To think they shouldn’t change the packaging?

[MummaOfTheJungle]

Quavers have added the avengers characters on to their packaging. My autistic son refuses to eat them now because of that and they’re one of his safe foods 😩 AIBU to think they shouldn’t change the packaging like this?

if your child will only eat certain things out of certain packaging then it’s your job as the parent to keep and reuse old packs not the company.

Is it really that bad if he won't eat them. 1 less unhealthy snack off the list.

I feel your pain OP - my 15yo was examining the new tube of colgate I gave him yesterday. There was a tiny difference in the print, it had a screw rather than snap top, and felt warm (been in the airing cupboard).
He is using it though 🥳 Unless he's just pretending to... He's got better at accepting reassurance as he's got older. He trusts me generally

Are you being serious? The world doesn't revolve around you or one group of people. And you should be teaching your child to accept change.

Clearly you have zero actual understanding of autism and food avoidance.

@MummaOfTheJungle dd has similar issues around safe foods. B&M, Home Bargains, Poundland type shops are your friend here, but I would also try local wholesalers like Bookers. If you have a good local corner shop, have a chat with them, explain the situation and see if they can speak to their wholesalers. I live 2 doors away from a proper 70's style corner shop (I don't think it has had any upgrades since King Charles was in nappies if I'm honest) and they would have done this in a heartbeat for my dd.

Are you always so lacking in empathy?

Are you? Why do my needs not matter? Why are some people ignoring my needs because one group of people need something else?

Grow up

What's he got against the avengers?

Ironic

I agree that we cannot expect a firm to keep its packaging the same for the sake of one person: things inevitably change.

However, we cannot blithely tell the mother of an autistic child that she should teach him 'to accept change'. This is much easier said than done.

Nothing. He's on the spectrum and finds it very difficult to cope with change.

Excellent post. Thank you.

There is a big difference between hard work and full blow food avoidance.

The older my dd has got the worse some of her issues become.

For years all dd would eat was McDonald's nuggets, sausages and Asda value cheese pizza. Nothing else. And believe me when I say that child would starve herself forever rather than eat anything else. She could tell the difference between anyone else's nuggets...

Something as simple as an artwork change can be a HUGE problem for kids with the more severe food avoidance issues.

When there is such a limited amount of "safe" foods, having ine stripped away for an unnecessary marketing gimic can feel like a personal attack.

He eats a whole bag in one go?

Well most people do yeah.

feel for you op! It's a nightmare. Does he have ARFID?

Do they? How big is this child?

Theres 6 packets in the bag, so he'll eat the whole lot in one go, or does OP just open it, he has a packet and then she chucks the rest of the bag away?

I can't be bothered to explain if you don't understand that she means each individual packet 🙄

The Marvel images arent on the individual packets.

I can be bothered to try to correct you.

He wont eat them because of the change of packaging. Its only on the big bag. Someone said, put the packets in an old bag. She said 'he wont eat them if its already been opened'. But there are 6 packets in the bag, so presumably he eats them of an open bag regularly given there are 6 packets in there.

They are one of the few foods the OP’s child will reliably eat.

I agree 💯 it is easier said than done - but it can be done. I suspect that taking the time to post this on a forum instead of just dealing with it and having a plan to deal with a daily occurrence like this, means the OP is likely to be an enabler. I have seen it so many times. It does these children a huge disservice.

Between you and me (and erm.. everyone else reading).. I will deliberately react harshly / bluntly to posts like these in the hopes it gets through that the expectation is unrealistic and unacceptable. I know there's a very low chance of that working but if everyone piles on.. there's a chance!

I get how frustrating it must feel when so much of life probably feels like a battle in caring your son. And I have seen how very difficult avoidant and restrictive eating is for parents to manage.
Gently, I wonder if this might be your first-line teachable moment for your DS. I do appreciate it’s not a simple task to explain how they are the same crisps and fine to eat etc etc, but you are going to need to start somewhere.
This is just one teeny-tiny thing in a whole world of things that are going to change, and that your son is going to have a strong reaction about. So while some people are suggesting things that might cope with the Quavers problem (hair straighteners to reseal packets etc), that isn’t going to address the underlying issue that is going to need addressing in very short order.

You don’t say how old your son is, but it’s certain he’s going to experience changes he doesn’t find easy to cope with from the moment he opens his eyes in the morning until he goes to sleep at night, through his whole life.
Maybe the first step is for his mum to accept this change to the crisp packaging and be ok with it? Leading from the front. Appreciate that if you are also autistic (you don’t mention whether you are, but am conscious that often families have more than one autistic member) then this is going to be an extra layer of challenge as you seek to support your son.

Wishing you well, OP. 💐

Well I would just say "oh well nevermind then child, you dont have to eat them"

You’ve clearly never dealt with a child with ARFID, who has maybe 5 safe foods, and would literally starve rather than eat something else.

It looks like the small packs inside the big pack don't have avengers on them. Which pack is it he is worried about?