I posted this in the "nutrition" forum before realizing that this is probably a much better place for it.

Until I was about 2 years old, I had no problem eating anything my mother would feed me. Then, one day, something "clicked," and suddenly, a wide variety of foods became intolerable.

This has continued to this day. The "acceptable" and "unacceptable" foods have never changed, in those 22 years.

It has become clear to me that the issue has to do with the texture of the foods rather than their taste. For example, tomato sauce (with no chunks) is great, but I could not eat a whole tomato. Fruit-flavored drinks and candies are fine, but fruit itself is impossible. Cooked meat is fine, but undercooked meat is intolerable.

There is something about a particular kind of "squishy" texture that is intolerable to me. I cannot help but gag. The thought of eating one of the offending foods is truly sickening, to the point that I am not sure I would be able to do it even if my life depended on it. My negative associations are so strong that even having a bowl of fruit on the table when I eat is very disturbing--the smell particularly, but also the sight, is truly revolting.

I'm sorry if the emotions and images I'm conjuring up are disturbing. I'm trying to give an accuate picture of the situation, though.

I read somewhere on the web, in a not-so-reliable-seeming source, that food texture hypersensitivity is higher among people with ADD than others. I was wondering if anyone here has the same issues I do with food texture. I have met one other person who is *exactly* the same as I am in this dimension--we have precisely the same list of excluded items.

I haven't had any luck getting over this problem with Adderall or Wellbutrin (not that I was expecting to), but I was wondering if anyone has found anything that can help. It would be really great if going out to dinner became a pleasure rather than a stressful experience, and it would be really great if I could start eating healthy vegetables rather than just taking supplements.

Brandnewvibe:

I've been a picky eater since I started eating solid foods. I know my pickiness is related to textures. I cannot eat broccoli or zucchini, I like spaghetti, but cannot eat tomatoes, . . etc. Most of my food issues are because of 2 textures within one food item.

Some suggestions:

I make myself try food I have never had or food I haven't tried in a while. As I've gotten older, I've been able to add new or newly retried foods to my repertoire - such as squash, sweet potatoes, falafel, salsa (with a small amount of chunky veggies). I even tried Calamari this weekend (fish is one of those foods I don't like at all.), which wasn't horrible.

You can try behavior modification, using positive reinforcement. For example, everytime you eat 2 bites of spaghetti, with some small chunks of tomatoes in the sauce, you get a bite of a favorite food. If you think you won't like a food - try it anyway. I really didn't want to try Calamari this weekend - but I made myself (and as a reward - got a shot of tequila :) and it wasn't too bad. I tried a falafel in NYC (I was a bit timid to try - because I don't enjoy most vegetables) and loved it. I promptly came home and made it for myself.

You could make a smoothie with fruit, that way you'll get the nutrients.

Plug your nose. Smell and taste are completely related. If you plug your nose, usually you can't taste the food.

I eat un-ripened nectarines, bananas, pears.

The more I open up to trying new foods, the less aversive I am to the food I thought I didn't like.

me, myself, and I think that ADD and sensory issues tend to go hand in hand, some people having more issues than others.

Best wishes!

I appreciate the kind words and advice.

Regards

I don't have any advice, but I wanted to let you know that you aren't alone. I can't stand crunchy vegies, drippy burgers, bread that is too dry, jell-o, chunks of tomato in my sauce, etc. I gag, choke, and so on. Not pleasant.

Cyndi

hehhehe... Until I was diagnosed and started doing research on ADD, I had no idea that food texture was an ADD thing-- I just thought I was a bit wierd :) But I've realized that I can sometimes mix a small amount of the food into whatever I'm eating (b/c its not the taste that bothers me, just the feel in my mouth). I can't stand sqishy things either or foods that feel a bit grainy (like some ravioli mixes, etc.) I was wondering-- beside the texture thing, do you have problems touching each other? Like, when I eat, I end up using a couple of plates for different foods, b/c I can't stand having them touch each other---drove my mom nuts when I was a kid :)

"Texture Eating" is a sensory issue that is high in ADHD because we process information diffrently from the norm. It is also high with other diagnosis..autism spectrum being one.
Some people only like spicey foods or foods with a bland taste. My brother cannot stand anything too cold..he always digs ice out of his drinks and lets his icecream get mushy.
I like anything spicey (ketchup is on the spicey list by the way). And certain food textures are not even up for consideration...usually grainy textures, or mixed textures.

