Food Refusal and Avoidant Eating in Children, Including Those with Autism Spectrum Conditions - by Gillian Harris & Elizabeth Shea (Paperback)

About the Book

A guide for parents and professionals working with children with autism who have a restricted dietary range. It helps the reader to understand the behaviour and work with it, in order to gradually increase the range of food a child will eat. Informative and accessible, the book helps manage selective eating in all its manifestations.

Book Synopsis

Many autistic children have a restricted dietary range, and this book provides parents with advice and training on how to support them to achieve a healthier and more balanced diet. Now described as Avoidant or Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), it is due to sensory hypersensitivity, and it can impact the child's health, their family life, and their social life.

Based on successful training packages the authors provide for parents and professionals, this book enables the reader to understand restrictive eating and work with children, gradually increasing the range of food a child is able to eat. It includes 'box outs' with case studies, points of interest and action points to make this an accessible read full of tips and strategies.

Review Quotes

This excellent book provides parents with detailed advice on how to help children with a restricted food range achieve a healthier and more balanced diet... The authors, who have both worked extensively with children with food refusal disorders, show the reader how to work with the condition in a child-centred way and gradually increase the food range a child can eat, with different interventions recommended according to age.-- "Human Givens Journal"

An important book full of information for professionals and parents who deal with 'fussy eaters' (many of them are on the autism spectrum). A useful read if you want to learn more about why some children (and adults) have problems related to food and the best strategies to successfully manage this.--Olga Bogdashina, author, lecturer in Autism Studies, co-founder of the International Consortium of Autism Institutes

Harris and Shea have produced a fantastic resource for parents and professionals alike. Not only does this book give great advice to help children with food refusal and avoidant eating, but also covers the evidence base about the reasons underlying these behaviours in an accessible and enlightening way.--Prof. Jackie Blissett, Professor of Childhood Eating Behaviour, Aston University, UK

About the Author

Dr Gillian Harris has worked for over 35 years, both in research and as a clinician, almost exclusively with children with food refusal behaviours.

Dr Elizabeth Shea has worked as a clinician for 20 years both with children with autism and children with food refusal behaviours.