In this case, if you didn't read it in the OP's reply, "snowflake" has a recognized medical disorder. He *can't* do any better than he's doing right now. Get off his back and his mom's.
And even without the info, how about answer the question without being rude about a child?
I have 4 younger siblings. None of them have anything diagnosable, but ALL of them have been EXTREMELY picky about what they ate as minors. My full brother and second half brother could sit at a table for HOURS, simply refusing to eat. The first half-brother was a lot more emotionally sensitive, and I think he caved earlier than the other brothers. By the time my half sister was born, my dad and stepmom had given up, having seen their sons who barely ate grow into tall, strong, strapping young men (and seeing my full brother grow up strong and as tall as our mom's genetics would let him (stepmom is nearly 6 feet tall...mom was 5'1"), even without eating much more than PB and honey sandwiches and Cheerios with the occasional PLAIN hamburger).
NONE of them as adults (and near-adult) have problems with allergies, either food or environmental.
I, on the other hand, miss peacekeeper who would eat THEIR food just to let the evening move ON, who ate what I was given no matter how gross it was, have food sensitivities now and major environmental allergies.
I see a correlation.
So lay off the poor kid, even if there wasn't anything diagnosable.
I can tell you as a frequent visitor/poster on the disablities board, you will get the same answers. There have been numerous reports about children and adults that are on liquid diets, have to feed through stomach tubes, or are on no food at all and the rules are 99% usually not bent for them.
I was thinking the same thing. The answer is the answer.
I feel bad about the smell thing, that's for sure. My full brother is so sensitive to smells that if his wife eats fruit at home, she bags the remains and puts it into the big garbage bin in the garage (same rules for visitors). I once opened an orange downstairs at their place, and he smelled it upstairs through a closed door. His hearing is so sensitive he will rarely eat in a room where others are eating, and then it's generally only with me, since we grew up together and I *can* eat quieter than the average quiet-eater.
And when I was pregnant, I could smell *everything* BAD (and nothing good). I couldn't even go to the store anymore, because I could smell every drop of spilled, not really cleaned up, old milk, and let's not even talk about the meat department, OK? A bad smell from my plate of food would make it impossible to eat anymore. Just the LOOK of the food could destroy my meal (congealed cheese in enchiladas made me cry). It's an awful awful thing, to be that sensitive...
I'm still not totally over it (and DS is 7). DH and DS have to be careful what they talk about if I'm eating, because the wrong topic can make it difficult for me to continue eating.
