Mealtime behaviours of young children with sensory food aversions: An observational study.
Angela R Caldwell, Elise K Krause
PMID 33955028WHAT IT FOUND
Mealtimes averaged 17.5 minutes in 21 children with sensory food aversions.
They accepted 18.2 preferred bites and 1.5 targeted bites. Longer mealtimes and licking were linked to targeted food acceptance; caregiver strategies were not.
Key findings
01Mealtimes averaged 17.5 minutes, and children accepted 26 bites per meal, including 18.2 preferred bites and 1.5 targeted bites.
02Longer mealtimes and more licking were associated with targeted food acceptance, but caregiver behaviour management strategies were not associated with child food acceptance.
03Caregivers used direct commands 8.8 times per meal on average and fed their child 3.5 times per meal on average.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The analysed sample was small and convenience recruited: 21 children and 39 caregivers, with children mostly male (76.1%) and non-Hispanic white (95.2%), and caregivers mostly highly educated (87.1% bachelor's degree or higher) and higher income (57% above $100,000). The study is correlational and used baseline videos from a pilot, so it cannot show that longer mealtimes, licking, or caregiver strategies caused food acceptance. Families were not asked to follow a standard mealtime routine, and a camera was present, so social desirability and varied routines may affect the observed behaviours. No children had swallowing difficulties or motor impairments, so the findings may not apply to medically complex feeding cases. Some children were receiving or had received occupational therapy, which may have influenced child and caregiver behaviour. The coding system showed rater agreement but still needs content and concurrent validity work.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that making mealtimes longer or increasing licking will improve targeted food acceptance. These were associations in 21 children, and caregiver behaviour management strategies were not significantly linked to child food acceptance, so the study cannot prove cause.