Food texture means unable to eat most foods

rey8px2m7altcs · 17-01-2014 5:45am #1

My partner is 30+ and as a very young child he was diagnosed with Meningitis (the bad one) which meant he was actually given his last rights at one point. He obviously pulled through but his mother said that he has scarring on parts of his brain due to it.
Now this meant he has an issue with texture of food. Not the actual taste or smell but simply texture. If it is not the right type he will vomit. I know most of you will think it is just a person who was given in to, I can agree to some part but he cannot eat other foods.
His diet contains Pizza (Margereta), chips, fish fingers, chocolate (not much), bread, cheese, apples, once in a while he can manage a banana. That is about it really.
He is 6ft4 so yeah seems the food did not effect him much, he is trim and sexy as hell! (What, he is!) The doc did test and all of they are actually great.

My issue is 20 years down the line, will he still be okay? I see the news about vitamins so should I see about him taking some? I will be honest I am freaking amazed he can work these 10 hour shifts 5 days a week and he still looks this good. He is not weedy or unhealthy in any way it seems.

runawaybishop · 17-01-2014 1:00pm

He needs to broaden his diet really. A multivitamin isn't addressing the issue.

homemadecider · 17-01-2014 1:34pm

Eduardo Acidic Nitty-gritty wrote: »

his mother said that he has scarring on parts of his brain due to it. Now this meant he has an issue with texture of food.

Did a doctor say that because of brain scarring he can't stand the texture of certain foods? Or is this just a theory his mother came up with because he is a fussy eater? This is a genuine question, maybe it's just a mental block he has about certain foods?

Oryx · 17-01-2014 1:41pm

Tbh, theres a lot of variety in the texture of what he does eat, and it begs the question, if he can eat apple, why not pear? Fish fingers, but not say, turkey burgers? I realise there are no sloppy foods on there but you can get variety without changing texture radically.

I have seen fussy eaters (for whatever reason) learn to retrain their tastes in some show on tv ages ago. It can be done.

seosamh1980 · 17-01-2014 1:45pm

Having watched a ridiculous number of programmes about fussy eaters unless he's been medically diagnosed with the brain scarring it's much more likely that as a small child he went off food due to being sick with the meningitis. I'm assuming a lot here but is it possible his mother decided on that brain scarring herself, as a reason for his changed eating habits after being ill? Maybe he vomited a lot at the time due to illness or medication, this sets a lot of kids off associating certain foods or all foods with making them sick, so they refuse to eat once better.

Unless the brain scarring thing is an actual diagnosis as I said the best thing for him would probably be to see a counsellor specialising in this sort of thing if possible. He has to realise that all these foods won't harm him, won't make him ill, and that he needs them to be healthy.

Google Freaky Eaters, watch a few episodes of that. Many of their stories start with illness/trauma in childhood and their parents saying "after that he stopped eating normal meals and would be sick if he ate veg/fish/etc".

thegreatiam · 17-01-2014 1:49pm

Is he the one instigating this new interest in his diet? if so then he will be willing to try to break his habits. if not then you need to convince him.

Its likely that this "texture" thing is in his head. Id be inclined to agree with homemadecider that it is probably something from his childhood rather than an actual condition.

Like oryx says if its just texture then whats the difference texture wise between chips from potato or chips from parsnip?

Seems like there is a lot of texture variance in the food he is eating. Id say just start testing what he can tolerate. Start looking for food that matches the texture of what he eats.

Also the fact that he includes pizza in his diet is a bit strange, as pizza doesnt really have a single texture. Try pizza with healthier toppings.

imitation · 17-01-2014 2:23pm

I used to be a massively fussy eater as a teen, at the start your OH's diet would have looked broad compared to mine. I have also gotten off relatively lightly in the health stakes (not trim though sadly). As the years have gone by my boredom with the same old has made me try new things. (I still have a cruddy enough diet mind you, but its infinitely better than before)

I did have the whole texture thing, but really I think there is a multitude of things at play looking back at it.

What I experienced was really like food anxiety, the fact the texture was radically different was basically the cause. I knew full well what I was eating was food, but at some level I didn't like the new experience and would often wretch. I would still be the same way about things like Salmon, spinach, mushrooms etc. I'd also still be a bit weirded out by bones.

On top of this, there is fact that consciously and unconsciously you prefer these gungy type of foods, you like the taste, they make you feel full and satisfied and your body trips out on all the sugar and fats. For me, food has always been my favorite drug. There was a point where I decided to go on a diet for 9 months, it was enlightening to say the least, once your off these things for a month or so the cravings subside dramatically, and when you then do have the occasional treat it tastes freaking amazing. Your skin also clears up and a you do feel a lot better.

