Sensory Processing, Food Selectivity, and Mental Health in Neurodevelopmental Conditions

Food selectivity and eating difficulties are frequently framed as behavioral, developmental, or preference-based. However, peer-reviewed research over the past decade consistently demonstrates that these challenges are closely linked to sensory processing differences in neurodevelopmental conditions—particularly autism and ADHD. Less often addressed are the broader mental health

implications, including intersections with eating disorders and addictive or compulsive patterns, as well as the notable absence of dyslexia from this literature despite substantial diagnostic overlap.

This post synthesizes key empirical findings and situates food selectivity within a broader mental health context.

Sensory processing as a core driver of eating difficulties

Foundational research has established sensory processing differences as a primary mechanism underlying eating challenges in autism.

Nadon et al. (2011) identified a significant association between atypical sensory processing and eating problems in children with autism spectrum disorders. Tactile and oral sensory sensitivities were strongly linked to food refusal and restricted dietary variety, indicating that eating difficulties were rooted in perceptual processing rather than behavioral noncompliance or environmental factors.

Similarly, Cermak, Curtin, and Bandini (2010) found that food selectivity was closely associated with sensory sensitivity, particularly to texture, taste, and smell. Children with greater sensory sensitivity consumed a narrower range of foods, reinforcing the conclusion that dietary restriction reflects neurodevelopmental sensory profiles rather than simple preference.

Together, these studies positioned food selectivity as a sensory-based, neurodevelopmental phenomenon.

Food as perception and meaning

Quantitative findings are complemented by interdisciplinary perspectives that broaden understanding of eating difficulties.

Strand (2021) examined colour-based food preferences across autism and eating disorder populations, illustrating how perceptual features such as visual uniformity, colour consistency, and symbolic meaning can shape food acceptance. This work challenges purely nutritional or behavioral models, emphasizing that food avoidance may arise from perceptual coherence and sensory meaning rather than fear, control, or weight-related concerns.

Importantly, this analysis highlights conceptual overlap between autism and eating disorder research while cautioning against collapsing distinct mechanisms into a single explanatory framework.

Persistence into adulthood and the role of ADHD

Historically, research on food selectivity focused primarily on childhood. This assumption has been directly challenged.

Bayoumi et al. (2025) examined food selectivity and eating difficulties among adults with autism, ADHD, or both. Published in Autism, the study demonstrated that eating difficulties frequently persist into adulthood and remain driven mainly by sensory characteristics. Individuals with co-occurring autism and ADHD reported greater overall eating-related difficulty than those with a single diagnosis, suggesting interactive effects across neurodevelopmental profiles.

These findings underscore continuity across the lifespan rather than developmental resolution.

Mental health, eating disorders, and addictive or compulsive patterns

While the reviewed studies do not frame food selectivity itself as an eating disorder, they collectively point to significant intersections with mental health, including eating disorder vulnerability and addictive or compulsive patterns.

Strand’s (2021) work is particularly relevant here, demonstrating how sensory-driven food preferences can be misinterpreted through traditional eating disorder frameworks. When perceptual avoidance is pathologized without sensory context, individuals may be incorrectly classified or experience heightened psychological distress.

Bayoumi et al. (2025) further note that eating difficulties in adults with autism and/or ADHD often co-occur with broader challenges in self-regulation and emotional well-being. Within this context, rigid food rules, repetitive eating patterns, or reliance on particular “safe” foods may function as regulatory strategies rather than expressions of weight or shape concern.

This distinction is critical. Sensory-based restriction may externally resemble disordered eating or compulsive behavior while arising from fundamentally different mechanisms. Failure to recognize this distinction can increase:

• Anxiety and shame around eating

• Risk of misdiagnosis

• Inappropriate or ineffective intervention approaches

Understanding food selectivity as sensory-mediated helps clarify how eating difficulties may intersect with eating disorders or addictive patterns without being reducible to them.

The dyslexia gap in eating and mental health research

Across this literature, one omission remains striking: dyslexia is absent mainly from peer-reviewed research on food selectivity, eating difficulties, and related mental health outcomes. Still searching through the research.

This gap is notable given:

• High rates of co-occurrence between dyslexia, ADHD, and autism

• Shared involvement of executive functioning, sequencing, and sensory integration

• Clinical and lived reports describing food-related stress linked to instructional load, planning demands, and cognitive fatigue

At present, dyslexia appears only indirectly in eating research, typically subsumed within broader neurodevelopmental samples. Its absence limits understanding of how eating difficulties intersect with mental health, coping strategies, and potential compulsive patterns in dyslexic populations.

Peer-reviewed evidence consistently demonstrates that food selectivity and eating difficulties in autism and ADHD are sensory-based, persistent, and clinically meaningful. These challenges also intersect with mental health, including anxiety, eating disorder vulnerability, and compulsive or addictive patterns—particularly when sensory mechanisms are misunderstood or ignored.

At the same time, the near-absence of dyslexia from this literature highlights a significant conceptual blind spot. Recognizing food selectivity as a sensory and mental health issue—not a behavioral choice—is essential for inclusive, neurodiversity-affirming research and practice.

References

• Nadon G, Feldman DE, Dunn W, Gisel E. (2011). Association of sensory processing and eating problems in children with autism spectrum disorders. Autism Research and Treatment, 2011, 541926. https://doi.org/10.1155/2011/541926

• Cermak SA, Curtin C, Bandini LG. (2010). Food selectivity and sensory sensitivity in children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 110(2), 238–246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jada.2009.10.032

• Strand M. (2021). Eggs, sugar, grated bones: colour-based food preferences in autism, eating disorders, and beyond. Medical Humanities, 47(1), 87–94. https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2019-011811

• Bayoumi SC, Halkett A, Miller M, Hinshaw SP. (2025). Food selectivity and eating difficulties in adults with autism and/or ADHD. Autism, 29(6), 1497–1509. https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613251314223