ArticlePloS one2019
Eating as an autistic adult: An exploratory qualitative study.
Article in PloS one, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
35 citing papers in PubMed, 70 citations in OpenAlex.
- Considering Autism in Binge-Type Eating Disorders: Broadening Beyond an Anorexia Nervosa-Focused Model.Current psychiatry reports · 2026Review
- The Relationship Between Interoception, Alexithymia, Autistic Traits and Eating Pathology in Autistic Adults.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2026Article
- Time to notice neurodiversity in eating disorder services: a three-year real-world analysis of autism, ADHD, and AuDHD.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Exploring sensory aspects of cutlery in neurodivergent-informed eating disorder care.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Bingeing as an ADHD-related strategy: a qualitative study of experiences of Neurodivergent and potentially Neurodivergent adults with bulimic-spectrum eating disorders.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2025Article
- Challenging neurotypical norms: Autistic adults' understandings of health.Autism : the international journal of research and practice · 2025Article
- Disordered eating in autistic trans and gender diverse people: a lived experience-led scoping review.Journal of eating disorders · 2025Review
- The Hidden Spectrum Within Eating Disorders: Clustering Neurodivergent Traits and Sensory Sensitivity.The International journal of eating disorders · 2025Article
- Autism and the Menopause Transition: A Mixed-Methods Systematic Review.Autism in adulthood · 2025Article
- Screening for Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder Symptoms Among Autistic Adults: Measurement Invariance With a Comparison General Sample.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research · 2025Article
- Autism, ADHD, and Their Traits in Adults With Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder: A Scoping Review.European eating disorders review : the journal of the Eating Disorders Association · 2025Article
- Eating Behaviors of Autistic Women with an Eating Disorder.Nutrients · 2025Article
- Review
- Article
- Brief Report: Eating Habits and Social Setting: Comparing Children with Autism and Typically Developing Children.Journal of autism and developmental disorders · 2025Article
- Nutritional Factors and Therapeutic Interventions in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Narrative Review.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Disabilities and eating disorders: A theoretical model and call for research.Eating behaviors · 2025Review
- Neurodivergence, intersectionality, and eating disorders: a lived experience-led narrative review.Journal of eating disorders · 2024Review
- Article
- Challenges and opportunities for conceptualizing intuitive eating in autistic people.The International journal of eating disorders · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundAlthough eating difficulties are known to be common in children on the autism spectrum, there is a lack of research on whether these behaviours persist or change into adulthood. Emerging evidence suggests that autistic adults may experience higher levels of disordered eating than the general population, indicating the impact of autism on eating in this adult population warrants further exploration.
methodThis study interviewed 12 autistic adults about their eating habits, with a focus on the continuing or changing presence of behaviours often seen in autistic children such as sensory sensitivity or a preference for routines. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis.
resultsOverall, participants suggested that autism did continue to impact their eating into adulthood, particularly in the areas of sensory sensitivity, medical difficulties, executive functioning difficulties, and rigidity, but that they had learned to adapt so that these issues no longer represented a problem. However, a minority of participants did feel that their autism had a negative effect on their eating, particularly those diagnosed with eating disorders. Additionally, eating behaviours associated with autism were identified as potentially contributing to having an unhealthy body weight.
conclusionsCertain traits associated with autism, such as cognitive rigidity and sensory sensitivity, could potentially continue to influence the eating behaviours of autistic adults. These traits are typically experienced as differences which can be adapted around and managed, rather than specific problems. However, these traits can potentially contribute to difficulties such as disordered eating and weight gain, and the implications of these should be explored by future research.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.