Understanding the experience of eating for those with ASD

Page 1 of 2 [ 17 posts ]  Go to page 1, 2  Next

VeronicaVCH
Emu Egg
Emu Egg

Joined: 12 Jun 2018
Age: 38
Posts: 1
Location: United States

12 Jun 2018, 7:07 am

Hi there,

I'm a nutrition grad student and pre-registered dietitian at California State University, Chico who is interested in the eating experiences of adults with ASD. I want to understand if disturbances in the eating experience influence overall food intake, health, and quality of life. I started a program through CSU, Chico's Autism Clinic for Teens with ASD that teaches hands-on skills related to food like food preparation and following recipes and information related to nutrition and food science.

I am currently doing research about the eating experiences, food intake, and eating habits of adults with and without ASD to better understand the relationship between eating behavior and ASD.

What do you think about this topic? What is your relationship with food like?

If you have any questions, comments, or feedback I want to hear from you! Thank you for reading this.



EzraS
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 24 Sep 2013
Gender: Male
Posts: 27,828
Location: Twin Peaks

12 Jun 2018, 7:22 am

I think my eating habits are fairly ordinary. I'm able to eat the a favorite food daily for a long time before getting tired of it. But other than that nothing else comes to mind.



Arganger
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 30 Apr 2018
Age: 22
Gender: Female
Posts: 1,707
Location: Colorado

12 Jun 2018, 8:46 am

I love strong flavors, especially spicy food. Other than forgetting that I'm cooking I'm a great cook, and other than being a vegetarian I'll eat almost anything. With the exception of a few foods that are sensory unbearable to me, especially asparagus.


_________________
Diagnosed autistic level 2, ODD, anxiety, dyspraxic, essential tremors, depression (Doubted), CAPD, hyper mobility syndrome
Suspected; PTSD (Treated, as my counselor did notice), possible PCOS, PMDD, Learning disabilities (Sure of it, unknown what they are), possibly something wrong with immune system (Sick about as much as I'm not) Possible EDS- hyper mobility type (Will be getting tested, suggested by doctor) dysautonomia


nick007
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 May 2010
Age: 41
Gender: Male
Posts: 27,059
Location: was Louisiana but now Vermont in the police state called USA

12 Jun 2018, 9:22 am

I've always been a very picky eater who loves the taste of junk & fast food. I also cant cook much cuz of disabilities unrelated to my Aspergers so I love eating out when I can. I do like other stuff too thou like some spicy food & seafood(I'm from Louisiana) but I cant get good seafood now that I live in Vermont except for 2wice a year when I go down to visit family.


_________________
"I don't have an anger problem, I have an idiot problem!"
~King Of The Hill


"Hear all, trust nothing"
~Ferengi Rule Of Acquisition #190
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Ru ... cquisition


Zachwashere
Raven
Raven

User avatar

Joined: 18 Apr 2018
Gender: Male
Posts: 120
Location: Somewhere in Texas

12 Jun 2018, 11:37 am

Anything that has a soupy texture is hard for me. Especially if it has a strong flavor to boot. Condiments are non-existent in my kitchen for that reason. And if something is cold and meant to be served hot, I have a hard time with it. I remember I was in training as a line cook at a local restaurant once and as a requisite of the training I, along with around three other trainees had to sample everything on the menu. When it came time to sample the coleslaw, I was actually debating on walking out. I didn't, and ending up tasting it, which resulted in me doing the whole, silently puke in your mouth just a little thing. Sorry if that is way to descriptive... :oops: The mayo combined with the strong smell of the cabbage... oh the horror! Sort of weird that a professional cook would have such strong negative dispositions to certain foods, but that's just how I've always been. If I prepare something that has an ingredient in it that I can't handle, I get someone else to taste it to insure it is good.

Other than that, the only other idiosyncrasy I could point out about my eating habits would be that I can eat the same meal every day and not get tired of it.


_________________
"The only way to live in an un-free world is to become so absolutely free that your very existance is an act of rebelian." - Albert Camus


DroseRose
Hummingbird
Hummingbird

Joined: 14 Mar 2017
Age: 48
Gender: Female
Posts: 19
Location: Denmark

12 Jun 2018, 12:12 pm

What I notice is that I stay interested in the same taste for a long time during a meal. I seem to not tire of it which can lead to over-eating if I don't consciously think about it.

Also, I sometimes have what I would call extreme pleasure from certain tastes and sensations. One example is hot tea with milk but there a many others (that I just can't remember right now). When something tastes that nice, I can almost cry and, literally say out loud how delicious it is, even when I'm on my own.

Although I know it's not very polite, I will not eat things that don't taste good (e.g. beans that are not cooked enough, things that are insufficiently seasoned etc.).



Noca
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 9 May 2015
Gender: Male
Posts: 3,932
Location: Canada

12 Jun 2018, 7:55 pm

I was a very picky eater as a child up through until I was in my late teens early 20s. I struggled with textures of certain foods. I refused to eat tomatoes or hamburgers until my late teens. I couldn't tolerate the texture of the little pieces of onions nor the tomatoes in tomato sauce. I hated biting into grizzle or fat in boneless spareribs, which would usually end up with slowly feeding it to my dog under the table.

