Eating Behaviors of Children with Autism-Pilot Study, Part II.

Beata Kazek,Wirginia Likus,Agnieszka Babraj,Irena Krupka-Matuszczyk,Tomasz Iwanicki,Agata Buczek,Małgorzata Ferlewicz,Karolina Kozioł,Agnieszka Kapinos-Gorczyca,Anna Brzóska,Ewa Emich-Widera,Justyna Paprocka

doi:10.3390/nu13113850

Beata Kazek, Wirginia Likus + Show 10 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13113850

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Journal: Nutrients	Publication Date: Oct 28, 2021
Citations: 4	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Medical University of Silesia, John Paul II Hospital

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder is characterized by social communication deficit and non-normative behavior. The people with autism often experience troubles with feeding. The purpose of this study was to conduct evaluation of the feeding and eating behaviors among children with autism. Patients and Methods: The study group included 41 high-functioning autistic children. The control group consisted of 34 children without the ASD. The questionnaire was used to assess the nutritional status. Results: The children with ASD fuss during mealtimes more frequently, they require entertaining and diverting their attention, they are fed by parents, and they consume their meals away from the table. The significant difference found in the use of utensils and food selectivity works to the disadvantage of the Study Group. Conclusions: The food selectivity occurs significantly more frequently among children with ASD. The feeding and eating problems should be considered on a wider scale. The cooperation of the multidisciplinary and the parents teams should be proposed in the ASD patients care.

Highlights

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a pervasive developmental disorder which is characterized by social communication deficit and non-normative behavior (ICD–10, DSM 5)
Gastrointestinal disorders are among the most common somatic disorders observed in 46–91% of patients in comparison to 6–50% of healthy peers
Both groups were homogeneous in terms of sex (p = 0.3) (Table 1) and age (p = 0.73)

Summary

Introduction

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a pervasive developmental disorder which is characterized by social communication deficit and non-normative behavior (ICD–10, DSM 5).About 1.5% of children in the developing stage suffer from autism spectrum disorder (data as of 2014 according to the CDC, 1 in 68 children) [1].The etiology of autism remains unknown, but genetic factors along with triggering environmental factors are thought to play the primary roles [2,3,4].Autistic people experience many comorbid health problems. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a pervasive developmental disorder which is characterized by social communication deficit and non-normative behavior (ICD–10, DSM 5). About 1.5% of children in the developing stage suffer from autism spectrum disorder (data as of 2014 according to the CDC, 1 in 68 children) [1]. The etiology of autism remains unknown, but genetic factors along with triggering environmental factors are thought to play the primary roles [2,3,4]. Autistic people experience many comorbid health problems. Gastrointestinal disorders are among the most common somatic disorders observed in 46–91% of patients in comparison to 6–50% of healthy peers. Even more distinct differences are found in feeding [5,6,7,8,9,10,11]

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