Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) in autistic children and young people is increasingly recognised as a complex and challenging presentation, yet it remains under‑understood in schools, primary care, and mental health services. This event, ARFID and Autism: Assessment and Treatment Strategies, explores the intersection between ARFID and autism, offering evidence‑based guidance for clinicians, psychologists, paediatricians, dietitians, and education professionals working with children and young people.
Attendees will learn how autism‑related traits—such as sensory sensitivities, routine‑dependence, and anxiety—can shape eating behaviour and contribute to ARFID, while also considering how to differentiate ARFID from other feeding difficulties and avoidant eating patterns. The session will highlight practical assessment and formulation strategies, as well as behavioural and family‑based interventions that can be adapted for both clinical and school settings.
Designed for healthcare professionals, CAMHS and paediatric teams, SENCOs, educational psychologists, and allied professionals, this webinar offers clear, compassionate, and clinically relevant tools to support children and young people with ARFID and autism, improve early identification, and strengthen collaborative care across health and education.
Register for the Event
Sign up at this link or on the Book Now button at the top of the screen, and complete the form that follows. You’ll then receive an email confirmation and a link to the webinar, plus we’ll send you a calendar reminder nearer the time. Delegates will have exclusive access to recordings for 90 days after the event, together with slides. Plus you will get a personalised CPD/CME certificate via email.
- ACAMH Members MUST login to book onto the webinar in order to access this webinar and get a CPD/CME certificate
- Non-members this is a great time to join ACAMH, take a look at what we have to offer, and make the saving on these sessions
£119 for ACAMH Members (Print, Online, Concession) Join now and save
£149 ACAMH Learn Account holders
£149 Non Members
£10 ACAMH Undergraduate/Postgraduate Members
LIC Members free
Don’t forget as a charity any surplus made is reinvested back as we work to our vision of ‘Sharing best evidence, improving practice’, and our mission to ‘Improve the mental health and wellbeing of young people aged 0-25’.
Exploring the Overlap Between Autism and ARFID
Dr. Rachel Bryant-Waugh – Exploring overlap between autism and ARFID: practical tips for structuring assessment and planning treatment
Research findings are consistent with anecdotal reports that many clinicians do not feel confident about assessing and providing care for autistic young people with ARFID. There can be confusion about differentiating between autistic traits and aspects of ARFID, with related inconsistent diagnostic practice. There are also several common assumptions and misconceptions about the co-occurrence of autism and ARFID which fail to recognise individual differences. In turn this situation can contribute to barriers to accessing targeted ARFID intervention that is appropriately tailored to the autistic young person’s needs. This presentation sets out to explore the co-occurrence of autism and ARFID, to support increased confidence in when to diagnose ARFID in an autistic young person, and to consider a range of adaptations that may be required when planning treatment. The content is based on calls for a person-centred, evidence-based, holistic approach to care, which provides reasonable adjustments to accommodate neurodivergence and considers a person’s needs, challenges and strengths. The aim will be to provide practical tips that can be applied in a range of different healthcare settings by clinical practitioners from a range of professional disciplines.
Learning outcomes
- To facilitate confidence and skills development in supporting the needs of autistic young people with ARFID
- To encourage the adoption of structured approaches to assessment allowing improved understanding of the interplay between autism and ARFID profiles
- To contribute to improving accessibility and quality of care through consideration of neuroaffirmative strategies to inform treatment plans
Nutritional Risk in Autistic Children and Young People with ARFID
Zoe Connor – Nutritional adequacy and risk in autistic children and young people with ARFID: looking beyond weight status
Autistic children and young people with ARFID frequently present with long-standing, highly limited dietary intakes that have not affected weight or growth. As a result, nutritional risk may be underestimated or overlooked. Clinicians may therefore feel uncertain about how to identify nutritional risk in these presentations, when to investigate further, and how to protect nutritional health while treatment is ongoing.
