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My son has Autism and not eat certain food
trazr71
Member Posts: 1 Listener
My son jack is autistic but he will not eat wet food. Alphabet shapes , Turkey jetters or minions , pizzars or pick nick's. I have tried other fooday but he doesn't like the texture .any advice would be grateful.
Replies
Welcome to community and thank you for sharing this with us. Have you informed your GP?
You may find our page on Textures of food and your child's eating difficulties useful.
It can be really difficult finding a variety of foods for children with autism. Every child is different and it is really down to trial and error, but having been a special needs teacher for a long time and working with many children with autism, I have found that bland, beige food is often accepted such as bread, rice, chicken nuggets or toast.
It will also depend on whether or not your child has any sensory issues. He may find wet food uncomfortable to eat or too messy. Does he like to have his food separated or is he happy to have it all on one plate? Some children do not like their food to touch and you can get plate trays that separate all of the different items of food.
It can sometimes be helpful to work on just smelling different foods to start with, followed by briefly touching it to their lips (following each positive action by a reward). Smelling can go on for a long time before he moves onto touching it with his lips if he moves on at all but it is sometimes worth trying as often children will end up eating the same things on a daily basis, ending up with a very limited diet. Try working on one food that you would like him to try and persevere with that food, before trying something new (unless of course it really upsets him).
With wet food, you could try encouraging him to play with the food to get used to the feel of it on his hands. He may feel the sensory aspect of the food is scary.
You could also get in touch with the National Autistic Society for advice:
https://www.autism.org.uk/
if your son has been diagnosed in the past 12 months, you could also access our new service Navigate which provides support to parents and carers who had a disabled child who is going through diagnosis or been diagnosed within the last 12 months:
http://scope.org.uk/navigate
I hope the above helps.
Beverley
Parent Advisor
Navigate