Real Kids Don't Eat Quiche

Based on interviews with 174 schoolchildren from three different age groups, the research discussed in this article points to a set of widely shared meanings that shape children's food preferences. It demonstrates the existence of a “children's food culture,” supported and sustained by peers and adults. This makes it very difficult for children to choose a balanced diet, as healthy food challenges some fundamental beliefs about what it means to be a child. By looking at food products as more or less socially acceptable within children's everyday worlds, the paper also investigates how food choices interact with issues of social disadvantage, gender and ethnicity.