I have written in previous posts about my frustrations regarding my youngest son's eating habits. Devon prefers mostly sweet foods, goat's milk or soft things. He shuns nearly all forms of protein, almost anything that grows in the ground and food with textures. Most of the time I can deal with his dietary quirks, but there are days when I enjoy a bit of self flogging over his lousy eating habits. However, it could be that I can let myself off the hook from now on, it could be that his eating habits are a result of genetics and not my lousy parenting abilities.

A team of British researchers have found that nearly 80% of a child's reluctance to try new foods is inherited. This does not meant hat consistent efforts of introducing new foods into a child's diet are not required, it simply means that parents should not beat themselves up over the fact that their kids are not alway adventurous when it comes to food exploration.

I am not sure if this case is applicable to my son's eating habits, but it sure does make me feel better about the whole situation. Do you have a picky eater? Does it bother you? How do you cope?