Question

[londondave]

My friend calls herself a "food seperatist"! in other words she will not mix up food in her mouth. Ie: she wont eat cheese and biscuits but she will eat each individual item eperate. Food must never touch. Curry is out of the question, She refuses condiments, even salads each part can only been eaten seperate. She has been like this since a small child. Even cheese on toast is out. Has anyone has a name for this, does anyone have or know a same experience? By the way she is American!!!!!

[Headtime]

Hi Londondave....fussy eater is what i'd say! To think she doesn't experience the ecstacy of Cheese on Toast! Seriously though, I've never heard of that, and I have lot's of relatives in Los Angeles - home of mad eating habits. Maybe it's just peculiar to her, although there may well be a name for it. How old is she btw?

[Headtime]

Also, although her behaviour does not appear in this list of eating disorders, http://www.anred.com/defslesser.html you could try emailing the people that run the website, and see if they have a name for it... Let me know if you find out.

[beenee]

Sounds more like something that would arise from an obsessive compulsion or a phobia perhaps. What does she think will happen if she does mix foods around? If the answer is tilting towards some sort of impending doom (OCD) or her throwing up then I'd put it down to either of these.

[CosmoK]

I clearly remember doing exactly the same thing when I was a kid! I had to eat everything seperatley, I could not STAND mixing anything together. However, I simply grew out of it, maybe one day I discovered how nice food combinations could be or my mum just had enough of my behaviour. It sounds like an OCD thing. Let me know if you here anything on what it might be.

[badhorsey]

I know someone who will only eat food he can see. Sauces and curries are right out because components are masked by the sauces, and he won't eat out because he can't see the food being prepared.

[londondave]

Thanx for all the answers, in response to Headtime, she is now 31. She says she is happy with the way she is.

[becks]

I know a few people like this - some of whom can't even have the food on the same plate, most of it stems from childhood, and i think parenting is largely to blame - believe if I'd tried any such nonsense my mum wouldn't have been having any of it! If she's happy, it's not hurting anyone so why not - i personally couldn't live without cheese on toast, curries or egg and soldiers!

[Headtime]

31? I was thinking if she was in her late teens or early 20's it might be just a childhood thing she hasn't grown out of. But I suppose at her age, it could well be an OCD thing as beenee says. I suppose though if it doesn't bother her and she's not wierd in other ways then it's not really a problem.

[Doolallygirl]

My friend won't eat cooked vegetables and I thought that was weird! The only cooked veg she will eat is potatoes, but everything else needs to be raw, a total nightmare when it comes to roast dinners. No parsnips, carrots, peas, broccoli, cauliflower or sprouts, they all have to be raw!

[K99]

When I was little I developed this thing were I wouldn't eat anything begining with a P I am now 25 and still do this, although I have tried foods begining with a P its just easier to not eat them or say I don't like them as it turns into such a stressful event eating them.

[Cheesefreek]

I don't eat food beginning with X. I'm still putting on weight. I don't understand what I'm doing wrong!

[apricot]

She's American??? Surely not?? Sounds like classic attention seeking behaviou. Just ignore it.

[ladywolf1377]

my husband is the same way, he refuses to klet his food touch on his plate, and even uses seprate utensils for each. (trust me, this DOES drive me crazy,,) i have been told that it's accociated with O-C-D Disorder. on a funny side note, the first time i cooked him dinner (before i knew about his problem) i did serve mixed veggies, and he had a fit!!

[galltin]

K99, do you eat chips,mash, waffles etc. or are they all just potatoes?