Does Disgust Contribute to Picky Eating in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder?
Open AccessBackground: Autistic people self-report symptoms related to picky eating more frequently than non-autistic people. Additionally, autistic children are five times more likely to develop eating problems including food selectivity, food refusal, and poor oral intake. Studies have shown that individuals with food-selectivity issues replace fruits and vegetables with unhealthy processed foods, contributing to obesity. Although higher food-related disgust has been associated with picky eating in non-autistic people, most research has focused on and implicated sensory sensitivities as a driving force for picky eating among autistic people. Therefore, the current study seeks to examine the association between food-related disgust and picky eating among autistic adults. Methods:Autistic adults (N=252; 67% female) were recruited via Simons Powering Autism Research (SPARK) Research Match and ranged in age from 20.58 to 41.33 (M=31.3) years. Participants completed self-report questionnaires including measures assessing the constructs of picky eating, food-related disgust processing, and both olfactory and oral texture sensitivities. Hierarchical linear regressions, accounting for the effects of age, sex assigned at birth, educational level, and the presence of any dietary restrictions were used to examine the association between food-related disgust and several measures of picky eating among autistic adults. Mediation analyses examined whether the associations between food-related disgust and picky eating were mediated by sensory (i.e., oral texture and/or olfactory) sensitivities after accounting for the same covariates. Results:Linear regressions revealed significant associations between food-related disgust processing and picky eating (across all measures) even after accounting for covariates. Additionally, oral texture and olfactory sensory processing each significantly mediated the relationship between food-related disgust processing and picky eating; nevertheless the direct relationship between food-related disgust and picky eating remained robust.Conclusions:Prior to this study, links between food-related disgust processing and picky eating had not been examined among autistic people. The current study demonstrates strong associations between food-related disgust processing and picky eating. Moreover, this relationship is mediated by sensory sensitivities, though the direct relationship between food-related disgust and picky eating remains robust as well. Therefore, targeting factors related to food-related disgust processing, in addition to sensory sensitivities, may have important implications for improving dietary variety and may engender positive impacts on downstream physical health for autistic people.Keywords:disgust, picky eating, autism, adult, feeding
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