Avoidant-Restrictive Food Intake Disorder and Autism: Epidemiology, Etiology, Complications, Treatment, and Outcome
Open accessAbstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: There is considerable overlap between the features of avoidant-restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) and autism. The purpose of this scoping review is to provide an overview of studies published on ARFID and autism in 2022 and the first half of 2023. RECENT FINDINGS: ARFID and autism are highly heritable conditions that often co-occur. In a large autism cohort, 21% of participants and 17% of their parents presented with avoidant-restrictive features. Of children diagnosed with ARFID, 8.2-54.8% are autistic. More than half of individuals with ARFID also have other neurodevelopmental, psychiatric, or somatic diagnoses. Anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, and learning difficulties are particularly common co-occurring issues. Various strategies have been developed to support autistic children with feeding difficulties. It appears that their feeding difficulties, particularly sensory sensitivities, food preferences, and mealtime rituals and routines frequently persist into adolescence and adulthood, but research on optimal support for adults and adolescents is still scarce. Untreated ARFID in autistic individuals may lead to serious complications. SUMMARY: Individuals seeking specialist care for autism, eating disorders, or gender dysphoria should be screened for ARFID. More research is needed on how to support autistic adolescents and adults with features of ARFID.
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Among children diagnosed with ARFID, the prevalence of ASD ranges from 8.2% to 54.8%.
“Among children diagnosed with ARFID, the prevalence of ASD ranges from 8.2% to 54.8% [27].”
From Unraveling the Connections: Eating Issues, Microbiome, and Gastrointestinal Symptoms in Autism Spectrum Disorder (2025) · cites this paper as [27]
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Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 4
- A scoping review that combines the earliest research into the co-occurrence of ARFID and autism.
- A systematic review of prevalence of ARFID.
- A key systematic review on gender diversity in autism.
- A narrative review on cognitive-behavioral treatment for ARFID.
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Tomaszek, N., Urbaniak, A. D., Bałdyga, D., Chwesiuk, K., Modzelewski, S., & Waszkiewicz, N. (2025) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu17030486 · Cited by 30 · see citing works
- Authors
- Keski-Rahkonen, A., & Ruusunen, A.
- Affiliations
- Department of Public Health
- Deakin University (AU)
- ORCID
- Ruusunen, Anu
- Venue
- Current Opinion in Psychiatry
- Published
- 2023-08-29
- Volume
- 36
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 438-442
- ISSN
- 0951-7367 (ISSN-L)
- 1473-6578
- OpenAlex
- W4387241830
- Cited by
- 38
- References
- 49
- Citations by year
- 2026: 16 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 6
- FWCI
- 1.74
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- erepo.uef.fi
- Licence
- other-oa
- Locations
- Current Opinion in Psychiatry (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UEF eRepo (University of Eastern Finland) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Figshare (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Child Nutrition and Feeding Issues
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
- Keywords
- avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder, autism spectrum disorder, eating disorders, feeding difficulties, sensory sensitivity, heritability
- MeSH terms
- Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder, Adolescent, Adult, Anxiety, Feeding and Eating Disorders, Autistic Disorder, Child, Eating, Humans
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