This presentation will explore the concept of nutritional sufficiency in the context of ARFID and autism, including the development and limitations of nutritional science and dietary reference values in the context of highly restricted diets. Practical approaches to identifying nutritional risk will be discussed, including common dietary patterns associated with micronutrient deficiency and the limitations of relying on weight, growth, or laboratory markers alone.
Strategies to improve nutritional adequacy in the short term will be outlined, including a critical overview of commonly used vitamin and mineral supplements and the strengths and limitations of different formulations.
The aim of this presentation is to support earlier recognition of nutritional risk and encourage pragmatic, collaborative approaches to safeguarding nutritional health.
Learning outcomes
- To increase confidence in recognising nutritional risk in autistic children and young people with ARFID, including when weight and growth appear stable
- To support clinicians in identifying practical strategies to assess and improve nutritional adequacy in the context of selective eating
- To encourage effective multidisciplinary collaboration and timely involvement of dietetic expertise in managing nutritional risk
What Works for Whom and When: ARFID Interventions in Autism and Neurodivergence
Dr. Elizabeth Shea – What Works for Whom and When: Delivering Interventions for ARFID in Autism and Neurodivergence.
Eating challenges such as ARFID are frequently reported in autistic and neurodivergent children and adolescents. For some, these present in early childhood, typically through avoidance of foods because of their sensory characteristics and are related to high levels of sensory hyper-sensitivity typically seen in this group. For others, ARFID may emerge in later childhood or adolescence where the primary driver may be anxiety, including demand-avoidance and a fear of the aversive consequences of eating develops. Clinical experience also suggests that ARFID in autistic and neurodivergent young people can be complex, intersectional, risky and present a challenge for services; not least, in providing appropriately adapted and evidence-based strategies for intervention. Informed by research, practice-based evidence and lived experience of young people, this presentation will give participants knowledge and practical skills for delivering effective and neuro-affirmative interventions for ARFID across the developmental trajectory of autism and neurodivergence.
Learning outcomes
- Learn about a range of neuro-affirmative interventions for ARFID in autistic and neurodivergent children and young people across the age range.
- Understand intersectional complexity and risk in this group, for example, the impact of other aspects of neurodivergence, such as demand-avoidance when providing interventions.
- Gain practical, take-home strategies for intervention in younger and older autistic and neurodivergent children and adolescents.
Who should attend
The primary audience for this session would be; clinicians (clinical psychologists, CAMHS psychiatrists, eating disorder clinicians, CBT therapists), allied health professionals, dietitians, Medical (non-psychiatry, like Paediatricians). This may also be of interest to those in social care and family support (Early help practitioners), and ducation professionals (School-based mental health leads)
FAQs on the topic
1. What is ARFID, and how does it present in children and young people with autism?
Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) is a feeding and eating disorder marked by significantly restricted intake that is not driven by body image concerns. In children and young people with autism, it can present through sensory-based avoidance, fear of aversive consequences such as choking or vomiting, or low interest in eating. Many young people show more than one driver, and presentations vary across childhood and adolescence.
2. How is ARFID different from picky or fussy eating in children with autism?
Picky eating is common in childhood and usually does not cause clinically significant harm. ARFID involves persistent, severely restricted intake that affects physical health, nutrition, growth, or psychosocial functioning. In young people with autism, longstanding food selectivity may not be picky eating but a clinically meaningful presentation that warrants structured assessment, particularly where diet variety, mealtime distress, or social participation is significantly affected.
3. Can a child with autism and ARFID be at nutritional risk even with a normal weight?
Yes. Weight and growth can appear stable for long periods while intake remains highly restricted in variety. Diets dominated by a narrow range of foods are associated with micronutrient deficiencies, including vitamins A, C, D, B12, iron, and zinc. Weight, growth charts and routine bloods alone can underestimate risk, so a dietary assessment is important for identifying nutritional concerns earlier.
