While it is often assumed
that the active component of such exposure interventions is the repeated
tasting of the food, and the ‘learned safety’ that results from
this (Kalat & Rozin, 1973; Rozin, 1976), the act of tasting is not an
isolated sensory experience as it also provides exposure to the food’s
non-taste sensory qualities. That is, when a food is offered to a child
to eat, the child is exposed to the sight of the food, its smell and
its texture as the food is handled; he or she may also hear the name
of the food. If they taste it, they additionally experience the texture
of the food in the mouth and the sound it makes as it is chewed.
Familiarity with these non-taste sensory properties of a food may
play some part in the positive effects that result from
repeated tasting.