ASD Management - Health and Wellbeing

Fitness, nutrition and sleep are three areas of life that are vital to a person's overall health and welbeing. Unfortunately, Poor physical fitness, feeding and gastrointestinal issues and sleep disorders are all very common among children and adults on the spectrum. Oftentimes challenges in these three areas can be exacerbated by the other difficulties associated with autism. It might seem overwhelming to you to think about making improvements in fitness, nutrition or sleep. But with a little bit of effort and awareness, you can set your child on a healthier path, which will make life easier and happier for you, your child and your family.

As autistic people see and experience the world differently, it’s important that advice around maintaining a healthy lifestyle is personalised and takes autistic differences into account. Health and wellbeing advice on offer to the general population is less likely to be helpful, unless it is adapted to accommodate the autistic person’s specific needs.

Sleep is vitally important to maintain mental health and wellbeing. However, for many autistic people and their families getting enough sleep can be difficult. Problems with sleep are twice as common among autistic children as they are among non-autistic children or those with other developmental conditions. Over half of children with autism – and possibly as many as four in five – have one or more chronic sleep problems. Many adults on the spectrum likewise have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep through the night. These sleep issues tend to worsen behavioral challenges, interfere with learning and decrease overall quality of life.

Sleep environment: the bedroom should be dark, quiet and cool. As children with ASD might be particularly sensitive to noises and/or have sensory issues, the environment should be adapted to make sure your child is as comfortable as possible.
Bedtime routine: the routine should be predictable, relatively short (20 – 30 minutes) and include relaxing activities such as reading or listening to quiet music. Avoid the use of electronics close to bedtime such as TV, computer, video games etc. that can be stimulating making it difficult for your child to fall asleep.
Sleep\wake schedule: the schedule should be regular with not much of a difference between the weekday and weekend schedule.
Teach your child to fall asleep alone: It is important that your child learn the skill of falling asleep without a parent present. All children and adults wake briefly during the night but quickly put themselves back to sleep by reestablishing associations used at bedtime. So if your child needs a parent present to fall asleep at bedtime, he might need a parent to help him fall back asleep during the normal awakenings.
Exercise: Daytime exercise can make it easier to fall asleep and children who exercise tend to have deeper sleep. Avoid allowing your child to exercise too close to bedtime as it can make it difficult for him to fall asleep.
Avoid caffeine particularly close to bedtime, which can be alerting making it difficult for your child to fall asleep. Caffeine is found not only in coffee, but also in tea, chocolate and some sodas.
Naps are helpful for preschool children, but should not be taken late in the afternoon as they can interfere with bedtime.

Physical Fitness

Everyone knows that physical fitness and exercise lead to better physical health. But it is less widely known that fitness and exercise can have positive effects on mental and behavioral health as well. Studies have shown that exercise improves attention, concentration and organizational skills, and also reduces problem behaviors. Children on the spectrum are still kids. They can play, run, swim, shoot baskets, kick a soccer ball, and play catch, just like their typical counterparts. They just need to be taught in an adapted fashion. Like most lessons taught to individuals on the spectrum, if you break them down, these lessons can be learned.

Nutrition

Nutrition plays an integral role in living a healthy lifestyle. Many children and adults with autism face challenges that can make a nutritious diet especially difficult. Food sensitivities, gastroenterological issues and restricted or repetitive behaviors are just a few examples. As a parent or carer, you may be worried that your child’s diet isn’t healthy enough or that they are not getting the nutrients they need. It’s important to understand that due to sensory issues, many autistic people have a limited diet and traditional advice on how to deal with “picky eating” may not be helpful and may also increase anxiety. Many autistic people experience taste, texture and smells of food differently.

As a result of these sensory differences, they can often have difficulty eating healthily. Those who are overly sensitive may not like strong flavours – even a flavour not considered strong by a non-autistic person may be unbearable to someone with extreme sensitivities. Those who are under-sensitive may love very strong flavours and may be able to tolerate very hot and spicy foods. If you are concerned about your child’s diet or that of an autistic adult you support, please discuss this with your GP or another health professional, who can refer you to specialist services. Make sure they are experienced with autism and they understand that traditional dietary advice may not work for autistic people.

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