How do I get my ASD/PDD-NOS 4yr old to eat?

[cheli55]

Hi.. Im still trying to educate myself after recently getting this diagonosis about my 4yr. old... I've been observing him and trying to understand all the changes... He used to be a very good eater but now I can get him to eat anything... he just wants cookies or anything sweet... I feed him fruit.. and I always have bananas. I know fruit is good for ur child but all hes asks for is bananas.. all day long!!!... I cook alot of different things but recently he has gotten extremely picky with everything... I know is part of his disorder but is there any suggestions to get him to eat other healthy foods... I've been trying to feed him some rice I just made and everytime I try he starts to get ready for a meldown...
What should I do???

[lilpearl13]

A lot of these kids have a zinc deficiency.  Within a week of having my daughter on a zinc supplement she was trying new foods and eating more.  zinc helps with the sensory issues of the tongue and gives people an appetite.

[nikki2930]

im nikki28 i have a 8 yr old asd child that also was a good eater before being diagnose with asd. i have learn that th starches and sweets are a craving of the diease you should look to try the gluten free casesin free diets start with the snacks then countinue with the varietis of pizzas nuggets hotdogs that are gluten and casesin free you child eating will change him may contracted food allergies. wholefoods markets has variety of kid freindly foods easy to make a good so dos trader joes market. they have subsitutes for all foods we all eat for gluten fre casein free eaters

[cheli55]

Thanks I will try different things and see how it goes. And rt now I'm working on his anger and meltdowns. Hoping that when I finally finish decorating the Xmas tree, he won't pull it down...

[Chelsina]

My 3 year old survives on yoghurt. I have to get a tiny taste on his lips before he accepts it. He will also eat sausages, toast, and soft bread rolls with melted cheese. Sometimes you need to work on the texture so its not too overwhelming. All the best, dont worry too much they go through stages.

[Natta1980]

what works for me is getting him to eat his favorite food (soup) with a little bit of something new (fish) and once he takes a bite of the fish, he gets the cookie. No bite of the fish - no desert.

Also I found that not giving up and pulling out things that he previously refused to eat and praising his excessively for trying new things

Bananas, along with the other things, have lots of sugar in them. However, you can very well use them for "desert" since he is so obsessed about them:) First rice, then banana! Do not give in. Over time, banana will become a powerful weapon in getting him to try someting new. And once he likes it, he will it it.




With my son, the less sugar the merrier........