Autism Spectrum Disorder and the Child's Weight–Related Behaviors: A Parents' Perspective

Polfuss, Michele; Johnson, Norah L.; Bonis, Susan A.; Hovis, Susan; Apollon, Fallon; Sawin, Kathleen J.

doi:10.1016/j.pedn.2016.05.006

Cited by 33 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 20 publications

(22 reference statements)

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“…Another potential factor is the child's preferences for certain tastes and preferences for processed foods or avoidance of foods such as vegetables. Changing or integrating new foods into the child's diet is often very difficult and may not be the foremost challenge that a parent wants to face or is able to do on a daily basis (Polfuss et al, 2016). As the child continues to eat certain foods, the habits can become engrained and create additional barriers to changing the child's diet in the future.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While there is not a recommendation that works for all children, parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder have identified strategies that have worked for their children when introducing new foods. Examples included diligent attempts at introducing new foods throughout their child's life but emphasized the need to start earlier and providing the same, albeit healthier options daily (Polfuss et al, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to the diagnosis-specific risk factors, families of a child with special needs may have other stressors that hinder their ability to impose and support healthy behaviors of themselves or of the child (Curtin et al, 2014). These stressors can include social isolation, difficulties dealing with behavioral issues, increased time constraints and fatigue secondary to the increased responsibilities associated with caring for their child (Curtin et al, 2014;Polfuss et al, 2016).…”

Section: Obesity Determinants In Children With Special Needsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Parental Feeding Behaviors and Weight-Related Concerns in Children With Special Needs

et al. 2017

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Parental feeding behaviors and concern about child weight are associated with obesity among youth who are typically developing. Little is known about this relationship among parents of youth with special needs, despite these children having higher obesity risk. This study used an online survey to explore associations among parental feeding behaviors, parent weight concerns, demographics, and child weight status in a sample of 356 parents of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, spina bifida, and Down syndrome. Specific parental feeding behaviors were significantly related to the child's weight and intensified when the parent was concerned about the child's weight. Child's diagnosis, family income, parent age, and parent gender influenced select feeding behaviors. Obesity has significant health ramifications and negatively affects an individual's ability to self-manage, which is crucial in individuals with special needs. These findings present an opportunity for the health care community to educate and promote healthy feeding practices in this vulnerable population.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Obesity Determinants In Children With Special Needsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Parental Feeding Behaviors and Weight-Related Concerns in Children With Special Needs

et al. 2017

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“…Children with ASD often have other co-morbid issues, such as seizures, chronic constipation, sleep disturbances that parents and providers may prioritize above weight management. Also, while some parents truly may not perceive their child’s weight as a concern, parents of children with ASD frequently have to “choose their battles” and make decisions led by the desire to prevent a negative behavioral response from their child (Polfuss et al, 2016). This may lead to parents accepting the potential consequences of not making changes in the child’s diet or physical activities in order to avoid behavioral problems or meltdowns and subsequently deprioritize weight management.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevention and Management of Obesity in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Among Primary Care Pediatricians

Walls

Broder‐Fingert

Feinberg

et al. 2018

J Autism Dev Disord

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Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are at high risk for being overweight and obese. Little is known about how obesity in children with ASD is being addressed in primary care. This article reports findings from a survey completed by 327 general pediatricians, which included a fictional clinical vignette and Likert-scales assessing attitudes, practices, self-efficacy, and barriers to obesity management. Although the majority of respondents agreed pediatricians should be the main providers to manage obesity in children with ASD, few reported receiving adequate training to do so. Pediatricians were more likely to refer to developmental-behavioral pediatricians and dietitians for a child with ASD compared to a child without ASD. Higher self-efficacy was associated with increased weight-related counseling frequency by pediatricians.

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“…Interestingly, Pan (2009) suggested that physical activity for children with ASD was affected more by social and environmental constraints rather than the impairment of ASD itself. On the contrary, Polfuss et al (2016) indicated that parents of children with ASD suggested certain characteristics of their children (i.e., lack of coordination and social abilities) affected their participation in structured sports. Additionally, Thompson et al (2010) found that parents played key roles in supporting their children's participation in physical activity indicating another potential influential factor in physical activity participation for children with ASD.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Moving and Improving: Investigating Programming and Familial Influences on Physical Activity for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

Wright¹,

Bryden²,

Fletcher

2019

Physical Activity and Health

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The primary characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) fall into three broad categories: communication problems, difficulty relating to people, things and events, and repetitive body movements and behaviours (American Psychiatric Association, 2014). Unfortunately, potential barriers for children and youth (5-17 years old) with ASD achieving the recommended 60 minutes of physical activity (Canadian Society of Exercise Physiology, 2012) may be due to characteristics of the condition and/or the lack of specific guidelines for this population. The purpose of the current study was to explore the influence families and physical activity programming has on the physical activity patterns of children with ASD. The perspectives from both family members of children with ASD, and from instructors of physical activity programs for children with ASD were obtained. The participants completed questionnaires and participated in semi-structured oneon-one interviews. Two themes emerged from the data describing physical activity for children with ASD (1) physical activity, regardless of ability, and (2) the nature of ASD: programming and family challenges. Given the rich data collected, this paper will focus solely on the second theme. Two subthemes developed: "So how do we modify that activity", and "It can be fantastic and then it can just be like a total nightmare". Overall, this research indicated unique challenges for physical activity participation for children with ASD and provided suggestions on improvements to physical activity programming. Considering various challenges to physical activity for this population, physical activity instructors play a vital role in delivering effective programs for children with ASD.

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Autism Spectrum Disorder and the Child's Weight–Related Behaviors: A Parents' Perspective

Abstract: Implementation of healthy weight-related behaviors can be optimized when providers consider the child's challenging ASD behaviors, affirm the difficulties encountered by the family and provide guidance that builds on the individual child/family strengths.

Cited by 33 publications

References 20 publications

Parental Feeding Behaviors and Weight-Related Concerns in Children With Special Needs

Parental Feeding Behaviors and Weight-Related Concerns in Children With Special Needs

Prevention and Management of Obesity in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Among Primary Care Pediatricians

Moving and Improving: Investigating Programming and Familial Influences on Physical Activity for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

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