A 19-year old teen from Bristol, England is now blind and deaf after living off of chips, sausages, and fries for a decade.
The boy’s parents noticed something wrong with him when at 14-years-old, he began losing his hearing. His sight began to deteriorate shortly after. Now, the boy’s family says he has no social life or job due to his condition, which doctors say is irreversible.
The Independent was able to get a hold of his mother, who asked to remain anonymous, and she informed the publication she first noticed her son’s diet change when he was just seven years old. She said he only ate French fries, potato chips, processed ham, sausages, and white bread.
“The first we knew about it was when he began coming home from primary school with his packed lunch untouched,” she said. “I would make him nice sandwiches and put an apple or other fruit in, and he wouldn’t eat any of it. His teachers became concerned too.”
She explained because he wasn’t gaining any weight, they didn’t initially see a problem.
“He has always been skinny, so we had no weight concerns. You hear about junk food and obesity all the time, but he was skinny as a rake,” she told The Independent.
Doctors diagnosed the teen with avoidant-restrictive food intake disorder or ARFID. A condition in which people will avoid foods with a certain texture, smell, taste, appearance, or will reportedly eat said foods at a certain temperature.
However, his diet has since damaged his optic nerve, leading to a condition known as nutritional optic neuropathy. (NON) His mother was shocked when she learned of her son’s disorder and how it relates to disability now.
“His sight went downhill very fast – to the point where he is now legally blind,” his mom said.
His doctor, Dr. Denize Atan, has confirmed he’s eating mostly the same foods from before. However, his nutrition has improved due to supplements.
