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Eating Disorders

kookaburra333

Hi everyone!

My teenager is autistic (not officially diagnosed yet, we’re waiting for the final multidisciplinary appointment). I’m aware that eating challenges often come up in autism, and much of the information I’ve found focuses on skipping meals, avoiding mealtimes or eating very little and suffering deficiencies. Our situation is different and I’ve had trouble finding much information about it, my child is constantly hungry, always asks for food or snacks, and doesn’t feel satisfied with smaller portions. Because of this, they’ve gained a lot of weight, and it’s getting worse. They do  want to lose weight, exercise more and eat healthier, but “eating healthier” is very hard for them because they have a restrictive diet and we’re trying different foods but with limited success. I’d love to hear from anyone who has faced constant hunger or eating a lot (rather than eating too little) in an autistic child or teenager.
What reasons did you find for that?
What strategies helped you?
Are there any good resources, books or support groups you found useful?

Thanks in advance, any shared experience is really helpful.

Parents

  • Hi and welcome to the community. I'm an autistic woman in my mid sixties, and I didn't have that issue as a child or teenager but it happened for me in my early 40s - always hungry, eating too much, putting on weight, always tired. In my case it appears that it was partly eating too much processed carbohydrates and not enough protein, plus hormone changes as I was starting menopause. 

    We aren't allowed to give medical advice here so I can't tell you that you should put your teenager on a low carb diet - which is what helped me - as it may not be right for them. So I would suggest you speak to their GP for advice, who can refer them to a dietician if necessary - I did speak to my GP before changing my diet and she was very supportive.

Reply

  • Hi and welcome to the community. I'm an autistic woman in my mid sixties, and I didn't have that issue as a child or teenager but it happened for me in my early 40s - always hungry, eating too much, putting on weight, always tired. In my case it appears that it was partly eating too much processed carbohydrates and not enough protein, plus hormone changes as I was starting menopause. 

    We aren't allowed to give medical advice here so I can't tell you that you should put your teenager on a low carb diet - which is what helped me - as it may not be right for them. So I would suggest you speak to their GP for advice, who can refer them to a dietician if necessary - I did speak to my GP before changing my diet and she was very supportive.

Children
  • in reply to Lotus

    Hi Lotus

    Thanks for sharing this helpful perspective. 

    Just to clarify, it can be helpful to talk about what has helped you or someone you know, as you’ve done here. Rule 6 exists to prevent misinformation and attempts to influence others:

    “Posts offering medical or legal information will be removed if they attempt to direct another user's actions, influence a user's medical or legal decisions or are not clearly from personal experience.”

    Sharing your own experience is fine. We will take moderation action when someone uses language that could be interpreted as telling someone what they should do. 

    Many thanks

    Sharon Mod