50. Food Aversions & Selective Eating
In this episode of the Nourishing Autism Podcast, Brittyn delves into the intricate relationship between sensory aversions and selective eating in autistic children. She sheds light on how sensory processing issues affect food preferences and explores the significance of textures, colors, and temperatures in shaping choices.
If you're looking for more support or would like to learn about Brittyn's sensory-friendly approach to combat picky eating behaviors in autistic children, you can:
Join the Nourishing Autism Collective to start getting nutrition support today!
Follow @AutismDietitian on Instagram
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TRANSCRIPT
Hi, I'm Brittyn, a Registered Dietitian and autism sibling. I have a passion for helping parents of neurodivergent kids navigate nutrition and wellness for their child, one small step at a time. Here we'll explore practical nutrition tips, learn from top autism experts, break down the newest research, and share inspirational stories that will empower you to utilize nutrition to help your child feel their best and thrive.
Listen in while picking kids up from school, sitting in a therapy waiting room, taking a quick walk or wherever you find yourself, looking for some inspiration and a friend to guide you along this journey. This is Nourishing Autism.
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When it comes to autism, we are talking more about selective eating rather than just picky eating. I think that the term picky eating oftentimes causes people to think that they have a choice.
They have a choice to become limited in the foods that they'll eat. And they're just doing it because they're spoiled or whatever it might be. And that is so, so far from the truth. What we're talking about here is very real, extreme sensory aversions that are playing into a child's ability to eat certain foods.
Hello, everybody. Welcome back to the Nourishing Autism Podcast. I'm Brittyn Coleman, the Autism Dietitian. I'm so excited for this upcoming episode. We are talking all about sensory aversions and selective eating. You might be interested to know that up to 90% of children on the autism spectrum are selective [00:01:00] eaters.
Now, a huge reason behind this is something called sensory processing disorder and sensory processing disorder really affects the way that our brains interpret our external senses. And when we're eating food, all of our senses are coming together at once. We smell our food, we taste it. We feel it. We feel the texture and the temperature and all of these different characteristics of the food. Now for kids who have sensory processing disorder, the external sense that they are interpreting that their brain is interpreting, interprets it incorrectly or as more or less of a threat than it should be.
What do I mean by this? Some kids are going to be really overwhelmed by, um, or overstimulated by maybe even the smallest sound or maybe a tag in the back of their shirt. Or maybe it's a texture that feels just completely intolerable to them, or it could be a color that seems really [00:02:00] threatening to them. And so eating becomes this experience that is just absolute sensory overwhelm.
And for kids who have certain sensory aversions eating just becomes an activity that they just don't want any part of. And so what happens is that kids start to limit their diet because of these sensory aversions. Now let me say, this is not a child just choosing to be picky. When it comes to autism, we are talking more about selective eating rather than just picky eating. I think that the term picky eating oftentimes causes people to think that they have a choice.
They have a choice to become limited in the foods that they'll eat. And they're just doing it because they're spoiled or whatever it might be. And that is so, so far from the truth. What we're talking about here is very real, extreme sensory aversions that are playing into a child's ability to [00:03:00] eat certain foods.
Now, there is so much more to it than that, there's oral motor control. There is low muscle tone, a lot of other pieces that come into this even gut issues can affect a child's appetite and what foods they actually want to eat. And again, none of these things are in their control, but it is affecting the foods that they can eat. But at the root of it all, sensory processing issues really come into play here. So kids can be averse to different textures,
They can be averse to different colors, different temperatures. I mean, they can be averse to anything and it really comes down to their individualized, sensory processing that is happening. Now, when it comes down to texture, a child could avoid something that's crunchy or they could really prefer something that's crunchy.
That's actually one of the most common texture preferences that I see. They could avoid something that's mushy or creamy or soft, or maybe really chewy. I see some kids who crave [00:04:00] those textures as well. So it really comes down to the individual. When it comes to colors, we might see that a child might prefer more neutral colors rather than the super bright colors or super dark colors that come along with some common vegetables that a child might associate with a certain taste like a bitter taste.
