Cognitive-behavioral treatment of food neophobia in adults

Food neophobia is an eating disturbance defined as the fear of trying new foods. In its extreme, the disorder can lead to malnutrition, limited social functioning, and psychological difficulties. Successful treatment of food neophobia in children has been reported, but if those children are not provided with treatment, it stands to reason that the disorder may follow them into adulthood. To date, adult cases have not been described in the literature and the prevalence in adults is unknown. Our paper will review the methods used to treat children with the disorder then delineate how the procedures were modified for an adult population, giving two case examples. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.