Find Child & Youth Residential Treatment

  • Find Treatment
  • Fund Treatment
  • Parents
  • About
  • Contact
  • Resources

May 10, 2022 · Leave a Comment

Signs Your Autistic Child Has an Eating Disorder

Find Treatment· Parents

There’s a fine line between picky, sensory eaters and an autistic kid who has an eating disorder. Here’s how to tell the difference.

Signs of an Eating Disorder in an Autistic Child

What are the signs your autistic child has an eating disorder?

Eating disorders affect approximately nine percent of the population worldwide in their lifetime. That’s about 701.5 million people.

Autistic people are more susceptible to developing eating disorders than their peers. People with anorexia are more likely to be autistic.

Little support exists for autistic people with eating disorders because of the sensory aspect, so knowing the signs of eating disorders in autistic people is crucial.

Signs your autistic child has an eating disorder

While other eating disorders in children exist, autistic people are commonly associated with anorexia nervosa and avoidant/restrictive eating disorder (ARFID).

Anorexia can happen to anyone of any size or shape, at any weight. The most dangerous cases are the ones in people who fail to get diagnosed due to not meeting stereotypical anorexia standards.

Lack of interoceptive awareness

Interoception is a type of sensory input that helps you know how you feel on the inside, namely if you’re thirsty, cold, in pain or hungry. In autism, interoception is impaired when paired with special interests. That’s normal.

It’s not normal when, repeatedly, the autistic person fails to realize they’re hungry or thirsty. This can be circumvented by setting timers to remind them to eat or drink, but those timers will be ignored if the needs are deemed unimportant.

Special interests take priority for the autistic person. It’s not intentional; it’s a lack of interoception.

This is a precursor to disordered eating. When you don’t recognize hunger cues, you don’t think twice about forgetting to eat for 24 hours.

Lack of control

Eating disorders may form due to a lack of control. Autistic people need routine to function properly and feel like they’re in control.

When they don’t have that, they may seek alternative methods to feel like they are in control.

Losing a job, constant rejection, and autistic masking may lead to an eating disorder.

In smaller children, it might look like having few friends who accept them or having many friends who only accept a part of them. Autism looks different in girls, and autistic girls tend to mirror their friends. Any friend who is obsessed with dieting will pose a risk to your girls on the autism spectrum.

Once the autistic person’s life gets back on track, recovery is easier.

Not eating

Your child might not eat because of sensory needs, routine changes, lack of control, interoception, and/or alexithymia — to name a few.

If you’ve already investigated dental and other medical conditions, and your child doesn’t even find solace in the worst of their safe foods, they’re not a picky eater.

They have an eating disorder.

How do I treat my autistic child’s eating disorder?

Autistic adults may develop their own solution that works for themselves. However, parents will be too close to the situation and can do more harm than good.
Your child needs medical help, as well as to be monitored during the refeeding process.

Individuals on the autism spectrum may spend longer in eating disorder treatment than their non-autistic peers. If they don’t need to because they “recovered fast”, this is masking.

How can I prevent my autistic child from getting an eating disorder?

Respectfully, you can’t prevent it entirely. Supporting your child and providing a safe space where they can be themselves without masking will reduce the harmful side effects of the autistic mask.

Encouraging nutrition and reducing talk about diets and portion control will quell disordered eating talk at home. Schools run rampant with dieting and restriction, and looking a certain way.

Helping your child get their life back on track when it falls apart or they burn it all down because of autism meltdowns and autism burnout — and it will, repeatedly — is crucial to recovery.

If you believe your autistic child has an eating disorder, we encourage you to seek professional help as soon as possible. Your support will be critical in helping your child to recover.

Resources about Autism for Parents

What is the Best Diet for My Autistic Child?

What are the Signs of Autism at Age 2?

Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) vs Autism: What is the Difference?

5 Ways to Help an Autistic Picky Eater Expand Their Diet

What Can I Do if My Autistic Child Never Stops Talking?

5 Steps to Calm a Screaming Autistic Child

7 Strategies to Get an Autistic Child to Sleep

Signs Your Autistic Child Has an Eating Disorder

About Jane E. Lively

Jane E. Lively is an autistic adult whose life fell apart due to autistic burnout, during her second year of independence. She considers herself a cat mom to Galaxy, her emotional support cat. She shares what life is like as an autistic adult on her blog, Autistic Jane.

Previous Post: « Therapeutic Boarding Schools in Arizona
Next Post: 75+ Parent Reviews of Residential Treatment Programs and Boarding Schools for Reactive Attachment Disorder (RAD) »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Footer

Find & fund treatment for children in need of care.

Privacy Policy

For informational purposes only. Not intended to replace medical advice.