Some kids might prefer those brighter colors because they're seeking some sensory input. Some kids might be trying to get away from all of the extreme sensory input that they can. Those kids would prefer more beigey, neutral colors, because it feels more comfortable and less overstimulating. Now, when it comes down to a temperature perspective, we have some really drastic temperatures, like frozen and hot, and some kids who really want sensory input might go for those types of temperatures. Now for kids who have aversions to really extreme [00:05:00] temperatures, they might be staying to more of the room temp, warm, or cold foods. Now on top of that, what temperature can change is the smell. And so for kids who have some really strong smell aversions, they may prefer cold or room temperature foods.
When foods get heated up, the sensory impact of smell is going to increase. And so what we see is that for kids who do have that smell aversion, they're going to prefer room temp, cold, or frozen foods. So it's really interesting to be able to see the preferences that come along with sensory aversions or their sensory needs. Eating is so rooted in sensory for kids on the autism spectrum.
It's a huge shame whenever feeding therapists, don't take into account the sensory input, and they're only putting in the focus on the behavior because [00:06:00] picky eating when it comes to autism is so deeply rooted in the sensory piece that if we are missing it, we are just missing out on a huge, huge chunk of where we could be successful. So we want to make sure that we are implementing all of the different approaches that implement your child's sensory needs and aversions
and we are utilizing that in order to come up with a plan that is going to help your child succeed based on their sensory needs and using this very child led approach. Now, if you're needing support with this, I actually just launched a completely new, individualized roadmap inside of my membership called the Nourishing Autism Collective. And inside what happens,
you go in, you take a quiz and it sorts you into your individualized roadmap. Now, if you are a parent who's really needing support with picky eating, it will put you into this picky eating track that is going to teach you exactly how to lay [00:07:00] the groundwork at your meal time to help reduce sensory overwhelm, but then also create a plan.
I have a three-step plan to help you understand which foods to implement based on your child's sensory needs. Then we use a process to help expand your child's diet based on what we know from both their sensory needs and nutritional needs.
And from there, I teach you how to introduce new foods so that we are following a very sensory friendly approach to expand your child's diet. We actually have about 30 steps from seeing the food for the first time to actually having your child eat it. And what's really cool is that we have a community inside of the membership and we support you along each individual
step of you expanding your child's diet, whether that means smelling the food or touching it or finger painting with it or touching it to their lips or chewing it and spitting it out, whatever that means we get to celebrate alongside you, which is a really special piece of this [00:08:00] journey. So I would love to invite you to try out this completely new individualized roadmap inside of the Nourishing Autism Collective.
I am so excited about it and I just can't wait for you to see it. So if you would like more information about how to join the Nourishing Autism Collective, you can check the show notes below and you can also DM me the word COLLECTIVE, and I will send you the link to sign up so that you can join our community and start getting support on how to expand your child's diet in a sensory friendly way that is geared toward autistic and neurodivergent children.
Hopefully this podcast has helped you understand more about your child's sensory aversions and how that plays into their choices when it comes to food, I would love to support you more. Catch me inside the Nourishing Autism Collective or on Instagram @AutismDietitian. I look forward to seeing you next week!
Transcribed by Descript
About Brittyn Coleman, MS, RDN/LD
Brittyn Coleman, MS, RDN/LD, is a distinguished Registered Dietitian and Autism Nutrition Expert, known for her innovative, sensory-friendly feeding approach to nutrition for children on the autism spectrum. As the founder of the Nourishing Autism Collective, and as an autism sibling herself, Brittyn brings both professional expertise and personal understanding to her work. She empowers families with her expert guidance, helping children receive essential nutrients for optimal health and development. Her strategies are tailored to the unique dietary needs and sensory preferences of each child.
Brittyn's influence extends beyond her membership site through her active social media presence and her popular podcast, 'Nourishing Autism'. Her educational content on Instagram, YouTube, and other platforms has established her as a leading voice in autism nutrition, providing valuable resources, practical advice, and a supportive community for parents and professionals.
