Not eating on ritalin

amother

Purple

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 5:27 am

my son is on ritalin and goes to school the whole day and does not eat every day a different excuse why he didn't eat his food and some days he doesn't even take food. Sometimes eats breakfast in the morning and always eat supper. Should I worry? What can I do? I always give him food he likes but he has the biggest book of excuses why he didn't eat it and I hate wasting food. Ideas, chizzuk...thanks

flmommy

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 5:42 am

Common side effect... if he needs the medicine then just something you have to deal with. I always make sure my DS eats breakfast before the medicine kicks in and then BH he makes up for the eating when the medicine wears off in the evening with supper and then another supper Smile

later. I always tell him he should eat SOMETHING from his lunch even if he doesn’t FEEL hungry. Hopefully he won’t hate me later if he has weight issues But if he doesn’t eat anything he winds up getting a headache. Good luck.

amother

Purple

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 6:26 am

Can I ask how old ur son is? Mine is 8 1/2 is it something I should do anything about? like the rebbe said he is doing much better in class since we upped it and thats when the food issues started....

simba

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 6:41 am

My brother was on Ritalin as a child. I remember my mother going nuts from this, he didn't eat at all. He got rail thin. Maybe discuss this with your dr. And see if there is something else he can take instead of Ritalin.

Good luck

amother

Brown

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 6:54 am

Very common side effect. Make sure to give him a big breakfast before he takes his medicine in the morning and a big dinner at night. Actually, my son and dh (who also takes these meds) usually eat two dinners, one when they get home and another about 2 hours later.

amother

Purple

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 10:14 am

this may sound horrible but if were to start serving my son lunch at 4pm it wud ruin supper for everyone else and prob him as well as supper is at 6 so I really struggle with this b/c he says hes hungry so he will eat a vegi or fruit and then hes fine so im back and forth I don't to starve my child and hes doing so well in other areas on the medicine so its so hard Sad

LisaS

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 1:05 pm

Rather than meals try to focus on little snack items to fit in here and there during the day. A handful of cheerios, a handful of raisins, half a yogurt, etc. And when it wears off, let's say 8pm that's when he needs to eat supper. Supper can be rice cakes with tuna and a tomato - it doesn't have to be a 3 course meal, but be prepared to take advantage of his late-evening appetite.

animeme

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 1:17 pm

amother wrote:

Serve him his supper at 4pm. He can have a snack at dinner time.

amother

Purple

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 1:37 pm

animeme wrote:

Serve him his supper at 4pm. He can have a snack at dinner time.

but then I have to serve everyone supper then and everyone else doesn't need it and then I end serving meals all day

he eats really well at 6pm and doesn't need to eat again

lavenderchimes

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 6:20 pm

Make sure he takes food every day. If he doesn't eat it at lunch, he can eat it after school. Then serve him dinner as usual with everyone else.

amother

Seafoam

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 6:26 pm

Personal experience on ADD meds: it really turns you off food. Not in a nauseous way, just complete disinterest.

I second the breakfast before medicine suggestion. I also noticed I was not drinking enough on the meds, even though it caused terrible dryness which was made worse by not eating and drinking. Insist that he drink throughout the day and perhaps a protein shake or something easy could interest him.

amother

Purple

Tue, Nov 28 2017, 10:41 pm

I was thinking protein drink but hes so picky before the ritalin anyone have any suggestions for a good tasting protein drink thats kid friendly?

abound

Wed, Nov 29 2017, 3:32 am

Wake him up early and give him a big breakfast. He will complain at first but he will get used to it and that is that. If he likes bread, he should have that with and egg and veggies. After he eats he gets his ritalin with a hot cocoa or choc milk. He then will probably hardly eat during the day. He needs to eat a big supper too, or at least a decent balanced one, by then the ritalin should be out of his system and he should be able to eat.
Good Luck!

RebekahsMom

Wed, Nov 29 2017, 4:22 am

All stimulants do this. We’ve tried adderall, focalin, and vyvanse. I fight with my daughter constantly, at least to eat before she takes it.

She is quite underweight, and the doctor has told me if she doesn’t put some on, he won’t keep writing the script. So we take her off it on weekends/ breaks/ summer vacation, and she becomes a bottomless pit. I worry she’ll get fat if she ever stops taking it.

amother

Chartreuse

Wed, Nov 29 2017, 2:38 pm

It's common. Give breakfast before the first dose of ritalin. I used to take 2 doses instead of 3, so I also ate a big supper. Lunch was kind of non-existent, but that was ok.

As for a nutritious kid friendly drink, maybe something like chocolate Ensure (don't know if it's kosher or if there is a kosher equivalent).

But before you do any of this (including the Ensure), please talk ot the doctor. Sometimes adjusting the medication is warranted if it's affecting the child's weight gain. So please make sure you are tracking his weight every month.