how can i get my 17 month old developmentally delayed child to eat textured foods without gagging. We have plenty of therapy but i just am so scared that he is going to waste away and that he is not getting enough nutrition to help him get stronger. I want to hire a nutritionist but here in NJ the best nutritionists that focus on special needs are like 500 dollars just for a meeting! HELP ME!!! Is there hope will my child never eat!

Trish - posted on 03/02/2009

Hi Danielle, I am a mom of a 7 yr old boy with Autism. He still has trouble with gagging. I gave him chew toys from his OT when he was very young that helped him develop some of the muscles in his mouth. Also, i researched alot of things that he could drink that were healthy for him. He drank from the bottle until he was 5 and his pediatrician said you need to get rid of the bottle immediately. And I told her that I didn't care if he went to college with it as long as he was getting nutrients. He only would take the bottle at home, which was good for keeping all those judgmental stares to a minimum! LOL I would add pediasure, soy, keifer mixed with fruit juice, add a little liquid flax seed oil, and the liquid vitamins for infants, and whenever he needed medicine it went right in as well - he would always gag on any medicine and throw it up. I would add anything that I could that was healthy and he would eat other things like whole grain crackers, cheese, etc...but not enough to keep him healthy. Hope this helps. We have alot of resources on our website www.pathfindersforautism.org

good luck!

Trish

Pamela - posted on 03/02/2009

My son had the same issue with eating so I understand your frustration. What we figured out was that he did not have the proper muscle control. With Chase he would not completly keep his lips together. So in therepy we worked on upper body muscles, this helped but did not fix it completly. One the things we did with Chase was using those little stir coffee straws. Using them help increase the muscles in the mouth. Chase had issues with textures as well and I worried all the time. What I did with the food was nearly grind it down to almost nothing & gradually increased the texture. Because meet was the hardest for him I fed him alot of peanut butter, eggs beans ect...He just turned 6 and he eats pretty good now. It was slow process though. Hang in there.

Jennifer - posted on 03/02/2009

I don't really have any advice, but I can relate to what you are going through. My son is 4 now, but he has the gagging issue as well. It started for us when he was a baby and I started introducing stage 3 baby foods. He would choke and gag on the smallest pieces of food. At that time, him being my first, I thought it was me pushing him into foods he wasn't ready for, but as time went on and he learned to eat stage 3 foods and we tried going to big people foods, he would do the same thing, and usually it was the first bite of something new. It got to the point where now he eats the same things over and over. He choked one too many times and just quit trying anything new. He has deemed the foods he eats as safe and won't always try other things. One trick I have found to sometimes work, get some picture books with pictures of foods and as you are reading the book together and looking at the foods, act like you are eating the foods off the page and ask him if he wants to try some too. I did that for probably a week straight with my son over a picture of a sandwich and next thing I know, I offered him a sandwich that looked just like the one in the picture and reluctantly, he tried it and learned that he liked it. Now he eats those sandwiches all the time. I have considered myself making a picture book of my own with pictures of foods I make and that we normally eat here at our house and trying a little more of that with him. I will try that and let you know how that turns out. My son on most days survives on dry cereal and milk. He sometimes eats hot dogs or peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I also put Ovaltine in his milk because it has added vitamins that he other wise would never see in his diet. Before you go spending money on costly doctors who might help and might not help try the picture thing. It may take some time so you will have to be patient. But as you show him pictures, periodically offer him those foods but don't push. Just place it infront of him and let him decide when he is ready to try it. If you don't mind, let me know if you get any results! I don't mind if you just want to chat either. You can feel free to add me as a friend on FB, I honestly could use some one who can relate as well. :)

Danielle - posted on 02/25/2009

i am so happy that i have gotten so much feedback i am interested in the Zinc and would love more info. My son does not pick up food to eat it he only likes babyfood!

Cynthia - posted on 02/25/2009

Slowly introduce textured foods with distance. For example, chop up cooked chicken cutlets into small pieces, put on a plate, and place about 3 ft away from you and your child as you play. Make yourself the same plate, but keep yours close and eat from it. The next day, move his plate 1ft closer and you eat from yours again. The next day, closer and continue modeling the eating. Hopefully, by Day 3, he will begin poking at the chicken with his index finger. Hopefully, by Day 4, he will pick up a piece and place it in his mouth. At no time, do you give his plate any attention. Do not alert him to its existence. Let him be the one in control without any pressure. Good Luck!

