Original Research Article
Year: 2023 | Month: July | Volume: 13 | Issue: 7 | Pages: 228-231
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijhsr.20230733
Clinical Observation of Mealtime Behavior in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder of Different Severity
Darshan D1, Bilvashree C2, Harshavardhan P3, Sakshi S4
1Clinical Supervisor Grade I, JSS Institute of Speech and Hearing, Dharwad
2Research associate, All India Institute of Speech and Hearing, Mysuru
3Clinical Supervisor Grade II, JSS Institute of Speech and Hearing, Dharwad
4Internship student, JSS Institute of Speech and Hearing, Dharwad
Corresponding Author: Darshan D
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Autistic children often search for predictability while eating. Yet, mealtimes are often a challenging task for parents. The mealtime behaviors of children with autism spectrum disorders make parents or caregivers burdensome as eating is vital and every parent expects their child to have nutritious and healthy growth. As a consequence, this altered mealtime may risk the social skills and well-being of the child and their family’s stability.
Need for the study: There are very few studies available that talk about feeding problems in children with autism spectrum disorders and the association between the severity of autistic symptoms and feeding issues was not targeted. Thus, to examine the feeding abilities of autism spectrum disorders children across severity the present study was carried out.
Method: A total of 45 children with autism spectrum disorder between the age range of 4 to 7 years participated in the study. All the children attending the therapy for more than 6 months in an institutional setup. Participants of the study were divided into three groups based on their severity. All the parents were given the Brief Autism Mealtime Behaviour Inventory questionnaire and informed to complete the questionnaire by considering the child’s behaviour from the last 6 months.
Results & discussion: The findings of the present study suggest that children with severe autism showed higher mealtime disruptive behaviors in comparison to milder severity. Thus, the present study also suggests that there is an association between severity and feeding behaviour that autistic child exhibits in their daily life and severe autism children show higher issues compare to milder severity.
Conclusion: The association between severity and mealtime behaviors can help parents and caregivers to reduce their burden during mealtime if identified and counseled earlier with professional support.
Key words: autism, autism spectrum disorders, mealtime behavior, children.