Having twins and one being on the spectrum I know I shouldn't compare - but I do! The ASD child is such a picky eater. It seems like at one moment he LOVES a specific food - I go out and buy it - then he no longer eats it. He is a good 12 lbs lighter than his twin bro and sometimes his bro I swear eats for both of them. I tried the supplements - again - one day he likes the next day he doesn't. The food he liked the other day he is spitting out the next time it is served. I ''could'' serve two different dinners but I tend to tell the boys they eat what I serve.
Any suggestions?
*hugs*My twins would do great in prison as well! They prefer bread and water over most of my dinners!!! Sorry, I have no magic cure for this - I've read a lot about pickiness being inherited as well (something about the taste bud genes). I was horribly picky as a child too. We tend to rotate the same foods over and over for dinner (chicken nuggets, hotdogs, toast, repeat, repeat). I was so worn out from the dinner tantrums (from BOTH my kids) that I feed them the same things over and over and no longer fret about it. However, I do try to bolster my ASD guy's food when I can (mostly adding supplements and extra fats into his drinks).
Oh, I am right there with you. In fact we are trying to get a nutritionist involved as well as his aba theripst. My son is the only one in preschool who brings his lunch. I pack what he likes and then he doesn't like it any more. I am runnig out of things he likes. Most of the better for you things he likes are not easy to make at school, plus he likes them a special way. Like chicken bakes from Costco, he loves them, but you have to cut them open, take out the chicken, scrape off the spices, and make sure there are no "strings" or peices hanging down. He likes hotdogs, but you have to hold it for him. etc. I am at my wits end myself. Parker could live off of chips, I swear.Mac n cheese and mozzarella sticks here.....lolAugh we have the same problems kane will only eat yellow food! but not the good yellow like corn and bannas only cheesy rice (contential comes in a packet) and two min noodles! he will eat biscuts and crackers if there yellow also twisties, Ive been told to die his two min noodles green - to try and get him to eat green food but unfortunatly he has decided he doesnt like green noodles i made them normal for him last night and he ate them so there goes that idea
Sorry these food issues sux!
Kanes mum, only yellow food for us as well. Have to food color vanilla yogurt. Mac and Cheese and grilled cheese sandwiches.Same problem here, Skylar's is..Cookie Crisp cereal, corn dogs, cheeseburgers to eat, and milk, strawberry and grape Fanta, Dr. Pepper, Root beer and Sprite. They are working with him at school and get him to eat all types of foods at school, but once he comes home, you can hang it up, he will only eat the items listed above.Here's my collection of resources pertaining to pickiness and eating difficulties, in case you're interested:
http://www.autism-pdd.net/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=18317&am p;KW=pickiness
My youngest son is a picky eater, so I know how frustrating it can be. Hang in there!
It's weird as I read down the replies. My ASD son is also a bread and water boy. In preschool during lunch - they served lunch as family style and put all the food on the table - my ds would go for bread bread bread until they realized that (and thru pushing from me) they had to limit his intake to 1 roll until after he ate more on his plate. This is one of the times I realized that when he ate bread and more bread in one meal he seemed to have more out of control behavior! He continues to this day loving bread and omg - water. No one ever better tell me my ds doesn't get enough water.
He loves his bagels, bisquits and gravy, garlic bread (w.o garlic - as I tell him b/c his bro and I love the garlic bread and he doesn't so I make his w/o it)
Another big craving he has is ketchup ketchup ketchup on EVERYTHING. From the normal to green beans. He went from ketchup as a dipping sauce to A1 sauce but at almost -4 a bottle I had to stop that in a hurry as he could go thru a bottle a week. I can get ketchup for 10 for which suits my pallet much better.
Is this a common doohigey (dont know what else to call it)
Also - the issue with spitting out food. How do I get thru to him that this is unacceptable - I tried having him to bring the napkin up to his mouth or even excuse himself from the table prior to spitting it on the plate but I just can't seem to teach him thru social stories that these behaviors are not nice table manners. Of course how embarrassing when we are over family and it happens. Forget restaurants - we dont even go there!