autistic daughters limiting diet impacting health

My autistic teenage daughter (not officially diagnosed) has a very limited diet, and this has recently impacted her health significantly. she has been advised to eat more healthy and do exercise. she also has demand avoidence which is making it so diffucult to help her. 

As she has grown up we have tried everything to help in lots of different ways, gentle food introduction, talking about how to be healthy, gentle encouragment to get out for a walk, and she still digs her heels in more.

I feel so exhausted with this. does anyone have any ideas on how to help her? 

Parents
  • Hi and welcome to the community.

    she has been advised to eat more healthy

    The problem is, a lot of people don't really know what a healthy diet is, apart from a vague idea they should eat fruit & veg. Has she seen an NHS dietician? If not, I would suggest you ask your family doctor for a referral - a qualified dietician will be able to assess her current diet and help with improving it.

    We're not allowed to give medical advice here, but I just wanted to share a couple of ideas - I was  wondering if she will drink milk or milky drinks such as shakes or hot chocolate? Milk is one of the most complete foods, containing protein, essential fatty acids, lactose (a natural form of sugar, providing energy) plus a lot of vitamins and minerals:

    https://milk.co.uk/nutritional-composition-of-dairy/milk/

    So if I was you I would try to get her drinking milk or milky drinks regularly plus take a multivitamin and mineral supplement to cover anything that is missed in her diet (ask a pharmacist for advice on this) while you wait for a dietician appointment (which can take some time)

    I hope things improve soon.

  • thank you for your tips, luckily she will drink milk and has a daily mulivitamin. Im hoping the doctors will listen to her and refer her to a dietician or food psychologist. my fear is that she will refuse to take on any advice given. hopfully I can get her thr help she needs. 

Reply
  • thank you for your tips, luckily she will drink milk and has a daily mulivitamin. Im hoping the doctors will listen to her and refer her to a dietician or food psychologist. my fear is that she will refuse to take on any advice given. hopfully I can get her thr help she needs. 

Children
No Data