Eating behaviours of children with ASD: Associations with parental stress, perceived symptom severity, and parenting style in a sample from Türkiye.

Researchers studied 69 Turkish families with autistic children aged 2-9 to understand how parenting stress and styles affect eating behaviours. They found that stress levels and autism severity didn't predict picky eating or how well children knew when they were full. However, strict parenting was linked to children enjoying food less, while overprotective parenting was associated with children enjoying food more. Cultural differences may play a role in these patterns.

This cross-sectional study examined relationships between parenting factors and eating behaviours in 69 Turkish children with autism aged 2-9 years. Parents completed questionnaires assessing parental stress, parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, overprotective), and children's eating behaviours including food fussiness and satiety responsiveness. Hierarchical regression analyses found that parental stress, perceived symptom severity, and parenting styles did not significantly predict food fussiness or satiety responsiveness. However, exploratory analyses revealed potential associations between parenting style and food enjoyment, with authoritarian parenting linked to lower food enjoyment and overprotective parenting associated with greater food enjoyment.

The authors suggest cultural factors may influence these relationships.

Results suggest eating difficulties in autism may not be primarily driven by parental stress or general parenting approaches. Cultural context appears important when considering parenting-eating behaviour relationships. Clinicians should consider individual family dynamics rather than making assumptions about parenting impacts on feeding.

Small sample size (n=69) from single geographic region limits generalizability. Cross-sectional design prevents causal inferences. Symptom severity measured with single item rather than validated scale. Cultural specificity to Turkish population may limit broader applicability.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is frequently accompanied by feeding difficulties that can affect both a child's nutritional intake and family's well-being. Using a cross-sectional correlational design, this study explored how parenting stress, ASD symptom severity, and parenting styles (authoritative, authoritarian, permissive, and overprotective) relate to eating behaviours, particularly food fussiness and satiety responsiveness. Sixty-nine parents of children with ASD aged 2-9 were recruited from a private therapy centre and a foundation providing psychosocial and educational support in Istanbul, Türkiye. Parents reported stress using the Parental Stress Scale, parenting style using the Parent Attitude Scale, and children's eating behaviours using the Children's Eating Behaviour Questionnaire.

Parents also rated their child's ASD symptom severity on a single Likert-scale item developed for this study. Hierarchical regressions revealed that parental stress, symptom severity and parenting style did not predict food fussiness or satiety responsiveness. However, we found patterns suggesting associations between parenting style and children's eating behaviours. In particular, higher levels of authoritarian parenting were associated with lower enjoyment of food, whereas more overprotective parenting was associated with greater food enjoyment.

The discussion considers how culture-specific norms may shape the relationship between parenting style and children's eating behaviours.