Funny about food.




Autism and food issue go hand in hand. I've met a lot of autism parents and almost all of them have problems around food with their kids.
For some its sensory related. 
Kirsty has huge issues with smell. She'll smell everything before getting near it and if she doesn't like the scent it's a no. While Logan is a bit more adventurous with trying new things, his diet is still extremely limited. Many kids with autism just simply don't recognise things as food. Take Kirsty for example, with sweets or taytos. In her lifetime she has never even tasted a sweet or a tayto. Everything from Pringles to lollipops, we have tried to entice her with and she has never bitten. If I bring her to a party, she'll completely ignore the table with treats. She just doesn't see it as food. Kirsty has been eating the same foods for years. Crunchy foods like Liga, bread rolls and biscuits suit her as she prefers to eat with her hands. It took us and the school months to get her to use a fork!!! She will eat things like potatoes or Weetabix once they are blended... no lumps allowed !!! I bought a blender when she was 3 months old and its still going strong!!
With Logan if you get him hungry, he'll try anything but I've learned not to get too excited. The other night he ate toast for the first time and we were thrilled. Fast forward to the next night and the toast was flung!! He changes his mind about things like the weather and like Kirsty, he has never touched a sweet or taytos. We must be the only parents on earth that are actively trying to get our kids to eat rubbish!!


For other kids with autism, it's purely habit and the rigidity of their ASD. Kids with ASD love routine and its hard to break it. I've heard of kids that just eat chicken and can happily go months eating the same meal, if not years. As I said earlier, Kirsty has been eating the same food for years and is happy to do so. After months of trying ( and throwing away ) Mc'Donalds chips, she finally decided to try them and now she loves them. Success!! Again, the only parents ever to delight in their child eating fast food. The first time she tried chocolate buttons it was the best day ever!! Now she will chance her arm some mornings and ignore the Weetabix while requesting with her chocolate picture!! Typical woman...loves chocolate!!
I make light of it but it can be a serious issue. As a mother it's heart-breaking to check your child's lunchbox after a day in school and find it full. I've had days of tears when she just refused to eat anything but Liga. After years of trying to guess what she wanted the PECS book was a god send. To be able to communicate with her and hold up options that she can choose form is amazing. It has halved our frustration.


Here are a few tips I've picked up along our journey.




1. Don't force the issue. I once tried to fool Kirsty by hiding Rice Krispies in her Weetabix and she was not impressed!!
2. Leave the food lying around. Our kids need to investigate before they commit!!
3. If it's a sensory problem, introduce the food slowly. Allow them to touch it and feel it before they ever need to try eating.
4. Keep trying... just because they refuse it once, or even 10 times, they might try it eventually.


Food will always be a struggle for us. When people say " she'll eat when she hungry" they don't realise that kids with autism will starve before trying a food that is new or strange to them.
it can be so upsetting. For everyone involved. And don't get me started on eating out in restaurants!! Unless they do mashed potatoes, mine will be fed at home!! We had 2 weeks in Spain last year, and had to buy potatoes in the supermarket to give them before we left to go out at night. Autism turns parents into soldiers and everything is done with military precision!! We bring an endless supply of Liga wherever we go.


As a wise Cork man once said "Fail to prepare, prepare to fail" !! Words to live by in this house!!!