Wow, quite a reaction

[Woman81283]

Hey everyone. I am the mom of a four year old wonderful high functioning autistic boy. He has been one of the high texture sensitivity type. He eats about 7 foods in other words lol. Last night my husband and I talked him into trying a tiny bite of banana. This is the first new food he has tried since he was about two years old. The reaction was immediate! He started gagging bad and then threw up on the floor. Is this a normal reaction? It's been so long since he's eaten something unfamiliar I dont know. I always thought that if we could just talk him  into tasting something like that he would realize it tasted good and might start eating in. Man was I wrong. Anyways just asking if anyone else had the severe food issues and knows if this reaction was normal or a kind of in his head thing since he has such an aversion to new foods. Thanks for your time.

[AngelaPatton]

Pretty much. My son does the same thing.

[Princess522203]

my son is autistic but does not have the texture problem, however my friends son who I have known since he was born who is also autistic did have this and also did the same thing, he is now almost 11 now and however will acasionly try something new but has to be his choice. He may not like it but he generally don't get sick anymore when trying new foods but don't know if this will be true for your son.

[AngelaPatton]

We start with smelling it, then licking it, then a tiny bite, a normal bite, then a serving. Even after all that, he generally doesn't incorporate it into his diet.

[crossnlilly]

My daughter spent almost two years eating nothing but mcdonalds chicken nuggets and french fries. Her ped said this was normal and fine but iwasnt ok with it. Her DAN tested her and found food sensitivies so he put her on a special diet. At first she wouldnt eat then we tried making her try new food and she did the same thing gagging spitting out even throwing up. I was sure she would starve but the DAN assured me she would eat. And a few days onto she did. Now she eats alot of differrnt foods. She still is hesitant to try new things but we stay persistant. Good luck
It is hard but you can do it.

[Apple1]

 

His reaction to the new food (banana) sounds like a sensory issue.  I like what the above mom mentioned with seeing it, smelling it, licking it etc. first...this can help ease them in slowly to trying new foods.  Something else you can try is pureeing new foods he tries like the banana...make it really soft and almost like a baby food.  My son, when he had trouble trying new foods, would gag just looking at something with texture.  We started pureeing them and it did help a lot.  Also, I agree with the above mom who mentioned dietary changes, the GFCF diet has helped so many autistic children  in  terms of trying new foods, often times our children will test positive to having sensitivities and taking them away helps them to be more open to trying new foods.  Hugs to you!