Associations of Autistic Traits and Feeding Difficulties

The objective of our research is twofold:

I. Firstly, the objective is to assess the prevalence of autistic traits and feeding disorders in the general population. The long-term goal is to develop a widely applicable screening tool for early autism detection that can be widely applied by primary care professionals.

• To implement this survey, it is necessary to translate, adapt, and validate the screening instruments (questionnaires) into Hungarian.
• The objective of the study is to administer the finalised version of the questionnaire to a large sample of parents, with a view to investigating the associations between autism and eating difficulties.

II. Secondly, in the clinical phase of our study, we aim to investigate in greater depth the relationship between feeding difficulties and autism spectrum disorder. In this phase, participants (children in the study group and their parents) will undergo in-person assessments and complete additional questionnaires:

• For the objective observation of eating difficulties and autistic symptoms, as well as to compare these findings with earlier responses to the screening questionnaire;
• To identify potential additional influencing factors, we will assess the child's somatic status and sensory sensitivities, as well as parental attitudes (e.g., anxiety, attachment, attitudes).

Inclusion criteria

• Age between 1.5 and 6 years
• Diagnostic status:
• Diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder;
• Showing signs of ASD without formal diagnosis;
• Neurotypical development
• Children and their parents
• Parental consent to participate in the study

Exclusion criteria

• Developmental disorders affecting feeding
• Children living in institutional care separated from parents
• Medication affecting feeding behavior
• Malnutrition due to poverty
• Parents with low educational attainment or severe communication difficulties preventing questionnaire completion