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5-Year-Old Eats For The First Time After Undergoing Treatment For Fear Of Food

Geordie

Geordie
Daniel Harrison, 5-Year-Old, Eats For The First Time After Undergoing Treatment For Fear Of Food, Drink

A 5-year-old from the U.K. is able to enjoy food and drink after undergoing treatments to help him get over his fear of eating, according to news reports.

The Daily Mail reported on the case of Daniel Harrison, who was traumatized from painful acid reflux he experienced during infancy. Because of that, Harrison was fed through a feeding tube because he wouldn't eat food.

"Because of Daniel's autism it makes him worse, it makes him think something is trying to hurt him, so his instinct is 'no'," Harrison's father, Kevin, told the BBC.

Acid reflux occurs when stomach acid comes up into the esophagus, causing heartburn and a sour food taste in the mouth, the Mayo Clinic reported. It can lead to the more severe form, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).

Infant acid reflux, in particular, is relatively common and can usually be resolved by making alterations in the way the baby is fed, the Mayo Clinic reported. However, the condition can make the infant cough, spit up, cry after feedings and not want to eat.

To combat Harrison's fear of eating from his infant acid relux, his parents took him to Austria's University Hospital to receive treatment, the Sun reported.

In the last 22 years, 12 other children have been treated at this hospital for the same fear, The Sun reported. The treatment works by training kids like Harrison to recognize food as a want and a necessity.

The BBC reported that specifically, the treatment involves feeding less food and drink through the feeding tube so that Harrison would be able to feel hunger and thereby want food.

The treatment was paid for largely through donations raised by the family, as well as some financial support from the UK's National Health Service, according to the BBC.

"Eating has changed him as a child -- his behaviour has changed and he's so much happier. He's a different boy," Kevin Harrison told the Daily Mail.

I love this news.

Everyone of us deserve help and support for our phobias, for our issues, so that we can be better supported in our daily life - whether it is in socialization, communication, or, in this case, eating :)

As long as it makes us better adjusted and happier, everything should do ok.
 
That's really great that he got help and was able to overcome that fear, I vaguely recall seeing a documentary about either that clinic or a similar one that helped get kids eating who were afraid to eat (for various reasons).

Kyoko had terrible reflux as a baby, I remember taking her to the Dr and asking for something to ease it a bit (as I'd read about gaviscon for babies) and being told there was no such thing as reflux, so glad that Dr is no longer at our practice.
 
Doctors ought to do their best and alleviate suffering. We need to see other more competent doctors if our illnesses are not cured, unless the medical conditions can't really be cured.

I'm happy for Daniel, too :D I feel fortunate, I can eat. :D
 

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