Assisting autistic people with feeding problems
Dr. Elizabeth Shea is a Clinical Psychologist with over ten years of experience working with young people who have eating disorders. Problems eating a wide variety of foods are prevalent in autistic persons, and this article covers the elements that have a role in the onset and maintenance of this eating pattern based on clinical experience, evidence-based treatment, and research.

"Chocolate the crispy cake is my favorite dessert. They're only good to me when they're melted. I'm not interested in trying new foods since I'm afraid they'll make me sick. I only eat crunchy foods. I have a cake on my birthdays, make a wish, and blow out the candles, but I've never tried it. I had a teeny-tiny crumb of birthday cake once, but it made me sick."

Rachel is six years old

Rachel's statements will ring true if you've ever encountered a young autistic person who struggles with food. When I worked as a residential care worker for autistic young people, I first saw the normal eating style of autistic persons. It was my job to cook supper most evenings, and I quickly learned that some of them had extremely specific preferences, such as rejecting anything that was the incorrect brand or packaged differently (I also learned to cost the consequences of hiding or disguising foods; more of that later).

I've spent a lot of my career working with young kids who refuse to eat, many of whom are on the spectrum, but also with those who aren't. As a result, "the pattern of avoidant and restrictive eating seen in autistic people is also seen in children and adults in the neurotypical population, and thus indicates the function of features that individuals share, rather than being particular to a diagnosis".
READ MORE VISIT: https://www.healthlifekit.com/2021/07/how-to-get-child-with-autism-to-eat.html