Picky eating in children a collective term that usually denotes having
strong food preferences, consuming insufficient variety of food; restrict
the intake of nutritional categories, eating a limited amount of food,
opposing to try new variety of food. Picky-eating behaviours are normal
in outset and youth. Picky eating occurs in normal developing children
as well as in those with medical or developmental disorders.
Children with autism can be extremely selective when it comes to food.
They might prefer food varieties that vibe a specific way in their mouth,
as crunchy food sources or soft food. To help children with autism to be
less picky about eating, start choosing one objective. Change is hard for
children with autism, so they might throw tantrums when their eating
schedule changes. Here are some tips that can help children with autism
to overcome the picky eater stage:
Stay Calm:
Many children need to taste the food more than dozen times before they
are willing to eat it easily. Keep in mind that it takes most kids and even
adults numerous exposures to a new food seven to 12 times. Be patient
as your kid investigates and tests new food sources. If your child
continues to reject a food even after several attempts perhaps he just
doesn’t like it. Pressuring kids to eat, or punishing them if they don't, can
make them actively dislike foods. Consider trying a different food. Most
importantly, don't allow your mealtime get your family battleground.
Instead, be creative and have some patience.
Make Them Try New Things:
- Children with autism are reluctant to try
new things. - Help your child to attempt new food by seeing it, touching it, and
smelling it. - Using this approach with each new food gives children more
control over their eating. - Be patient, these small changes can be challenging for children
with autism.
Add Some New Techniques:
Children with autism often come up with hypersensitivity to
textures. Make foods look tempting by arranging them in fun,
colourful shapes kids can recognize.
- The squishiness of a fresh tomato is a classic example.
Try chopping or blending such foods to smooth out the offending
texture. - That tomato can be chopped into salsa or blended and cooked into
the pasta sauce.
Involve Kids in Planning Meal:
Involve your child in making meal or take them to grocery shops or
farmers market by picking fruits and vegetables of their own choice due
to which they will develop interest in making the food of their own. Give
them kid-friendly cookbooks to pick out new recipes to try.
Keep A Food Journal:
- As much as possible, parents and other caregivers should keep a
record of what the kid eats at every meal or snacks. - This will help them to keep track of the progress that’s being made
and where difficulties are proceeding to come up. - Having this daily record can make it much easier to be patient and
helps everyone stay on track.
Give them rewards:
- Appreciate even small things so that children will develop interest
in having their meal. - Let dessert and treats be part of meals and snacks, but in
limitation.
Likewise, remember picky eating usually is a normal developmental
stage for every child or children with autism. Do your best to patiently
guide them on their path toward healthy eating.
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