The study, published in the British Food Journal, is based on interviews with a small sample of nine to 11 year olds attending an after school club in the West Midlands area.
Although the study showed that children have a good awareness of the health benefits of eating fruit and vegetables, some children were worried about being teased.
Dr Rachel Povey, lecturer in psychology, said: "The children did have a good knowledge of healthy eating and support from their families so it was interesting to learn about the strong influence of peers. There seems to be a consensus among children that healthy food isn't socially acceptable."
One child described eating a mushroom to be like ‘eating a small furry animal’ and another suggested that mushrooms tasted like "’slimy worms’.