The Impact of Food Neophobia on Healthy Eating and Dietary Diversity
Chapter from the book:
Solunoğlu,
A.
(ed.)
2026.
TOURGASTREC II.
Synopsis
This study conceptually addresses the effects of food neophobia on healthy eating and dietary diversity. Food neophobia is defined as individuals exhibiting a cautious, hesitant, or avoidant attitude towards new or previously untried foods. While emerging as an evolutionary protective mechanism, this tendency can negatively impact dietary quality by limiting dietary diversity in current conditions. The study examines the biological, psychological, cultural, and social determinants of food neophobia in detail, emphasizing the influence of variables such as age, gender, education level, income, family structure, and cultural environment on this tendency. It is noted that food neophobia can particularly reduce the consumption of fruits and vegetables, leading to a preference for more familiar and energy-dense foods. This situation can lead to a decrease in dietary diversity and a weakening of healthy eating habits in the long term. Furthermore, it is stated that food neophobia can limit gastronomic experiences, affecting individuals' openness to different culinary cultures. This concept is considered important for understanding consumer behavior in areas such as menu planning, product development, and gastronomic tourism. In conclusion, food neophobia is a multifaceted phenomenon that is not limited to individual taste but is linked to eating behavior, cultural identity, and social interaction. Considering individuals' attitudes towards new foods is crucial for promoting healthy eating and increasing dietary diversity.
How to cite this book
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Published
DOI
Categories
Copyright (c) 2026 Ramazan Göral; Ali Solunoğlu; Ebru Arıcı- Orhan Batman- Gizem Kandemir Altunel- Şehnaz Demirkol- Kübra Kıymet Arslan- Feyza Altun- Mustafa Emre Şirin- Suat Arpacı- Y. Kemal Özekici- Furkan Dursun- Dilek Karakaş- Canan Semint- Serkan Semint- Nuriye Demir- Betül Şahin- Hasan Cinnioğlu- Aysun Gargacı Kınay- Mehtap Baykal Erdoğan- Evrim Karaca- Ezgi Erşahin- Şehnaz Demirkol- Ayhan Başçı- Semra Akar Şahingöz- Selva Atınç- Hale Özgit- Şerif Ahmet Demirdağ- Cihan Yılmaz- Meliha Sena Yıldırgan- Pelin Candar- Özel Kılıç- Duygu Kırmızıkuşak- Mehmet Koçak- Mustafa Demirel- Halit Sökmen- Ahmet Can Göksun- Duran Kuru- Ece Rua Gülal- Sağbetullah Meriç- Yusuf Ormankıran