James Barry and a co-speaker explain why kids lose interest in real flavor: ultra-processed foods hijack taste buds with dopamine hits, while a healthy oral microbiome actually makes children more receptive to diverse tastes. Fixing picky eating means improving microbiome health and reshaping family food culture, not serving dino-shaped chicken nuggets.
It's so fascinating to me when I meet adults or even kids that just don't have any interest in flavor, or they've grown up with eating such bland food that now it's almost scary or too unknown for them.
You are literally shaping your child's microbiome and thus shaping their palate. The microbiome of the mouth, if it's healthy and diverse, it's going to be really excited by different flavors. In nature, flavor equals nutrient density. What's been hijacked in modern times is our taste buds. They have made these ultra-processed foods, which are chemically laden to make us have this dopamine hit to continue to go back for more and for more. So my picky eater approach is all about the microbiome health, changing the family culture. What is your attitude around food? How is the family gathering around the table? How are the children involved in the food practices? And also, let's not lie to ourselves and say that certain foods are as nutritious as others.
So you're clearly not a fan of dino-shaped chicken nuggets.
No, I don't understand how anyone gets results with that.
