Many kids with autism do only eat certain foods and often prefer to eat certain foods over other foods, which is a result of factors like sensory sensitivities to textures, smell or taste.
An autistic child preferring to eat only certain foods can result in a very limited diet and sometimes nutritional deficiencies.
A child with autism may for example dislike the crunchiness of certain vegetables or the squishiness of fruit due to sensory issues.
An aversion to certain textures, smells and temperatures is very common in autism.
A red flag for autism is social and communication issues as well as language and speech problems and even repetitive behaviors like spinning, rocking and hand flapping.
Other red flags and signs of autism are being overly sensitive to loud noises or textures, an insistence on sameness or a strong resistance to minor changes, intense focus on or an attachment to unusual objects like fans or rocks and repetitive play like lining up of toys or repeatedly spinning the wheels of a car.
Language and speech red flags and signs of autism are no babbling y 12 months of age, no single words by 16 months of age, no meaningful two word phrases by 24 months of age, like "want juice", loss of any language or social skills at any age and echoing of words or phrases that they hear.
Social and communication red flags and signs of autism include not responding to their name by 9 months of age, not making consistent eye contact, not showing facial expressions like sad, happy or surprised by 9 months of age, not using gestures like waving or pointing by 12 months to 15 months, not sharing interests or bringing things to show you, not noticing or responding to other children by 36 months of age, not pretending or imitating during play by 48 months of age and using your hand as a tool to get something they want instead of leading you to it.
The 6 second rule for autism is a communication strategy that involves waiting around 6 seconds after you speak to allow the person with autism to have enough time to process the information before you repeat it or rephrase it.
The pause after you speak using the 6 second rule for autism gives the autistic person's brain a chance to catch up, which can help to reduce pressure as well as frustration, especially for autistic people that experience sensory overload or processing differences.
The 6 second rule for autism is also a good way to prevent immediate and instinctive reactions, instead and encourage more considered responses.
To use the 6 second rule in autism.
Provide a pause, and when you ask the person with autism a question, or give the person with autism an instruction, give the person with autism at least a 6 second pause to allow them to formulate their answer or complete a task.
Avoid interrupting them and do not immediately ask the autistic person a follow up question or move to the next topic during the pause.
And if the autistic person does not respond, you can then repeat the information if necessary using the exact same words.
The reason that the 6 second rule for autism is helpful is because people with autism may process multiple streams of information at once, like verbal communication, environmental sounds and facial expression, which can also require more effort and time to process.
The 6 second pause for autism people gives the autistic person space to filter and integrate the information.