The boy who stopped eating: Parents of child with rare disorder hope to send him to Austria for treatment

Six-year-old Mitchell's parents are raising money to take him to Austria to be treated for a rare condition. Photo / Supplied

What would you do if your child refused to eat? Not just their veggies, but also ice cream, chocolate and even drink water.

This is the question posed to two Kiwi parents when their son, Mitchell, who is on the autism spectrum, suddenly he stopped eating. They have now possibly found a solution, but it comes with a hefty price tag and is in Austria.

The six-year-old suffers from an incredibly rare neurological disorder called Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID). Neurotypical people may see eating as a very simple task, however, for young Mitchell, it is a massive source of stress and anxiety.

Mitchell’s parents spoke to Canvas magazine earlier this year (at the time they wished for their names to be changed), and said at first, the only way his desperate parents could get anything into his mouth was by spoon-feeding him milk and yoghurt, plus some Weet-Bix for breakfast — until he started refusing to eat the Weet-Bix.

It got progressively worse, Mitchell eventually had to be physically restrained as he fought against very mouthful of food.

Today, all Charlie consumes is a milkshake-style supplement with the nutrients he needs to survive. “Not only that, but he has to have it in a specific bottle, with a specific straw,” says his father, Andrew. “Otherwise he’d just go hungry and starve. He’s one step away from being tube-fed.”

After a lot of research into how they might be able to improve Mitchell’s quality of life, Andrew said they discovered a world-renowned eating clinic in Graz, Austria, that specialises in treating children with ARFID.

“The clinic has an exceptional track record of success, giving children like Mitchell a chance at a better life,” Andrew shared.

“Mitchell is also non-verbal and doctors believe that should Mitchell be able to eat, the chewing motion will significantly help his speech and language skills.”

The treatment is not cheap, his parents have started a Givealittle page to raise fund to “give Mitchell a chance at a happy, healthy life”.

The page has currently raised over $16,000 towards the treatment, with donations climbing quickly.