening it up to check there's nothing I dislike inside.

    That said I love green veggies, and have slowly worked my way up to eating spicy food.

    I love the idea of support from other people who understand I'm not just being difficult or childish.

    Although tis may not be so much food related, but when I was a kid I would scream to the top of my lungs for tags to be cut off my shirts. I would drive my mother crazy in the winter because I’d cry for her to take my gloves off and then cry even louder because my hands where cold. I am now 22 and I cannot remember the last time I bought a pair of gloves. That little line that runs across your socks when you put them on, sits right above your toes, I would pull my socks forward to fold that part under my foot, because I hated the feeling of the seam at the tip of my toes…that is something I don’t do any more, thankfully. But it is true, there are many things people do or don’t do and it shouldn’t make others think they are being childish or immature, it’s just how you are. My family worked extra hard to get me to stop biting my nails as a child, I would bite them until they bled. I got older, went to the doctor for it and found out I have anxiety. It’s not just a bad habit, it is legitimately the only way I know how to deal with being sad, depressed, or angry, you name it.