My 17 month old DD has refused all food that isn't purée since 6 months old, she'll occasionally eat crispy things such as melty puffs, cheerios, biscotti etc but everything else she puts in her mouth she immediately spits out. She won't even touch fruit.
Paediatrician says it's a sensory thing and he thinks she could be autistic and will review again when she can talk (she makes mama and dada sounds only so far). He’s basing this on her food refusal and observing her during the hour long appointment.
She has sensory issues surrounding her feet, if she steps on something such as a wipe that's been left on the floor, some crumbs she will lift her foot up and cry and cry for ages. She used to have problems with long sleeves but that seems to have passed now. She's recently started lining up items such as purée pouches, bottles, similar types of toys and will repeatedly line them up, she repeats a lot of actions again and again like stepping in and out of the kitchen, walking up and down the hallway, slapping her ears or pulling her hair. She laughs and smiles when happy but she does not ever smile back at me or family or strangers when they smile first. She wakes hourly and always has done. But this is my first child and I'm not sure what's a cause for concern and what's just normal bonkers toddler behaviour.
I'm wondering what other signs of autism I should be looking out for at this age (17/18 months) as she doesn't seem to have any of the symptoms I've read about. She responds to her name, she makes eye contact just fine etc
Not sure what I’m asking for really just want someone to tell me what they think