4. How should clinicians assess ARFID in a young person with autism?
Assessment benefits from a structured, person-centred approach that considers the main drivers of restriction, the impact on physical and psychosocial health, and the role of autistic traits such as sensory sensitivities, routine, and anxiety. Multidisciplinary input, including mental health, dietetic, and medical perspectives, supports accurate formulation and helps distinguish ARFID from other feeding difficulties or eating disorders.
5. What treatment approaches work for ARFID in neurodivergent young people?
Current practice suggests that individualised, neuro-affirmative interventions may be helpful for neurodivergent young people with ARFID. Approaches can include graded exposure, anxiety-focused work, sensory-informed strategies, family-based support, and reasonable
Programme
2:00pm Dr. Rachel Bryant-Waugh – Exploring overlap between autism and ARFID: practical tips for structuring assessment and planning treatment
2:45pm Q&A
2:55pm Zoe Connor – Nutritional adequacy and risk in autistic children and young people with ARFID: looking beyond weight status
3:40pm Q&A
3:50pm Break
4:05pm Dr. Elizabeth Shea – What Works for Whom and When: Delivering Interventions for ARFID in Autism and Neurodivergence.
4:50pm Q&A
5:00pm Close
Meet the speakers – Dr. Rachel Bryant-Waugh, Zoe Connor, Dr. Elizabeth Shea
Dr. Rachel Bryant-Waugh is an experienced eating disorders clinician and researcher, based at the Maudsley Hospital and Kings College London. She is recognised internationally as a leading expert on ARFID, having sat on both the DSM-5 and the ICD-11 diagnostic workgroups and maintained a high level of related activity since its introduction. Rachel was National Clinical Adviser for the establishment of England’s young people’s Eating Disorder Pathway and led the National ARFID Pilot. She has won national and international awards for her contributions. Rachel has a longstanding interest in working with autistic people with eating disorders and is passionate about learning from people with lived experience.
Dr. Elizabeth Shea is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist who has worked with autistic individuals with eating challenges for 25 years. She specialises in the understanding and management of Avoidant and Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID), Pica (eating of non-foods) and Rumination Disorder. D.r Shea has completed research in these areas, has extensive clinical expertise, delivers national and international training events and has written two commissioned books. Dr. Shea has held senior NHS positions and works with statutory, voluntary and community sector enterprises including as an Advisor to the National Autistic Society (NAS). She is currently writing her latest book on pica and rumination disorder in autism and works in independent practice.
Zoe Connor is a Paediatric Research Dietitian at University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust and an NIHR Doctoral Fellow with the Psychology of Eating in Adults and Children (PEACh) research group at Aston University, Birmingham. Her doctoral research aims to develop a toolkit to help parents of autistic children manage eating problems. Zoe has over 20 years’ experience in paediatric dietetics and previously worked as a Senior Lecturer in Nutrition and Dietetics at Coventry University. Her work aims to improve understanding and clinical management of eating problems and difficulties in autistic children and is grounded in neurodivergent-affirming practice.
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Register for the Event
Sign up at this link or on the Book Now button at the top of the screen, and complete the form that follows. You’ll then receive an email confirmation and a link to the webinar, plus we’ll send you a calendar reminder nearer the time. Delegates will have exclusive access to recordings for 90 days after the event, together with slides. Plus you will get a personalised CPD/CME certificate via email.
- ACAMH Members MUST login to book onto the webinar in order to access this webinar and get a CPD/CME certificate
- Non-members this is a great time to join ACAMH, take a look at what we have to offer, and make the saving on these sessions
£119 for ACAMH Members (Print, Online, Concession) Join now and save
£149 ACAMH Learn Account holders
£149 Non Members
£10 ACAMH Undergraduate/Postgraduate Members
LIC Members free
Don’t forget as a charity any surplus made is reinvested back as we work to our vision of ‘Sharing best evidence, improving practice’, and our mission to ‘Improve the mental health and wellbeing of young people aged 0-25’.