Just Take a Bite: Easy, Effective Answers to Food Aversions and Eating Challenges! [Paperback]

Lori Ernsperger (Author), Tania Stegen-Hanson (Author), Temple Grandin (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 2004

Winner of an iParenting Media Award!

 

Is your child a "picky" eater or a full-fledged resistant eater? Does he or she eat only 3-20 foods, refusing all others? Eat from only one food group? Gag, tantrum, or become anxious if you introduce new foods? If so, you have a resistant eater. Learn the possible causes, when you need professional help, and how to deal with the behavior at home. Learn why "Don't play with your food!" and "Clean your plate!" - along with many other old saws - are just plain wrong. And who said you have to eat dessert last? Get ready to have some stereotypes shattered!

Helpful chapters include:

• Who Are Resistant eaters?
• Oral-Motor Development
• Environmental and Behavioral Factors Contributing to Problems with Eating
• Sensory-Based and Motor-Based Problems Affecting the Resistant Eater
• Motor-Based Eating Problems vs. Sensory-Based Eating Problems
• Designing and Implementing a Comprehensive Treatment Plan
• Environmental Controls
• Gastrointestinal, Physical and Oral-Motor Development
• Stages of Sensory Development for Eating
• A Recipe for Success

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This talented team has a blockbuster book . . . as they offer a positive program to help those who are struggling at least three times a day with the serious problem of food aversion and food sensitivity."

Temple Grandin, Ph.D.

“This book is wonderfully written for parents of children with eating challenges. It provides excellent descriptions and answers for parents and professionals on why some children have eating challenges and how to use different strategies to promote positive mealtime environments.”

Raquel Yumiaco, Speech and Language Pathologist.

 

“As a parent and a dietician, I found this book to be a great resource! There were many times in the past when I needed a resource such as this and could not find one. It is both thorough and easy to follow. I think this book will be a tremendous help to both parents and health care professionals.”

Anissa Gustafson, R.D., Registered Dietician
 

About the Author

Lori Ernsperger, PhD, has more than twenty years of experience working in the public schools as a teacher, administrator, and behavioral consultant. She has had extensive training working with students who have behavior disorders, particularly those on the autism spectrum. Having earned her PhD in Special Education from Indiana University, Dr. Ernsperger has put her research and behavioral expertise to work in a variety of teaching, therapy, and behavior consultant roles. She currently serves as a private autism and behavioral consultant, and lives with her husband Tom and two children, Jessica and Ben, in Henderson, Nevada.

Tania Stegen-Hanson, OTR/L, has over ten years experience in therapy, consultation, and in-service training to school systems and private practice in South Africa and the USA. She is the owner of Achievement Therapy Center, a pediatric O.T. practice in Las Vegas, Nevada. She specializes in sensory integration therapy, oral-motor therapy, neuro-developmental therapy, and feeding disorders.

Product Details

• Paperback: 236 pages
• Publisher: Future Horizons; 1 edition (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1932565124
• ISBN-13: 978-1932565126
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54,310 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 62 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If only it were that simple a command - Just Take a Bite, June 26, 2005

By 

Bonnie Sayers "autismfamily" (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Just Take a Bite: Easy, Effective Answers to Food Aversions and Eating Challenges! (Paperback)

The cover of Just Take a Bite is adorable. My nine-year old son has severe autism, is non-verbal and has feeding deficits. For three years now he has been attending feeding therapy.

The chapter covering the stages of sensory development for eating was very informative. This is very similar to what has been utilized in the feeding therapy we attend on a weekly basis.

The case studies are highlighted in gray throughout the chapters. The ages range from babies through elementary age. Issues covered include steps to create a meal or snack schedule, awareness of movement, limited communication skills, vestibular movement, behavioral factors and visual stimuli.

Each chapter has a gray box with an exercise in eating, which are tips and guidelines for the specific area being discussed. There is a table listing textures with a description, example of foods with this texture and how the child can succeed with these textures.

You begin with three new foods to the child. The procedures and materials are all listed for the steps. The cue cards are in black and white and a bit advanced for my son. This is the perfect book for preschoolers and toddlers who are resistant eaters.

There are many activities for the preschool aged child to explore with a parent, teacher or therapist. The section on food jags is reassuring to parents.

This is a great first book to read in the area of eating issues. I wish this had been published several years earlier so we could have progressed quicker. If you think your child needs feeding therapy - Just Take a Bite should be read so you can start implementing these suggestions.

64 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just Take A Bite, August 9, 2004

By 

Joanne Goldberg Pace - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Just Take a Bite: Easy, Effective Answers to Food Aversions and Eating Challenges! (Paperback)

Just Take A Bite is a fabulous book for parents and caregivers dealing with children who are problem eaters. It dispels the common myth that all children will eat when hungry, and clearly describes how certain environmental problems, physical problems, and sensory problems may hinder a child's eating. The explanations of these underlying issues are thorough and understandable. Practical solutions are provided with remarkably clear instructions as to implementing these strategies on your own. I highly recommend this book for parents whose mealtimes have been negatively affected by a child's behavior.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A terrific solutions guide for helping kids with food aversions and challenging eating behaviors, March 15, 2006

By 

Ann Douglas "pregnancy/parenting author" (Peterborough, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Just Take a Bite: Easy, Effective Answers to Food Aversions and Eating Challenges! (Paperback)

This book came highly recommended to me by a friend who works with children who have a variety of different special needs. She pointed out that it picks up where a lot of books about eating challenges and "picky eating" behaviors leave off, dealing with the child whose food repertoire may consist of two or three foods; and who may be facing significant physical/behavioral or other challenges that interfere with the process of eating.

I was immediately impressed by the book because it was so detailed and solutions-oriented. Not only do the authors present practical tips, ideas, and solutions that apply to specific situations: they include case studies that show how families can apply them. The book also includes helpful illustrations designed to help parents understand the postural control and other body exercises that are explained in the text. Highly recommended.