Neurodevelopmental Disorder

Neurodevelopmental disorders are a DSM-5-TR diagnostic category of conditions that emerge during the developmental period — typically before a child enters grade school — and produce impairments in personal, social, academic, or occupational functioning. The category includes intellectual developmental disorder, communication disorders, autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, specific learning disorder, motor disorders (including tic disorders such as Tourette’s disorder), and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Impairments range from very specific limitations of learning or executive function to global deficits in social skills or intelligence, and disorders frequently co-occur. In nutritional psychology, neurodevelopmental disorders are relevant because early nutritional exposures, feeding behaviors, sensory-based food selectivity, gut-brain signaling, and diet quality can intersect with cognitive, behavioral, and self-regulatory development, and because feeding and eating disturbances (including ARFID, pica, and rumination disorder) often present in this population and warrant additional clinical attention when symptoms are severe.