Exposure to New Foods: Try, Try Again…
A common feeding mistake made by parents is to offer a child a new food and then state that they do not like it if they refuse after only 1 or 2 attempts. Research has found it takes repeated exposure up to 10 to 15 times before a baby accepts a new food. For a child with Autism that has feeding difficulties, this exposure may need to be up to 100 times. Below you will find a link from Marsh Dunn Klein that puts this into perspective for us as adults.
http://mealtimenotions.com/cautious-eaters-everything-is-a-grasshopper/
Remember to keep exposing your child to new foods in a stress free way, this will help their feeding. Please refer back to Michelle’s previous Feeding Blog, Having Fun with Food, for great non-stress ideas to play with food.
Jennifer