Inappropriate mealtime behavior (IMB) is a type of feeding challenge within the broader class of food refusal. The purpose of this study was to critically analyze the efficacy of interventions for the treatment of IMB through a meta-analysis of research using single-case experimental designs. We examined the extent to which different interventions…

Moderate feeding problems affect many children with autism spectrum disorder and often co-occur with disruptive mealtime behaviors. Although parent-mediated interventions have shown promise to support feeding problems, research has primarily occurred within randomized controlled trials when delivered by highly trained clinicians in specialty…

Eating disorders are serious mental illnesses affecting a significant proportion of women and a smaller number of men. Approximately half of those with an eating disorder (ED) will not meet the criteria for anorexia or bulimia nervosa, and will be diagnosed with an eating disorder not otherwise specified (EDNOS). Until recently, there were no…

The current study examined the effects of bite placement with a flipped versus upright spoon on expulsion and mouth clean (product measure of swallowing) in the treatment of 3 children diagnosed with a pediatric feeding disorder and oral-motor deficits. For all 3 participants, extinction in the form of nonremoval of the spoon led to improvements…

Packing is a problematic mealtime behavior that is characterized by pocketing or holding solids or liquids in the mouth without swallowing. In the current study, we examined the effects of a chaser, a liquid or solid consistently accepted and swallowed by the child, to decrease packing of solid foods in 3 children with feeding disorders. During…

Eating disorders are among the most challenging disorders to treat, with even state-of-the-art cognitive-behavioral treatments achieving only modest success. One possible reason for the high rate of treatment failure for eating disorders is that existing treatments do not attend sufficiently to critical aspects of the disorder such as high…

Little is known about the characteristics of meals that serve as motivating operations (MOs) for escape behavior. In the current investigation, we showed that the distance at which a therapist held a spoon from a child's lips served as an MO for escape behavior. Based on these results, we implemented spoon distance fading, compared fading with and…

Fool selectivity is characterized by the consumption of an inadequate variety of foods. The effectiveness of behavioral treatment procedures, particularly nonremoval of the spoon, is well validated by research. The role of parents in the treatment of feeding disorders and the feasibility of behavioral procedures for parent implementation in the…

Using a sample of 692 freshmen at a southeastern university, this study examined caloric restriction among students prior to planned alcohol consumption. Participants were surveyed for self-reported alcohol consumption, binge drinking, and caloric intake habits prior to drinking episodes. Results indicated that 99 of 695 (14%) of first year…

This study assessed the effects of a vibrating pager for increasing the duration of meal consumption in 3 teenagers with autism who were observed to eat too quickly. Participants were taught to take a bite only when the pager vibrated at predetermined intervals. A reversal design indicated that the vibrating pager successfully increased the total…

Innovative approaches are urgently needed to improve behavioral treatment for weight loss. The weight regain that is so common after treatment may be a result of an environment that makes it challenging to adhere, long-term, to a dietary and physical activity regimen. This study was designed to test, via a 12-week open trial, the preliminary…

Based on converging evidence that visual and olfactory images are key components of food cravings, the authors tested a central prediction of the elaborated intrusion theory of desire, that mutual competition between modality-specific tasks and desire-related imagery can suppress such cravings. In each of Experiments 1 and 2, 90 undergraduate…

Objective: Thin body preoccupation and social pressure to be thin (TBPSP) in adolescence are risk factors for the development of full and partial bulimia nervosa and binge eating disorder. This study examined precursors of these potent risk factors. Method: A prospective study followed 134 children from birth to 11.0 years and their parents.…

This book is designed to help the parents of overweight children control their child's weight naturally and prevent future weight problems. It uses case stories and examples to illustrate common conditions and situations, along with recommended interventions. Chapters focus on: (1) "Overfatness," including the reasons for excessive…

This article presents principles of behavior therapy that can be used alone to treat minor feeding problems in young children or in conjunction with other modalities to treat serious disorders. The article discusses assessment methods; variables in feeding, including time, space, child, feeder, food, and treatment; methods to increase or decrease…