One of the things they use for kids are small oral vibrators or even vibrating teething chews. For adults using vibrating toothbrush will also be a good thing, but brush your entire mouth not just the gum and teeth areas. This does help if you have a strong gag reflex.

i cant stand any of my food touching each other, and i can't stand sauce on my food. I drove my folks crazy growing up. I would rinse off a steak before eating it rathr then eat the bbq suace.

fortuntely my wife understands, she keeps my stuff seperate.

theres certain foods i also wont eat bcause of there texture. I always thought that was just me, and im glad to see theres others who feel that way to.

And I thought I was the only person that washed cooked foods....lol

The Out of Sync Child ...by Carol Stock Kranowitz is a great book regarding Sensory Integration Disorder and kids.


For adults, getting a referral for an Occupational Therapy evaluation is usually the first step to a diagnosis.

I've been thru OT twice as an adult and had a blast.It was difficult for me tho, due to the severity of the problem.

I don't have any food texture sensitivities but my OT friend has told me there are excercises for that.

I do include the question of food sensitivity in my sensory screening;especially as it relates to kids who have trouble swallowing pills.

Good luck.:)

Food must be eaten in order: hot egg things, hot veggies, potato, meat(if not veg), salads/cold food, and preferably do not get intermixed unless you are already eating a casserole and it's expected.

When I ate meat routinely, liver was out because it was liver and because it felt illegal in my mouth. I also loathed liver pate and any meat that bounced (e.g. calamari).

But I'm a bit quirky on food since the beginning. I like to blame it on the fact that my mother tried to get me to stop breast feeding onto cow milk which I was allergic to and then I had to switch again to soy and therefore developed a whole "complex" around it.

I have just found this site. I can't believe there are people that have the same "issues" as me. I can't eat fruit or vegetables- anything that you have to crunch to bite into it but is actually juice, really upsets me. Prime example is a tomato. Or an apple even. I also have a problem with cold food. I can't eat something that is usually served warm when it's cold. It always has to be boiling hot. I won't ever eat meat if it's not charcoal burnt- if there's any form of red blood juice coming out of it, I won't eat it. If vegetables have been anywhere on my plate I won't eat a thing off it. Salad is particularly upsetting. The white / wet / greenness of it all is excruciatingly painful for me to deal with. I am incredibly weird, I realise this. No foreign food has ever passed my lips- chinese, japanese, thai- there's jut too many different textures and flavours involved. I ordered a hamburger the other day and my friend tried it and mentioned she thought it tasted like lamb. I threw up and wouldn't touch it again. What is wrong with me? I have never been diagnosed with ADD though, do I have that too?

I can find a single lima bean in any dish simply by its texture. EW!

Crazy :cool:

most .....>> things tast bland to me the things that dont are over powering dorm

I have the same exact symptoms. I use to eat every single thing as a child up until about 3 years old. What I don't get is that I use to be able to eat sardines and mustard as a child, but now I can't even look at a piece of fish or smell mustard at all. I can probably list about 30-40 things I can eat without gagging. I gag at everything I don't like and cannot help it. Everything must be hot or overcooked. I love pizza, but cannot have the cheese soft or undercooked. I like pepperoni and that is it (or just cheese). I too don't like spaghetti sauce with any chunks in it, only just the sauce. There is not one vegetable that I can eat. The only fruit I can eat is blended, very blended and nothing green. Only reds and orange colored fruits. I can only eat chicken as a meat source and it has to be very cooked. And if I hit a chord or a bone, you better move because everything I ate will come right back up. And if I eat chicken, I must have a lot of BBQ sauce, no exceptions. I love hot dogs but absolutely hate brats or sausages. I can only eat hamburger in a meat taco and that is it (of course with a lot of hot sauce). I can eat no white sauces, only reds. I.E. BBQ sauce and French dressing. It is tearing my life apart. I am always the topic of discussion when eating out with someone I don't know and I am always getting made fun of. I understand people don't get it, but I too don't get how they can eat half the stuff they do. I am definately making an appointment with a doctor after reading these posts. Maybe there is some help out there. Thank you all for your posts, this helps greatly.:)

Hey Pickyeater.

I too have had food issues, for example it took me until I was 17 to eat mashed potato comfortably but I could eat mashed pumpkin without a problem, I dislike foods that drip such as oranges, watermelons, some burgers depending on whats on them and I hate spilling food on my skin as it feels horrid, however since I've grown up I'm able to tolerate these little issues a lot better now.

My advice is to do some research on Sensory Integration Disorder otherwise known as Sensory Processing Disorder (which is what I have as well as ADHD etc) and perhaps get some sort of diagnosis and treatment.

YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!

((Hugs))
Selena:)