Food wars.... | Imamother

amother

Mon, Aug 03 2020, 10:47 am

14 mo loves to nurse. He used to eat a lot more than he does now. At his last checkup he was falling off the chart.... he still fits in the same clothing from before pesach....
He used to be tall, now he's short.

He refuses to eat. Only wants to nurse. And I dont have enough to fully sustain him (obviously) he also LOVES water. Jel drag a chair, and take a bottle off the counter and drink plain water.
Refuses formula.
The only thing he'll drink is the strawberry bana a golden flow smoothie drink.
Diary gives him tummy aches/congestion so milk is out. So is yogurt. Last two times I tried giving him yogurt he vomited then had tummy ache.

He used to eat so well. Now, nothing. (Aside from the smoothie bottle. Not even cookies!!!)

I'm at my whits end!

kenz

Mon, Aug 03 2020, 10:55 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

If he’s so resistant to any and all food, even treats, I would take him to a pediatric gastroenterologist and probably also a really good allergist. It sounds like he’s trying to avoid discomfort or pain by simply ingesting what’s safe, and it may even be a simple fix for you to know what to stay away from. Even if not, you need to know what’s going on. It sounds like more than just pickiness, but that doesn’t mean it’s anything scary chas v’shalom. You just need to get to the bottom of it.
Hatzlachah!

FranticFrummie

Mon, Aug 03 2020, 11:06 am

I agree with kenz. It could very well be reflux, or a hidden allergy.

Have you tried soy or coconut milk yogurts? My DD who was allergic to a lot of foods really liked sweet potatoes. (Try to keep him away from the water as much as possible. Find ways to get him to drink fortified rice or almond milk. You can add some chocolate syrup if that helps.)

If worse comes to worse, you may have to start weaning him in order to get him to eat. Sad

I hope you figure it out soon!

Frumme

Mon, Aug 03 2020, 11:15 am

I agree with FF. Try a milk-free alternative for yogurt etc. DD likes the So Delicious brand which you can find almost everywhere nowadays (OU pareve).

Have you tried offering food before nursing? E.g. DS asks to nurse. You offer two items (say pretzels or yogurt) and show them to him. If he says no again, let him nurse. Try it at different times of the day and try to offer different options. He might eventually go for one and try it and forget he wanted to nurse that time.

Also, is it possible he would drink heavily diluted formula? E.g. plain water with a drop of formula. Then if he drinks it, add a little more formula the next time. Repeat until he's drinking mostly or all formula. You may want to get a pareve formula since that's maybe why he has been refusing it in the past.