Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) and School
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) and school: A training toolkit informed by children with ARFID, their parents and primary school staff.
IRAS ID
306144
Contact name
Sarah Halls
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Wolverhampton
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 4 months, 29 days
Research summary
Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) is defined by an eating pattern characterised by a limited amount or variety of food (Thomas & Eddy, 2018). People with ARFID may avoid new foods or the sensory characteristics of certain foods, show a lack of interest in eating and fail to meet nutritional needs. For some individuals, being unable to look at or eat certain foods may arise following an episode of choking or vomiting.
Children with ARFID often struggle to eat and drink well at school which can be due to a number of reasons such as lack of availability of preferred food, changes in routine or sensory overload. These difficulties can affect growth, weight, concentration, energy and learning abilities. Additionally, school is an important factor in the success of ARFID interventions; the environment around the child, including what happens at school, are key and if difficulties are not addressed they can prevent interventions being successful (Harris & Shea, 2018). Despite this, to the researchers knowledge, there is currently very little research around ARFID and schools.
The aims of the current study are to address the research gap stated above by:
1. Exploring experiences of children with Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) at primary school, and their parents, including what support they feel would help them to manage any difficulties associated with their diagnosis of ARFID within the school environment.
2. Developing an intervention, informed by the findings from 1, in the form of a toolkit that can help raise awareness of ARFID in schools and help to promote support for children with ARFID in an educational setting.REC name
East Midlands - Leicester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
22/EM/0023
Date of REC Opinion
23 Mar 2022
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion