Hello folks!

In my previous blog post, I discussed the main reasons and factors for refusing to try new foods. In this blog post, I want to talk about exposure to new foods and what affects the fear of trying new foods.

Exposure to new foods

The existence of an extremely strong link between dietary diversity and repeated exposure to foods for individuals with a fear of trying new foods has been proven time and again. Nutritional diversity in adults has a significant effect that is shown the negative correlation observed between the levels of fear of trying new food and the levels of both education and socio-economic status. This effect appears to be directly related to the frequency with which a person eats different types of food in daily life.

Frequent exposure to new foods reduces the fear of trying new foods. The basis of this observation is the relationship between the fear of trying new food and socio-demographic variables. Young people are exposed to new foods at an earlier age than older people, as cities today have a wider variety of foods available than years ago. Also, in cities, food availability is much greater than in rural areas. The findings from the studies show that individuals have less fear of trying new foods due to the effect of city life, higher education and increased income, which exposes them to more new foods; supports that people in rural areas have a higher level of fear of trying new foods because they are less exposed to new foods.

Factors affecting fear of trying new food

According to the data obtained from studies on the fear of trying new food, neophobic individuals’ fear of trying new foods affected by many situations such as; behavioral and psychological factors (anxiety, anger, emotionality, etc.), socio-demographic factors (age, education, gender, culture, religion, education level, income level, degree of urbanization) and situational factors (about type of food, nutritional value and taste, social impact). 

The factors affecting the fear of trying new food are as follows;

1) Behavioral and psychological factors: Given the main impact of neophobic personality traits on personal values, attitudes, and behavioral patterns, data on individuals’ emotional responses to a new food may shed light on individuals’ decision whether to consume new foods or not. It is seen that the participants who have a fear of trying new foods are reluctant to participate in social activities, meet new people and be in different places, and exhibit a behavior that does not seek novelty in the places they are in. When the neophobic participants are examined psychologically, it is emphasized that when the participants encounter unfamiliar culinary culture, fear predominates, they avoid taking risks and prefer familiar foods. It was determined that emotional sensitivity was significantly related to neophobia tendency by character analysis. For these reasons, behavioral and psychological characteristics of people play an important role in eating behaviors.

2) Socio-demographic factors: Fear of trying new food is a personality trait that manifests itself differently depending on people’s age, socioeconomic status, education level and degree of urbanization. Fear of trying new foods was associated with variables such as gender, age, and education, while familiarity with a food was thought to be not only a cultural but also an individual experience. Significant gender differences have been observed in some studies, indicating that men are more neophobic than women. However, the effect of gender on fear of trying new foods is still unclear.

Some studies dealing with the relationship between neophobia and education have found that as education level and income increase, the level of food neophobia decreases.

3) Situational factors: Stimulating factors such as the appearance, taste, smell and texture of the food have an important effect on the food preferences and nutritional styles of individuals. Some studies state that the neophobic tendency is due to the insufficient knowledge of individuals about food. It is argued that among the foods and drinks that are accepted and tasted by the person, foods that are generally considered to be beneficial are preferred. It has been determined that the information given to the person about the benefits of a food and the thought that the food is important for health increase the desire to eat a new food. The individual’s direct knowledge of taste and benefit is based on his own experience with food, and constant exposure to new foods creates the impression that food is safe for individuals.

Neophobic individuals expect new foods to be tasteless. Exposure to and discovering delicious new foods helps individuals change their negative attitude towards new foods. Positive experiences with new foods can help reduce fear of trying new foods by allowing generalizations to other new foods.

Social influence, which has an important role in liking and consuming food, leads people to be influenced by the people around them and to try similar foods consumed by the people they are affected by. According to research, children are inevitably influenced by their parents and consume similar foods with them. It is argued by some researchers that people are influenced by their peers, friends and relatives and they tend to experience new foods.

It’s a complicated matter, huh? What are you thinking? Come share with me.

Until the next time, take care my dear fellows! ☺