Background
The prevalence of eating disorder in toddlers is estimated to be 25%, studies on children with ASD shows a prevalence of 46-89%
Objective:
The aim of the current study was to explore the frequency of selective eaters in toddlers with ASD and examine the association between eating disorder and the severity of autism symptoms. In addition, we examined the improvement in the ASD symptoms severity and eating profile after a year of treatment and the correlation between them.
Methods
The study included toddlers diagnosed with ASD from Alut`s day cares. The assessment at baseline and after one year of treatment included evaluation of autism severity using the Social Communication Questionnaires (SCQ). Information on eating profile was obtained by a questionnaire developed by the researchers.
Results:
Based on the results of the eating profile questionnaire, the group was divided into two subgroups, no eating problems (A) and selective eaters (B). Then, group A (n=40) was compared to group B (n=51) in autism severity. Group B had significantly more severe autism symptoms than group A at the baseline. After a year of treatment improvement was noted in ASD symptoms and eating profile. A significant correlation was found between eating improvement and language score.
Conclusions
Toddlers with selective eating profile in ASD is associated with higher severity of ASD symptoms. An improvement in ASD symptoms, specifically in language was found in correlation with improvement in eating profile. These findings suggest that intervention for the eating abnormalities should be an integrative part of the comprehensive treatment plan in ASD.