Jenny - posted on 02/25/2009

We really struggled with our six year old.  Things that worked for us was using Pediasure as this helped to boost his nutrition.  The dietician advice was to increase calories with adding high in fat items to his food e.g. butter & cream.  Also using olive oil in cooking his food.  She encouraged us to focus on calories we gave him rather than the texture.  Very slowly increased the texture of his food.  Turning point was when we went on holiday just over a year ago and he stayed with his Granny - it was amazing what he would eat for Granny!! Found feeding him "by distration" also worked - I would give him a favourite activity to do while I fed him.  At one stage it meant feeding him in his swing!  Using deep pressure on the gums before eating helped as well as pressure on the shoulder when I was battling to get to him eat.

Sherryn - posted on 02/25/2009

My son has SID is 5 and we also struggle with feeding. We did a lot of yogurt and pedia sure as well. I also started making really good milkshakes for him (he needs soy), I'd make sure that he got protein and calories that way, and he could even drink it through a cool straw if he wanted. He still struggles a lot with eating "normal" foods, but the milk shakes got us into trying more solid foods and also through a 9 month bout with colitis without losing weight. I would start with soy milk, bananas, peanut butter, and chocolate powder and let him add whatever else he wanted to try that day. Mushed up small curd cottage cheese is a winner too sometimes and a good source of protein and can be blended with lots of other things.

Linda - posted on 02/25/2009

Since you are getting therapy I assume you've done Wilbarger brushing protocol and joint compressions.  Is he eating stage 2 baby foods?  If yes, you can try thickening them with a little bit of wheat germ.  Gradually increase the amount to get him used to texture.  Peanut butter on a nuk brush is also good.  Use the nuk to put pressure on the roof of the mouth and tongue.  But, the thing that worked the best with my son happened totally by accident.  We were doing some pretend play eating with a toy pig.  I had a dog bowl filled with old cereal (looked just like dog food) that he would take his toy pig for a bite to eat.  He pretend fed his pig for about 3 weeks.  One day he started eating that 3 week old stale cereal!!  I nearly passed out.  After that we started changing the cereal daily and if he didn't eat at meal time, then we just didn't worry about it.  We knew when he got hungry enough he'd go eat the cereal.  Makes for strange looks for when you have visitors, but we didn't really care (as I'm sure you will not if it gets him eating).  Just think about how willful you would be if someone kept trying to get you to eat something you thought was disgusting, like spiders.  Remove the battle-of-wills by letting him control when he chooses to eat something new.  Good luck!!

Linda - posted on 02/25/2009

Since you are getting therapy I assume you've done Wilbarger brushing protocol and joint compressions.  Is he eating stage 2 baby foods?  If yes, you can try thickening them with a little bit of wheat germ.  Gradually increase the amount to get him used to texture.  Peanut butter on a nuk brush is also good.  Use the nuk to put pressure on the roof of the mouth and tongue.  But, the thing that worked the best with my son happened totally by accident.  We were doing some pretend play eating with a toy pig.  I had a dog bowl filled with old cereal (looked just like dog food) that he would take his toy pig for a bite to eat.  He pretend fed his pig for about 3 weeks.  One day he started eating that 3 week old stale cereal!!  I nearly passed out.  After that we started changing the cereal daily and if he didn't eat at meal time, then we just didn't worry about it.  We knew when he got hungry enough he'd go eat the cereal.  Makes for strange looks for when you have visitors, but we didn't really care (as I'm sure you will not if it gets him eating).  Just think about how willful you would be if someone kept trying to get you to eat something you thought was disgusting, like spiders.  Remove the battle-of-wills by letting him control when he chooses to eat something new.  Good luck!!

Kathleen - posted on 02/24/2009

We had problems with textures with my son that just seemed to get worse until we tried zinc a liquid variety.  You may want to talk to your ped about it but it is a safe supplement to give and after about 4 months my son started eating things I wouldn't have even tried to get past his lips.  zinc deficiencies are common in autistic kids and in women, so you may benefit from it as well.  My son now eats regular meals with us at the table.  Granted he is six now but no better time to try than now.  Our DAN! doctor told us even to up the dosage to 2 teaspoons a day.  We give it to my son at night and we order from a private pharmacy to ensure that it is gfcf and he loves it .  

if you want some more info on it I would be happy to provide it.

