G athering as a family for a meal can serve several purposes, from social connection to nutrition. But this can also make eating and mealtimes tricky to manage when someone in the family is neurodivergent. Many autistic children and children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) display what has been called “ abnormal feeding behaviours ”.
Children may develop these behaviours as a way to cope with the complex task of mealtimes. The skills involved in mealtimes such as recognising feelings of hunger and thirst, completing tasks in a set order, processing all kinds of sensory input, using fine motor skills and interacting socially can be challenging. With meals occurring up to six times a day, the whole activity can become daunting.
But not getting enough to eat can have a negative effect on behaviour, learning and health. How the rise of autism and ADHD fractured Australia’s schools Read more So what can you do to help your child get what they need at mealtimes? Common behaviours Common abnormal feeding behaviours in autistic children and children with ADHD include: Food selectivity, where a child has a small range of preferred foods and limited variety. For example, children choosing only grain-based or dairy foods, such as noodles and yoghurt, or toast and cheese.
Strong preferences in how food is prepared and presented, including brands or tableware used – such as only accepting hot chips from one source, or only being able to use one bowl or fork. H.
