You may not even have heard of the term ARFID (Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder), because it is relatively new, only introduced in 2013.
Someone with ARFID may have an eating pattern that avoids certain foods or food groups all together. They may also restrict their food intake to very small amounts. If your child has an eating pattern similar to this it can be very distressing. The culture over insisting that everyone should eat 5 portions of fruit and veg a day really adds to parental stress.
It is a disorder that is linked to Autism Spectrum Condition. My son, Edward, is 8 years old, on the autism spectrum, in a special school and has ARFID.
Here is our story
To be honest, this actually started with weaning. When I first tried Edward on watered down baby rice, he urged and threw up. Eventually he progressed onto the next stages of weaning but it seemed to stop at the small chunks stage. Still, if I tried introducing a new flavour he just completely refused. Maybe I should have started on Baby Led Weaning but Edward was a baby who never put anything in his mouth.
Strangely though, at the age of two, we went on holiday to Italy and Edward ate everything, it was fabulous. After this, it went down hill, he started to refuse more and more foods. So now we are down to Coco Pops, fruit pouches, Wildlife yoghurts, a white bread and butter sandwich and Tesco Cosmic Whips. ANYTHING else and he will either run off screaming or urge and then vomit. But woe betide us if they change the packaging or the recipe! I do put baby vitamin liquid into his fruit pouches so that I can relax a little bit knowing that he’s getting vitamins and minerals. However, this diet is affecting his bowel movements and we are under the bowel and bladder team at the Child Development Centre.
We have tried sitting and eating together as a family, however, he is not interested in the slightest with what we are eating. He absolutely loves to help me cook. He wants to pretend to cut the veg and puts them in the pan. He is fascinated by this process but at no point does he EVER want to try it. I have managed (on very few occasions) to get him to sniff a food and possibly lick it.
If your child is a fussy eater or possibly has ARFID, I find that other people ie friends and family do not always help. The phrases ‘Have you tried x,y and z though?’ ‘Why don’t you just give him a roast dinner?’ Or my absolute favourite, ‘Oh he’ll eat when he’s hungry.’ No, he won’t, he would rather be in hospital with a feeding tube than voluntarily eat something that he doesn’t like. (This hasn’t happened to us yet but I know lots of other people that it has.)
If you suspect that your child may have AFRID, then contact your GP in the first instance and ask for a referral. You may have to insist on this as not all medical professionals will be clued up about this as it is relatively new. You must also reach out to other families going through similar either on social media or is there is anything available in your local community.
As hard as it is, this is something that you as a parent have very limited control over. It is the most frustrating thing when your child will not eat and the worry is immense. I try to make a conscious effort to not worry about it but it is always at the back of my mind. At the moment though, Edward is healthy and full of energy.
Huge thanks to Sophie Holmes, Mummy of a Square Peg, for sharing her story of life with her son, diagnosed with ARFID.