Feeding problems among children with autism in a clinical population in India

Abstract

Objectives: To compare the prevalence and profile of feeding problems (FP) and their relationship with sensory processing in children with autism and intellectual disability (ID).

Methods: Children between ages 3 to 10 y with autism (N = 41) and ID (N = 56) were recruited and assessed with Brief Autism Mealtime Behavior Inventory, Sensory Profile Questionnaire, Childhood Autism Rating Scale and Binet-Kamat Scale of Intelligence or Gesell's Developmental Schedule. Assessments were done by independent raters. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were used appropriately.

Results: The prevalence of FP were 61 and 46.4% among children with autism and ID respectively. Feeding problems were severe among children with autism (P 0.001), especially in young children with autism (P 0.05), and gender was not related to FP. Disruptive meal-time behaviors (P 0.001) and food over-selectivity (P 0.02) were significantly more among children with autism in the bivariate and multivariate analysis. Feeding problems and various dimensions of sensory processing were significantly associated after controlling the confounders.

Conclusions: These findings underscore the need for mandatory assessment of FP in children with developmental disabilities, and if present, they need to be addressed with multimodal-multidisciplinary interventions.