Not swallowing his food

I have a 16 year nephew that was diagnose with autism at about 3 or 4 years old. He does not talk. I have noticed recently that when he visits and I will give him something to eat he chews it until both sides of his mouth is full, then he will spit it out. I believe that he have been taken to the doctor. But I am concerned be this has been going on for sometime. Can you explain to me what is going on with him. Also, what can I do?

[timmysmom2005]

Hello Sandy. I don't know if this helps or not, but I'll share the little info I have. My son is also autistic. He's 3 years old and he has had off and on issues with eating (thankfully he currently loves to eat) Just going on what I have been through with my son I can say that it is possible that a sensory issue is going on and that your nephew does not like the way the food feels in his mouth and does not want to swallow it. It would be an occupational therapist who would address this problem. There are oral stimulating exercises that can be done to help him adjust to different sensations in the mouth. The majority of my son's sensory problems are in his mouth and head. Although he eats now, he still won't eat anything chewy or gummy, and every time he eats lettuce or peppers he likes it when he first pops it in and then after it is chewed he spits it out. We were given special things for him to chew on to help and it did make a difference. Also we were told to let him have really hard crunchy foods, such as carrot sticks, celery and apples. Hope this helps a little. Good luck!