For families who have a loved one with ARFID, a few specific foods can make up most of what they eat. We're building a nonprofit to help keep those foods within reach.
Share your family's storyWe're sharing stories and wishlists from New Jersey families now. Donations for microgrants will open once we're an official nonprofit.
A note from our founder, Brittany Graziosi
I'm a mom to a 13-year-old autistic son, Lucian, who has ARFID. His eating became so restrictive that he developed scurvy twice, and at one point he lost the ability to walk for three months.
In 2022, a mystery illness left Lucian in severe leg pain, unable to walk or even stand. We went from doctor to doctor, and no one could tell us what was wrong.
Finally, we drove 45 minutes to Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, NJ. The on-call pediatric resident there was the first doctor to run an extended vitamin panel and consider scurvy. Thanks to her out-of-the-box thinking and the staff there, Lucian received IV vitamin infusions for a week. He was then transferred to the wonderful doctors at Children's Specialized Hospital at RWJ in New Brunswick for a month-long physical therapy stay to regain full use of his legs.
We also spent five months driving an hour to New Brunswick every day for a severe pediatric feeding disorder program. It had some success, but Lucian still relies on his safe foods: Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Pizza Hut breadsticks and White Castle Chicken Rings. They cost me over $1,500 a month.
I know how much therapies can cost. Even with great insurance or Medicaid, I've faced near bankruptcy and massive credit card debt more than once on this journey. I've missed work, had to resign from work while staying at hospitals with him, and didn't qualify for FMLA or unemployment as an independent contractor and small business owner.
I know other families face the same. Some can't get their kids to outpatient therapy because they can't miss work, or because a lost paycheck would mean they can't afford the safe foods. No family should have to choose between treatment and the food that keeps their child fed.
This is not picky eating. ARFID is a serious eating disorder. Without their safe foods, people with ARFID, especially children, can become severely dehydrated or malnourished, develop deficiencies like scurvy, and some end up needing feeding tubes.
I started The Safe Foods Project so other families have help keeping those foods on the shelf, and know they aren't facing this alone.
Brittany GraziosiFounder, and mom
Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder is a recognized eating disorder in which a person eats only a narrow range of foods, or very small amounts. It isn't picky eating, and it isn't about weight or body image. It can come from sensory sensitivities, fear of choking or getting sick, or very low interest in food.
Many people with ARFID depend on a short list of "safe foods," often one exact brand and product. When that item is discontinued, out of stock or hard to afford, it's much more than an inconvenience.
We're in the process of becoming a New Jersey nonprofit. Some of our work starts now, and the rest begins once we have nonprofit status.
We'll share the stories New Jersey families send us, with links to their wishlists, so supporters can buy safe foods for a family directly. Gifts from a wishlist go straight to that family, not to us.
We'll contact the companies that make your safe foods and ask for discounts, gift cards and product donations for your family.
Every day, three family stories will be featured at the top of this page.
A community fund that families can apply to for $100 toward their loved one's safe foods. Microgrants are paid only as grocery or restaurant gift cards, never as cash.
Not yet. We're forming a nonprofit in New Jersey and applying for federal tax-exempt status. Until that's complete, we aren't collecting donations for microgrants or awarding them. We are sharing family stories and wishlists now, and fundraising to cover the fees of becoming a nonprofit.
We'll review every story and check in with you before anything is published. If you've given permission, your story and wishlist link will be shared on this site once you've approved it.
Yes, by buying something from your wishlist. Those gifts go straight to you. We aren't collecting funds for microgrants or operating costs until we reach nonprofit status. We are fundraising to cover the fees of becoming a nonprofit.
Not yet. To keep things manageable while we get started, we're only featuring New Jersey families for now. We hope to grow to other states. Email us at safefoodsupport@gmail.com if you'd like to hear when we do.
Yes. Email us anytime and we'll update or delete your story, photo and wishlist link.
Our mission is specifically for people affected by ARFID and other conditions that cause selective or restrictive eating needs. You don't need a formal diagnosis to send your story, but we review every submission. We may ask for more information or a note from a provider, and we may choose not to share any story that we can't verify or that doesn't fit our mission. Microgrants, once they open, will require a diagnosis or a provider's note.
Only as gift cards for safe foods, such as grocery store or restaurant gift cards, chosen to match the family's safe foods. We don't pay microgrants in cash, by check or by bank transfer.