A study has revealed that children who are picky eaters (those with selective eating habits or avoiding new foods) have different brain structures compared to other children.
Conducted under the guidance of the University of Aberdeen, this research is the first of its kind to use neuroimaging of children with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) to examine their brain structure.
The study found that children suffering from ‘picky eating’ have a distinct brain structure. This condition was officially recognized as a disorder in 2013. Individuals with ARFID avoid certain foods or food types, or restrict their intake to such an extent that they fail to meet their body’s nutritional needs, affecting both their physical and psychological health.
The study examined brain scans of 1,977 children (aged 10) from the Netherlands. Among them, 121 children (6%) showed symptoms of ARFID.
The research found that children with ARFID had a thicker outer layer of the brain compared to those without the symptoms.
