My 8yo son was diagnosed at 5. We have tried several meds, more recently ritalin. This seems to be working but he has no appetite - he already is very thin by nature. Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can do to increase his appetite? All the meds affect him this way. I want him to maintain his weight at least. How do I strike a balance with his successes at school on meds or his health, weight gain etc.??? I make my ds drink "protein shakes". I mix one cup of vanilla soy milk
with one scoop of chocolate whey protein powder, a huge scoop of
peanut butter and a whole banana. I give this to him at breakfast with
anything else he will eat. I also try to give it to him before dinner. Nestle
carnation instant breakfast is another mix I use with milk for a quick
drink with protein. Let him eat whenever he is hungry. We go to Mc
Donald's after school because he doesn't eat much all day. There is also a
prescription that my ped. gave us (haven't tried yet) that is supposed to
increase his appetite (induce it). You might want to look into it if you
really need to help him. My friend gives her son Boost drink to take to
school and in the morning. Find a way to pack in as much protein and
calories into a meal even if it is in liquid form. My ds is 8 and diagnosed
at 5 like your son. He is about 54 pounds now. He only gained weight
this summer for some reason. He was steady at 48 pounds for a long
time. He takes Daytrana and Zoloft.Thank you for this information - I will try it. To date my pediatrician has not been concerned but I am a little bit...I just feel like he really needs to eat more. I have been packing him an apple and some chips at lunch with a sticki note that says eat apple - sometimes it works....he LOVES milkshakes so I will try that idea......thank you again...oh and my son also was steady around 48 pounds we just went for a med check and he was 50.6 ounces.....yeah!The medicine that my pediatrician gave us is called Cyproheptadine. He said
that it is like an antihistamine and might make him sleepy. Like I
mentioned, we didn't try it because the shakes worked so well. Let me know
how you are doing. I would love to help you out since I have the same
problem with ds.
my son is also this way. the meds make it so he isnt hungry. he does get hungry when the meds wear off thoough in the evening. we give him choices for meals like breakfast or dinner (lunch is at school) so he can pick what he really wants to eat. sometimes certain things dont sound good for him so he wont eat a bite. alot easier if its something he likes. in the evening when the meds wear off we give him a snack or a second helping of dinner with a carnation instant breakfast chic milk. we bought whole milk to mix with it to add more calories. we use it for his drink though and not a sub for a meal. then an hour later when he goes to bed we let him take a snack with him so he can eat right b4 he goes to bed. otherwise he will stay up. he gained 4 lbs in a month!! he originally weighed 49 lbs and got down to 46. now he weighs 50 yay!! offer him food whenever u can and explain to him that the meds might make him feel like he isnt very hungry but he has to eat atleast a little of something or he could get sick or un healthy. that helped for my son when he wondered why i was telling him to ea a few bites when he said he wasnt hungry!
kim
So Far So Good. I have told him he has to eat soemthing for breakfast so he has been having bacon and eggs. I reward him for eating his lunch (I make him a small lunch 1/2 PBJ and an apple or an apple and a small bag of doritoes) and this has been working - He usually will eat a snack when we pick him up from SACC (an after school program) and eat his dinner. I take him back next month for a med check! Thanks for all the suggestions.....YOU GUYS ARE THE BOMB!!!!|
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