The things your children do that you can blame on their genes

“I blame the parents ” has been a common mantra of pearl-clutching pundits over the years, the implication being that if only those lazy, overeating and obnoxious children had been brought up in a “decent” environment by parents who actually cared, then society would be a lot better for it. That may soon be a thing of the past, however. In the nature vs nurture debate, science has picked a side: genetics has a much greater influence over a child’s character and behaviour than any other factor.

A new study has found even fussy eating among children – the bane of many parents – is less determined by making sure little Timmy is exposed to greens and pulses from infancy, and more to do with genetic variation. The researchers from University College London (UCL) and the University of Leeds describe how fussy eating habits were more similar among identical twins than non-identical twins (almost all similar studies use twins), showing that genetics is a much bigger factor in the differences between children’s pickiness than once assumed. “The reason why some children are quite ‘finicky’ and others are more adventurous is largely down to genetic differences between children rather than parenting styles,” said Professor Clare Llewellyn on the Today programme.



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