BackgroundFood fussiness (FF) describes the tendency to eat a small range of foods, due to pickiness and/or reluctance to try new foods. A common behaviour during childhood, and a considerable cause of caregiver concern; its causes are poorly understood. This is the first twin study of genetic and environmental contributions to the developmental trajectory of FF from toddlerhood to early adolescence, and stability and change over time.MethodsParticipants were from Gemini, a population‐based British cohort of n = 4,804 twins born in 2007. Parents reported on FF using the Child Eating Behaviour Questionnaire ‘FF’ scale when children were 16 months (n = 3,854), 3 (n = 2,666), 5 (n = 2,098), 7 (n = 703), and 13 years old (n = 970). A mixed linear model examined the trajectory of FF, and a correlated factors twin model quantified genetic and environmental contributions to variation in and covariation between trajectory parameters. A longitudinal Cholesky twin model examined genetic and environmental influences on FF at each discrete age.ResultsWe modelled a single FF trajectory for all children, which was characterised by increases from 16 months to 7 years, followed by a slight decline from 7 to 13 years. All trajectory parameters were under strong genetic influence (>70%) that was largely shared, indicated by high genetic correlations. Discrete age analyses showed that genetic influence on FF increased significantly after toddlerhood (16 months: 60%, 95% CI: 53%–67%; 3 years: 83%; 81%–86%), with continuing genetic influence as indicated by significant genetic overlap across every age. Shared environmental influences were only significant during toddlerhood. Unique environmental influences explained 15%–26% of the variance over time, with some enduring influence from 5 years onwards.ConclusionsIndividual differences in FF were largely explained by genetic factors at all ages. Fussy eating also shows a significant proportion of environmental influence, especially in toddlerhood, and may, therefore, benefit from early interventions throughout childhood. Future work needs to refine the FF trajectory and explore specific trajectory classes.

中文翻译：

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从幼儿期到青春期早期挑食的先天和后天因素：来自双子座双胞胎队列的发现


背景食物挑剔（FF）是指由于挑食和/或不愿意尝试新食物而吃少量食物的倾向。童年时期的常见行为，也是引起看护者关注的重要原因；其原因尚不清楚。这是第一项关于遗传和环境对 FF 从幼儿期到青春期早期的发育轨迹的影响以及稳定性和随时间变化的影响的双胞胎研究。方法参与者来自 Gemini，这是一个以英国人口为基础的队列，由 2007 年出生的 4,804 名双胞胎组成。当孩子 16 个月 (n = 3,854)、3 (n = 2,666)、5 (n = 2,098)、7 (n = 703) 和 13 岁时，家长使用儿童饮食行为问卷“FF”量表报告 FF （n = 970）。混合线性模型检查了 FF 的轨迹，相关因子孪生模型量化了遗传和环境对轨迹参数变化和协变的贡献。纵向 Cholesky 双胞胎模型检查了每个离散年龄的遗传和环境对 FF 的影响。结果我们为所有儿童建立了单一的 FF 轨迹，其特征是从 16 个月到 7 岁增加，然后从 7 岁到 13 岁略有下降。所有轨迹参数都受到强烈的遗传影响 (>70%)，并且很大程度上是共享的，这由高遗传相关性表明。离散年龄分析表明，遗传对 FF 的影响在幼儿期后显着增加（16 个月：60%，95% CI：53%–67%；3 岁：83%；81%–86%），并且遗传影响持续存在，如下所示：每个年龄段都有显着的遗传重叠。共同的环境影响仅在幼儿时期才显着。 随着时间的推移，独特的环境影响解释了 15%–26% 的差异，其中一些影响从 5 年后开始一直存在。结论 FF 的个体差异在很大程度上是由所有年龄段的遗传因素解释的。挑食也显示出很大一部分环境影响，尤其是在幼儿期，因此可能受益于整个童年时期的早期干预。未来的工作需要完善 FF 轨迹并探索特定的轨迹类别。