Kathleen

KR - posted on 02/24/2009

depends on what textures.. i'm fortunate (i think) that my son eats just about everything these days but he has a definite aversion to anything that has a mushy texture.. potatoes, pudding.. he's strictly a meat and veggies kind of kid..

good luck!

Barbie - posted on 02/24/2009

My son also has difficulty with textures. He will now only eat things he can pick up/dry foods. I havent tried the pediasure yet, but it seems like a good idea. A few times the good old bait and switch has worked for me. I hate to trick him, but usually 9 times out of 10 once he gets the taste of something (as long as it is dry, finger food) he will eat it. Dont worry, he will eat when he is hungry, he wont starve. I thought the same thing. My son will go for a few days and eat and eat..then go and barley eat anything for a few days.

Amy - posted on 02/24/2009

Our son was much the same way.  He was wasting away.  He was in the -11th percentile at his worst, but now he is in the 5th and doing very well.  We saw a gastroentologist for years and our son was there most diffcult and unresponsive patient to their treatments.  We tried not to show any emotion during feeding times because we'd get really upset and emotional and it made it worse.  In time he won't gag so much.  Our son has extensive food allergies and it was very diffcult to do calorie power packing.  We saw a nutritionist for years and they added extra calories to every bite.  For example: extra butter and sour cream well mixed in to mashed potatoes.  The idea is to give them nothing plain.  Kids his age need extra fat in there diet.  If he likes to dunk things like chicken in catsup, that works even if he doesn't eat the chicken he's still getting calories.  Try apples in carmel.  The things he eats really well try secretly adding calories.  This might work, but like I said if he has food allergies it's really hard to do power-packing.  Does he have a good appetite?  Our son just plain didn't eat.  We found a perscription antihistamine that increases appetite.  That was the turning point for our son.  He was only on it for 9-12 months.  I have packet information from the nutritionist  we saw if you would like me to send it to you.

Awdanis - posted on 02/24/2009

From what I have learned from my son, don't force him to eat things he does not want.  We tried different methods, going to an OT, playing with food and he still won't touch any regular foods.  Pediasure is a staple in our home.  The few foods he eats keep him satisfied and we still try to introduce him to something new every now and then.  Our son will only eat crunchy foods now.  Be patient.  He'll eat when he's hungry.

Rebekah - posted on 02/24/2009

Danielle, my son is now 8 and still struggles to eat good foods. When he was younger I supplemented three pediasure's a day to make sure he was getting the proteins and vitamins he needed and to him it tastes like a milkshake. Now I did have to get the pediatricians approval as a diet of pediasure isn't all that great either. In the end, we didn't turn to a pricey nutritionist, instead we turned to an Occupational Therapist which is covered by the state( at that time we too lived in NJ) early intervention. Thru the therapy we realized the texture issue was due to Sensory Intergration Dysfunction( a mild form of it) We spent a few months slowly introducing foods with rewards after every bite. This was time consuming however, at age 8 he now eats a typical diet for a kid, hot dogs, pizza etc.. but some weeks he refuses to eat more then a picky bird and on those weeks I supplement with Pediasure. Hope this helped. Hang in there , he will eat. :0

Penny - posted on 02/23/2009

What textures does your child dislike?

Anne - posted on 02/23/2009

I nursed my son till he was almost 3 because he wouldn't eat barely anything. After that we had to have him on Pediasure to make sure he got what he needed. Even at 6 he still weighs just barely 40 pounds but he's definitely healthy. His diet is still extremely limited (barely any real meat, no veggies, only grapes and bananas on occassion for fruit, mostly just eats dairy and carbs), however it's a little easier now that I know what I really need to get into him daily. Instead of going to a nutritionalist, you can try to enroll in a nutrition course at a local college. I know it would be hard to actually find the time to go into a class, but I'm going to school full-time all online and am actually taking a nutrition course right now for exactly that reason. And it would probably be considerably cheaper for that one class than it would be to see a nutritionalist out of your own pocket. Hope this helps :)

Danielle - posted on 02/23/2009

Try a holistic doctor, they specialize in everything. My son has a feeding tube and use to throw everything up. We went to a holistic doctor and she made a huge difference in our lives. They might not be able to help your child eat, but might be able to to pick foods that you never thought of trying or different methods. you never know, but they are amazing. They specialize in nutrition and their problie cost less then regular nutritionist