Dietary Patterns and Body Mass Index in Children with Autism and Typically Developing Children.

Evans et al. (2012) compared what kids with autism eat to what typically developing kids eat. They looked at sweet drinks, chips, candy, fruit, and vegetables. The study used a quasi-experimental design with children in the United States.

Kids with autism drank more soda and ate more snacks. They ate fewer fruits and vegetables than typical kids. Surprisingly, only low fruit and vegetable intake predicted higher BMI z-scores in both groups. Snack foods and sweet drinks did not link to BMI.

Bigby et al. (2009) found similar eating differences earlier. Their study showed kids with autism eat less dairy and calcium but more B6 and E. Both studies agree that children with autism have unique nutrition patterns.

Bicer et al. (2013) extended these findings to Turkish children. They found over half of kids with autism were overweight or obese. This matches Whitney's focus on BMI concerns in autism.

Moorthy et al. (2022) seemed to contradict Whitney's findings at first. They found no difference in sugar intake between groups. But both studies actually agree that sugar doesn't predict BMI in autism. The apparent contradiction comes from looking at different outcomes - oral health versus body weight.

Don't assume snack foods cause weight gain in autism. Focus on increasing fruits and vegetables instead. When you see a child with autism who is overweight, ask about produce intake before restricting treats. This approach feels less punitive to families and targets the real dietary driver of BMI. Share this finding with parents who worry their child's snack habit causes weight issues - the data shows produce matters more than snacks.