Earlier this year after a long period of eating only hamburgers, donuts and fries, a 12-year-old autistic boy whose name has not been revealed to protect his identity, began to experience eye problems. His parents had him examined but at first, doctors found no major problems. After the visit, six weeks passed, the boy could no longer walk without leaning on his parents and was stumbling, when he finally woke up one night screaming because he could no longer see, News Break reports.
At that point, his parents rushed him to the hospital, where doctors at Boston Children’s Hospital discovered that his unbalanced diet had deprived him of some crucial nutrients, particularly vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin D, copper and zinc responsible for healthy vision. Doctors confirmed to the parents that the boy suffers from a condition called restrictive food intake (ARFID), an eating disorder that affects about half of autistic children to some degree. The condition can cause people to restrict their food choices because of anxiety or rejection toward foods that have certain colors, tastes, textures or specific smells, experts explained. In this case, in fact, the boy struggled to eat other foods because he did not like the texture.
Medical personnel immediately prescribed supplement therapy combined with an ad hoc food plan to restore nutrients and vitamins. However, some experts wrote in the New England Medical Journal that the boy’s vision loss may be permanent, as it is at an advanced stage.
According to recent hospital data published in Stanford Medicine, ARFID appears to be on the rise in the United States. Children suffering from this syndrome are extremely selective eaters and sometimes show little interest in food, according to the report. Researchers also noted that children with autism may be more likely to suffer from ARFID because of their heightened sensory perceptions, which make them particularly sensitive to the perception of textures, tastes and smells.
The boy started therapy and has had some vegetables added to his diet. His parents were able to give him a clear supplement in canned juices. Unfortunately, however, he continues to have difficulty eating the new foods because his condition causes him to reject them.