I would often eat the same thing over and over, prepared in the same order, ate with the same bowl, same cutlery, and sitting at the same spot at the dinner table. I had 2 packages of brown sugar quakers instant oatmeal for breakfast for about 10 years straight. Lunch and dinner menus had more variety but I was still very picky and prefered sameness over change and variety.

As I got older I slowly made a conscious effort to expose myself to new food items, one at a time, challenge any anxiety I had with eating them, and if I could slowly desensitize myself to foods mainly that I struggled with the texture of, not necessarily the taste of.

By my mid to late twenties I taught myself to cook. I would often look at recipes online to get some ideas and then simply experiment and come up with my own dish. My dishes turned out well about 70% of the time, that I and my parents enjoyed. I could eat the majority of north american food, including some seafood. I think the last food I taught myself to overcome my aversion to was rice pudding, which I found I actually liked the taste but previously struggled with the texture of it.

I think if I lived on my own I would struggle to consistently stay on top of groceries due to my poor executive functioning. My parents mostly do the grocery shopping. It isnt a matter of knowing what to do but rather executing it. Same with keeping up consistently cooking for and cleaning my kitchen. Sometimes I get lost focusing on a special interest, lose track of time and forget about eating. I try and keep a daily routine to make it easier to remember to do things such as eating.



Desmilliondetoiles
Blue Jay
Blue Jay

User avatar

Joined: 28 Jul 2016
Age: 26
Gender: Female
Posts: 82

15 Jun 2018, 9:47 am

I'm an able cook. I have recently become allergic to milk and my family has been insisting that it's a side effect of sertraline. I've always had a hard time telling when I'm hungry because books only ever describe starvation. I gained weight just eating at regular times and I lost it eating only when I felt hungry. I've gotten fairly decent at determining when I'm full but sometimes I wait until I feel physical pain in my tummy. I have many instances where I get very tired after eating and I maintain a pretty healthy weight. I don't like soda, it's becoming harder to drink juice. I love spicy and sweet foods, I've recently started enjoying sour things. I hate bitter things. I like the taste of umami which is why I have trouble going vegetarian. I'm on birth control for dreadful cramps and don't have access to resources to always maintain a good diet. I eat pretty healthy for about two weeks and then run out of food or cash and have to eat less or less healthier things for about a week.


_________________
I wondered, ". . . So therefore I exist."


Child of the Universe
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

Joined: 8 May 2018
Gender: Female
Posts: 366

15 Jun 2018, 5:44 pm

I'm a picky eater and I often eat the same thing over and over again for months. There was a point in my life where there were only a couple of foods that I was ok with eating. However, I kind of matured past that and now I can try new foods, but I still prefer to eat the same thing once I find something I like. It could be related to adherence to routines, or repetition, or both.


_________________
"Don't mind me. I come from another planet. I see horizons where you see borders." - Frida Kahlo


nick007
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 4 May 2010
Age: 41
Gender: Male
Posts: 27,059
Location: was Louisiana but now Vermont in the police state called USA

15 Jun 2018, 7:18 pm

nick007 wrote:
I've always been a very picky eater who loves the taste of junk & fast food. I also cant cook much cuz of disabilities unrelated to my Aspergers so I love eating out when I can. I do like other stuff too thou like some spicy food & seafood(I'm from Louisiana) but I cant get good seafood now that I live in Vermont except for 2wice a year when I go down to visit family.
Also I would usually only eat about one meal a day when I lived with my parents due to not being able to cook & my mom getting tired of cooking special food for me. I would eat alot when I would eat thou & I would eat snacks sometimes. I started eating 3 meals a day after I moved out partly due to meds & supplements I'm on & the fact that I'm able to get food I want more often. I still eat a lot at a time when I do eat & I binge on snacks a lot too. I gained alot of weight cuz of this & because I haven't been exercising much.


_________________
"I don't have an anger problem, I have an idiot problem!"
~King Of The Hill


"Hear all, trust nothing"
~Ferengi Rule Of Acquisition #190
https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Ru ... cquisition


SplendidSnail
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 2 Jul 2017
Age: 43
Gender: Male
Posts: 887
Location: Canada

15 Jun 2018, 7:36 pm

I think for the most part my eating habits are pretty normal.

I cook for myself, but have a pretty small selection of things that I make. I haven't ever really been much of a picky eater, but when cooking for myself I have very little variety.

I almost never snack. Eating is for mealtime, not between.

When by myself, I don't eat desert ever. I eat the meal, and that's all.


_________________
Level 1 Autism Spectrum Disorder / Asperger's Syndrome.


Trogluddite
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 2 Feb 2016
Age: 53
Gender: Male
Posts: 3,075
Location: Yorkshire, UK

17 Jun 2018, 8:38 am

For the most part, I see eating simply as a chore - something that I know I need to do, but not something that gives me enough pleasure that I want to expend much effort on it. I also have poor interoception, so if my mind is at all occupied with anything, I simply won't notice that I'm hungry or thirsty. Poor executive functioning also tends to make my diet very repetitive and generally quite poor - eating the same things every day, and almost exclusively things which require little preparation, is a coping mechanism which ensures that, even if I don't eat well, I at least do eat something. Days without eating at all are not unusual, especially if I am feeling too burned out to manage shopping or food preparation.

