Autism food program

Of course, we all have food preferences and most of us find food comforting. However, these natural tendencies can become exaggerated for a person with ASD. On top of this, many individuals with autism have difficulty describing what they like or dislike about certain foods. And that increases the risk of meltdowns. Research also tells us that many individuals with autism tend to have strong preferences for carbohydrates and processed foods, while rejecting fruits and vegetables.

This, too, may reflect an aversion to strong tastes and textures. Unfortunately, it can lead to nutritional deficiencies and excessive weight gain, especially if exercise is limited. Just as a substitute teacher can prove extremely upsetting for children with autism, so can unexpected foods on their plates!

Put it all together, and meals can become emotionally loaded for everyone in the family. So let me offer a few tips. When you sense a food-related meltdown approaching, try to defuse the situation as you would any other potential meltdown.

Use your tried-and-true coping strategies. For example, a deep breath and a break from the conversation. You might make a visual schedule to establish a plan for mealtime or negotiate a reward that could be earned for completing a task such as trying a new food.

Home » Our Services » Feeding Therapy. Autism and food aversions often go hand in hand. Attempting to get a child to eat something that they do not want to eat or removing preferred food items, can cause many problem behaviors such as aggression and tantrums. In addition, the foods that they do prefer and consume regularly such as candy, bread, or fast food could be lacking in nutritional value, which could result in major health deficiencies- such as malnutrition.

Have Questions? We're Here To Help. Some medical conditions can also lead to problems for children with autism at mealtime. These might include cavities or gastrointestinal issues. However, a food and nutrition program can help children with autism learn new skills and coping strategies for mealtimes.

At Camp Worth, we use a team approach in all of our programs. This also applies to our food and nutrition program. This comprehensive approach ensures consistency across everything your child does while at Camp Worth. Some of our strategies include consistency even when introducing a new food, using visual schedules, and encouraging flexibility around new foods. Visual schedules are useful for children who have difficulty adjusting to new schedules. Therefore, we request that you do not feed your child one hour before scheduled meals.

It is also important to wait an hour before feeding your child after a meal session, even if the child did not eat during that session. An individualized protocol will be developed for your child. This protocol includes specific instructions as to what to do during meals, as well as what not to do. It is very important that any caregivers feeding your child implement the protocol the same way each time and that only caregivers that have been trained are utilizing this protocol.

For the child to be successful, it is very important that caregivers are adhering to the protocol and not making any changes without communicating with the Clinical Supervisor. Often times, there are multiple components to a mealtime treatment protocol. If one of the components is implemented incorrectly or changed prematurely, it is likely that the child will identify this, which could lead to the protocol becoming ineffective.

It is very important that no changes in meals are made at home until caregiver training has been conducted. This includes offering any of the new foods being targeted in feeding therapy. Doing so may slow progress. Throughout treatment, data are collected and analyzed. Data collection enables us to determine how often bites are taken or refused and thus guide treatment decisions. We also collect data on treatment integrity how well caregivers feeding the child implement the protocol in order to determine if the protocol is being implemented correctly.

Stay in touch! Research has indicated that families who stay in touch with their therapy team do better. Minor setbacks related to illness can occur. Additionally, children who have made progress can sometimes temporarily take a step backwards.