The worst situations were always when you were forced to eat it out of politeness or because your parents really wanted you to finish the plate. I hate these and I was always doomed to failure, because I didn't want to eat the bloody stuff, somebody else expected it of me, classic psychology.

If I was to advise somebody on how to break the cycle, I would say start gently, lashing out a salad would be a disaster, because they would have to overcome eating lettuce, then tomatoes, get used to the flavors and the dressings. Its not going to happen all at once.

I'd try maybe a little curry sauce on the side for chips & Chicken. If hes enjoying it, he'll probably keep adding more. Then after that you could try putting some rice on the side and see if he goes for that. The best thing is with curries is that you can put in vegetables and they aren't all that noticeable. The Pizza suggestion is a good one too.

The important thing is not to be disappointed or make complaint if he decides not to go for it, it will probably make the process difficult. It pisses most people off because they are reminded of an awkward child, but to the person its like being asked to jump on a bike for the first time and cycle 5 miles. The above is based on my experience at least, he may not have any of it, but if you focus on it for enjoyment rather than nutrition you may have more luck broadening the diet.

hardCopy · 19-01-2014 3:44pm

imitation wrote: »

I used to be a massively fussy eater as a teen, at the start your OH's diet would have looked broad compared to mine. I have also gotten off relatively lightly in the health stakes (not trim though sadly). As the years have gone by my boredom with the same old has made me try new things. (I still have a cruddy enough diet mind you, but its infinitely better than before)

I did have the whole texture thing, but really I think there is a multitude of things at play looking back at it.

What I experienced was really like food anxiety, the fact the texture was radically different was basically the cause. I knew full well what I was eating was food, but at some level I didn't like the new experience and would often wretch. I would still be the same way about things like Salmon, spinach, mushrooms etc. I'd also still be a bit weirded out by bones.

On top of this, there is fact that consciously and unconsciously you prefer these gungy type of foods, you like the taste, they make you feel full and satisfied and your body trips out on all the sugar and fats. For me, food has always been my favorite drug. There was a point where I decided to go on a diet for 9 months, it was enlightening to say the least, once your off these things for a month or so the cravings subside dramatically, and when you then do have the occasional treat it tastes freaking amazing. Your skin also clears up and a you do feel a lot better.

The worst situations were always when you were forced to eat it out of politeness or because your parents really wanted you to finish the plate. I hate these and I was always doomed to failure, because I didn't want to eat the bloody stuff, somebody else expected it of me, classic psychology.

If I was to advise somebody on how to break the cycle, I would say start gently, lashing out a salad would be a disaster, because they would have to overcome eating lettuce, then tomatoes, get used to the flavors and the dressings. Its not going to happen all at once.

I'd try maybe a little curry sauce on the side for chips & Chicken. If hes enjoying it, he'll probably keep adding more. Then after that you could try putting some rice on the side and see if he goes for that. The best thing is with curries is that you can put in vegetables and they aren't all that noticeable. The Pizza suggestion is a good one too.

The important thing is not to be disappointed or make complaint if he decides not to go for it, it will probably make the process difficult. It pisses most people off because they are reminded of an awkward child, but to the person its like being asked to jump on a bike for the first time and cycle 5 miles. The above is based on my experience at least, he may not have any of it, but if you focus on it for enjoyment rather than nutrition you may have more luck broadening the diet.

I've been through a similar process with my own eating. The trick is to take things really slow and get him involved the cooking. Start by adding tiny amounts of new flavors to dishes he likes, don't try to sneak anything into his food and don't rush him.

In the last 4 years I've gone from sausages, burgers and pizza to a wide and varied diet where I'll eat about anything bar fish (New Year's Resolution is to add fish)

FizzleSticks · 19-01-2014 6:29pm

This post has been deleted.

El_Dangeroso · 19-01-2014 6:46pm

If he throws up a lot, he could have atypical reflux and would need to visit a doctor to get a check up and possible treatment, just something to keep in mind.

rubadub · 20-01-2014 5:17pm

Eduardo Acidic Nitty-gritty wrote: »

His diet contains Pizza (Margereta), chips, fish fingers, chocolate (not much), bread, cheese, apples, once in a while he can manage a banana.

These sound like typical foods you might see a student living on. If it was due to some brain scarring abnormality it would be a strange coincidence that its all normal stuff like this - I was expecting a really strange list similar to cravings pregnant women might have, it might be "he eats apples, but only if liquidised and mixed with porridge oats".

Can he eat soups or smoothies? I have been making thick soups with veg I don't particularly like on its own.

Lux23 · 21-01-2014 2:30am

I had something similar when I was younger, I couldn't swallow anything mushy like mash or with a spongy texture. I'm not sure how I got over it, think I just tried to lose weight and I was forced to try different food.

Food texture means unable to eat most foods

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