By Nicole Martin, Digital and Media Correspondent
A 12-year-old girl has eaten almost nothing but chocolate all her life because she is so frightened of trying new foods. Rebecca Scowcroft is in perfectly good health.
Rebecca Scowcroft, from Bolton, eats 15 squares of cooking chocolate and 10 chocolate fingers every morning while her family opt for a more conventional breakfast of toast, eggs and cereal.
The schoolgirl, who is in perfectly good health, eats the same for lunch and Rice Krispies for dinner - but only if they are mixed in bowl of melted chocolate.
Rebecca suffers from a condition known as extreme food phobia, which doctors estimate affects at least one child in every school in Britain.
They say that sufferers react to new foods in the same way that a normal eater would to someone putting a sheep's eye in their sandwich and forcing them to eat it.
No one is more fed up with the chocolate-only diet than Rachel, who says it is making it difficult for her to lead a normal life.
"I don't just choose to eat that kind of stuff," she says in a forthcoming ITV1 documentary called My Child Won't Eat. "It's not because I'm being awkward. Whenever I try any food I always get scared."
After years of trying to change their daughter's eating habits, Rebecca's parents enlisted the help of Dr Gillian Harris, a child psychologist who runs a feeding centre at Birmingham's children's hospital.
Her pioneering techniques recently helped an eight-year-old girl who would only eat McDonald's because she thought anything else would poison her.
Dr Harris says that parents of fussy eaters should not try to hide food, disguise it or play games with it.
They should also not force children to try a new food but rather wait until they want to change their diet themselves.
"Once you're into making carrots into funny shapes you've lost the plot," she says. "You're prompting, encouraging but never forcing."
With the help of Dr Harris, Rebecca has started to expand her diet and now eats small squares of toast for breakfast.
My Child Won't Eat will be shown on ITV1 on Monday at 9pm
The Schoolgirl Who Eats Nothing But Chocolate
-
jones jones
- Posts: 6601
- Joined: Sat Jan 26, 2008 7:30 am
The Schoolgirl Who Eats Nothing But Chocolate
"…I hate how I don’t feel real enough unless people are watching." — Chuck Palahniuk, Invisible Monsters
The Schoolgirl Who Eats Nothing But Chocolate
Very interesting. I have a cousin who, as a child, would only eat Wheaties, milk, dry mashed 'taters and green onions. Even now he has strange eating habits. He insists the best cheese is Velveeta. I tell him Velveeta isn't even real cheese. He says it's the only one he likes. He won't try any others though.
The Schoolgirl Who Eats Nothing But Chocolate
Couple of points, first why is it that Children with these food problems always seem to be adicted to things like McDonalds, or Chips, or Mars Bars, but never Dates, or Plums, or Brown Bread? Second, how is it that Chocolate was the first food she ever tried? It sounds a little bit like facilitating a spoiled child to me and medicalizing very bad parenting. Perhaps thats unfair.
"We are never so happy, never so unhappy, as we imagine"
Le Rochefoucauld.
"A smack in the face settles all arguments, then you can move on kid."
My dad 1986.
Le Rochefoucauld.
"A smack in the face settles all arguments, then you can move on kid."
My dad 1986.
The Schoolgirl Who Eats Nothing But Chocolate
Galbally;891933 wrote: Couple of points, first why is it that Children with these food problems always seem to be adicted to things like McDonalds, or Chips, or Mars Bars, but never Dates, or Plums, or Brown Bread? Second, how is it that Chocolate was the first food she ever tried? It sounds a little bit like facilitating a spoiled child to me and medicalizing very bad parenting. Perhaps thats unfair.
I agree with you here. I know there are some people who do have real food problems but a lot of these cases do seem to be bad parenting.
I gave my kids whatever I was cooking they were never told they had to eat anything, but never got snacks or junk food as a replacement for a meal they hadn't eaten ( not that that happened often). Kids don't buy food, they only know what their parents give them (until school)
Mine had problems one is ADHD and has various nut, seed,additive allergies the second has milk,egg allergy. My sons grew up thinking that white bread rolls were cakes, it was the only thing I could give both boys as a treat without triggering a reaction. They really enjoyed their 'cakes' !
The eldest one became so interested in food he went to catering collage sadly his allergies became so serious he was unable to carry on working in the food industry.
They all have good healthy eating habits. I never pushed,forced or lectured them , just made meal times good family time and encouraged them to help choose menus and to prepare and cook food .
I agree with you here. I know there are some people who do have real food problems but a lot of these cases do seem to be bad parenting.
I gave my kids whatever I was cooking they were never told they had to eat anything, but never got snacks or junk food as a replacement for a meal they hadn't eaten ( not that that happened often). Kids don't buy food, they only know what their parents give them (until school)
Mine had problems one is ADHD and has various nut, seed,additive allergies the second has milk,egg allergy. My sons grew up thinking that white bread rolls were cakes, it was the only thing I could give both boys as a treat without triggering a reaction. They really enjoyed their 'cakes' !
The eldest one became so interested in food he went to catering collage sadly his allergies became so serious he was unable to carry on working in the food industry.
They all have good healthy eating habits. I never pushed,forced or lectured them , just made meal times good family time and encouraged them to help choose menus and to prepare and cook food .