Does Anyone Have Suggestions?

One of my friends has a daughter with SPD, and working with an occupational therapist has helped them a lot with food issues.

I have a registered dietician in our family who works on pediatrics. She works with kids and families like yours. They see tons of kids over the years and would have tips that are practical and that will work - and they are realistic. If you can, I'd ask to see one. Even one visit could help your son get more variety into his diet. Often it's just how things are prepared or presented - not just texture and taste. They also have suggestions on how to up the nutrients and what brands to offer. Good luck :)

Can you ask your pediatrician for a referral to a specialist, a nutritionist or occupational therapist that specializes in SPD? I imagine that would help. In the meantime I would just try very bland foods, plain pasta, mashed potatoes, chicken, applesauce, rice, bread/toast, Cheerios, etc.

Stop trying to force him to eat foods he doesn't like. It's hard but you have to compromise. This is going to be a battle you won't win and it only makes him feel bad about himself.

Find things he likes and build on that. When he's older he will be less rigid. My granddaughter has geographic tongue and we fought and battled and had terrible meals until "I" stopped being a dictator at meal time.

The more stress "I" took off the meal the less stressful it was and she actually tries things occasionally now. She will go cook something for herself now if she doesn't like what I make, so will my husband. I often don't cook at all and each of us fixes our own foods. We have various things we like and don't like and hardly any of us like the same foods.

I suggest you try things like spaghetti. One day he'll like it. It has veggies in it that he won't know about. Mac and cheese can have a tiny tiny bit of yellow veggie in it. Not enough to change the flavor but enough to add a bit of nutrition.

If he ever sees you add those things he'll never touch it again though. I use applesauce for half the fat in my brownies. My granddaughter saw me and then won't eat a brownie or cake I make unless she watches me make it.

SPD isn't something you are going to beat or force him to change. It's a disorder for a reason and you need to adapt.

I wish I knew your son's age. Hoping that he is at least 4, I'd suggest that before you add anything to his diet, that you let him cook with you. I have a family member who is very sensitive to food differences, and became much more experimental over a period of time, when he could control what was added. In the beginning he chose to add very few things and when he did, it was a minute amount. Really infinitesimal. But he was learning to trust that I would not add flavors or ingredients without his knowledge. I praised anything he tried to cook, did not mention what he ended up eating or not, and he now had a much more diverse diet.

Of course, all the advice below about seeking the help of a dietician or an occupational therapist with expertise in this area is spot on.

Updated

I wish I knew your son's age. Hoping that he is at least 4, I'd suggest that before you add anything to his diet, that you let him cook with you. I have a family member who is very sensitive to food differences, and became much more experimental over a period of time, when he could control what was added. In the beginning he chose to add very few things and when he did, it was a minute amount. Really infinitesimal. But he was learning to trust that I would not add flavors or ingredients without his knowledge. I praised anything he tried to cook, did not mention what he ended up eating or not, and he now had a much more diverse diet.

Of course, all the advice below about seeking the help of a dietician or an occupational therapist with expertise in this area is spot on.

Some things you can do, even with limitations:
Instead of pre-sweetened, flavored yogurt, which often has food coloring, buy a good plain yogurt and add a little honey with a spoonful of fruit spread. This will lower the incidence of artificial colors/chemicals and sugars/high fructose corn syrups in his food. Look for the same on the labels of your bagel bags. Corn syrup is very bad for the body any way, and for kids with these sorts of issues, getting their diet fairly 'clean' can help.

Add protein powder to anything you can, too. Find out if it can be baked and sneak it into the cookies. (I don't know if it's heat stable, to be honest.)
Other than that, I'd encourage you to talk to a nutritionist.

You can't change his diet overnight after letting him eat this other stuff. You're going to have to take it in stages.

Here's a link to the sensory page on my autistikids.com website. Scroll about halfway down and there are a few links that are specific to food and sensory issues. They may be helpful. And if you visit the blogs of the people, often you can ask questions in the comments.

http://www.autistikids.com/sensory.html

Also, even though your son isn't autistic, you may find the other sensory info helpful.

Whatever you do, don't make it a battle. He can't help it. He'll need to work on it, but as long as he's eating, you're doing fine. Involve him, encourage him, don't force him.

I have a story about a situation like this. A good friend had this issue with her daughter. She ate nothing but chicken nuggets, French fries and grapes. He finally turned a corner when she discovered (at 14) how limiting it was to her life. Her Mom said, "no more...you can try small portions of the food we eat and you can pick what you will and won't eat from that selection each night." She had matured to a point that she wanted to fit in more than she wanted those 3 foods but her Mom had to push it a little when she was ready. Not sure it works that way for many people but it did for her.

My son who is 12 has SPD. I tried so many things when he was young. After so many years I got to a point where I decided the most important thing is to just keep mealtimes pleasant and to just encourage him to try foods he "knows" he dislikes. I always made one thing he would eat. I put small amounts of the other foods on his plate. At younger ages (3,4,5) he would actually be frightened...he sometimes would run and hide. We had many talks...he slowly got better at the whole food thing. People say it takes introducing a food 15 times or so. Not so with my son. Try introducing a food all year long for 10 years. HA. People say growing veggies in your garden with your child and having them help you cook will help. This never worked with him. I did it for many years. The last couple years (5th and 6th grade) he is starting to like a few more foods and is willing to try to like more foods. He eats more than your son does....but he is quite picky. I agree with the person who said to try to find a feeding clinic and specialists who have a program. It is worth trying this. PS - keeping meal times stress free for our son has helped over the years. He used to be freaked out about going to friend's houses bc he was so worried about mealtimes. He now eats a good range of food and is much more relaxed. There are kids who do not outgrow this though (I have a nephew who is 11 and only eats 3 foods)...I think this is rare...this is why I suggest looking for experts to work with your son. Just in case he is like my nephew.

Any chance you could share his age because that is a very important bit of information.