I've said many times that I wish I could just have a hatch in my abdomen like a pot-bellied wood stove, so that I could just sling in a few logs or lumps of coal to give me the energy that I need. There are a few foods which I do enjoy, but I wouldn't miss miss eating if I didn't have to do it.


_________________
When you are fighting an invisible monster, first throw a bucket of paint over it.


Arevelion
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

User avatar

Joined: 11 May 2018
Age: 39
Gender: Male
Posts: 348
Location: VT

17 Jun 2018, 9:05 am

I am an absolute glutton. If I don't feel sick after a meal I feel cheated. However, given that I have high blood sugar, and my wife has gestational diabetes, I have cut out sweets, and carbs from diet and been feeding almost exclusively on vegetables and meat....

I miss pasta.



Lace-Bane
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 11 Nov 2010
Age: 37
Gender: Male
Posts: 2,613
Location: florida

17 Jun 2018, 1:00 pm

due to gastrointestinal problems, foods that cause discord are avoided, and if troubles occur, known safest foods get retreated to for awhile... which can lead to deficiencies, losing a bit of weight, insomnia and migraines.

typically have to forgo rigidly sticking to recipes due to eosinophilic esophagitis, and use substitutes, or just leave out unacceptable ingredients. can’t eat much for soy, dairy, egg, wheat, and nuts beyond strict moderation which knocks preprepared foods down to once a week, and is reserved for if without food while out... luckily, fish isn’t a trigger, though it’s eaten in moderation for potential mercury content.

for lack of much innate multitasking ability, cooking is enjoyable mostly when having the hours to read through recipes, plan out a time schedule for each step, prepare and pre-measure all ingredients and put them in an ordered line, so that when they’re called for the kitchen doesn’t feel like a whirlwind of confusion, forget, and fear of hypersensitive smoke alarms. have been able to manage the four burners and broiler simultaneously doing such.

lately, much of what’s eaten is white rice(saturated in olive oil, with chia seeds mixed in, and sriracha sauce on top because it’s horrible otherwise.), oatmeal, or quinoa to stretch snacks of avocado, fuji apple, celery, carrots, dried fruit, tuna, sardines, kimchi or onigiri, and meals like pan fried fish with vegetables, fish tacos, salad, thai curry with rice, phở, or sushi.

mostly drink water at home, but might have a soda while out.

as for sensory difficulties... for textures, gristle, fat, offal, or bone in food typically can’t be encountered more than twice a sitting without having to stop. cannot touch raw chicken, or the rough edge of cut/broken animal bones, even with gloves without feeling dread. also prefer not to cook foods like ham or bacon, because of the miasma that lingers in the kitchen afterwards.


_________________
七転び八起き


StampySquiddyFan
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 19 Jul 2017
Age: 20
Gender: Female
Posts: 3,754
Location: Stampy's Lovely World

17 Jun 2018, 1:53 pm

This topic sounds really interesting to do research in. As for myself, I'm not the healthiest eater in the world, but I am not overweight or underweight and I try to eat healthfully, although carbohydrates get to me :D . I can be quite picky though. I like to have everything I eat very bland and plain, and I hate any kind of sauce or condiments. I really don't eat anything with much flavor/strong textures often. I also really dislike any kind of soda for the same reason. I hate ice cream and other really cold foods. I sometimes gag on softer foods, and I hate things like gum. Also, I have always had a fear of choking. I cannot swallow pills (all of my medication is in liquid form) and I seem to have some difficulty with chewing and swallowing in general.

As for food intolerances, I am lactose intolerant (although this has come about quite recently), but that's about it (I mainly have Northern European ancestry, which is why this is a little unusual). I tend to eat the same food over and over, but I think that has more to do with my love for routine rather than my eating habits as I definitely get tired of the taste eventually. I always order the same thing at places such as restaurants or cafès.

Another thing that I'd thought I would mention is that I almost never feel thirsty. I am like chronically dehydrated :lol: . On average, I probably drink two to four cups of water a day.


_________________
Hi! I'm Stampy (not the actual YouTuber, just a fan!) and I have been diagnosed professionally with ASD and OCD and likely have TS. If you have any questions or just want to talk, please feel free to PM me!

Current Interests: Stampy Cat, AGT, and Medicine


nephets
Deinonychus
Deinonychus

Joined: 3 Feb 2017
Gender: Male
Posts: 336
Location: North Yorkshire

17 Jun 2018, 2:48 pm

I think we Aspies eat like we live. We come to obsess on a small group of foods and then stick about them. I think we tend to loosen up a bit as we get older. I would hardly eat fruit or vegetables until my early teens, for example. I still don't eat fruit, but will eat any vegetable now. Texture of food is a major thing for us. I can't take the soft texture of many fruits, for example. The texture of Bananas are disgusting to me, for instance, though the actual flavour of banana is not.