child eating issues at wits end

squoog

How is he apart from eating? Does he sleep well, is he very active, i.e. a bit of a handful or a daredevil? Does he concentrate well? Is he big/small for his age ie does he wear clothes for his age group?
Try not to worry, you are doing all the right things in gathering more information. Sounds like you are doing a fantastic job and he is lucky to have 2 such caring parents.

mummyofboys

arran_m wrote: »

at the end of the day, you are the parent and the authourity, it really shoild be you that has the final say ie if he asks for seconds say no, and hopefully if you continue refusing him but still giving him a healthy diet it will become the norm , sorry to be blunt but thats my opinion

Im sorry but it is not as simple as that is it when there are concerns there might actually be a medical issue. This is my worry that I am depriving my son, or it is being treated as a behaviour issue if in fact there is something not quite right. Obviously if the tests come back fine, Then 100% it will be easyier to assert my authority with the full knowledge I am doing the right thing.

mummyofboys

squoog wrote: »

How is he apart from eating? Does he sleep well, is he very active, i.e. a bit of a handful or a daredevil? Does he concentrate well? Is he big/small for his age ie does he wear clothes for his age group?
Try not to worry, you are doing all the right things in gathering more information. Sounds like you are doing a fantastic job and he is lucky to have 2 such caring parents.

Thankyou- He sleeps very well although sometimes I have to go in before I go to bed as he sweats excessivily. This doesnt wake him up but when I go to kiss him before I go to bed alot of the time his pillow is drenched so i change it.

He is very stubborn and can be a handful and often has very hyper periods throughout the day. Alot of it does tend to be centered around food, ie the argument/ tantrum will start because I say no to a snack if he has just eaten.

He is normal weight and height for his age, He wears 4 year old clothing ( he is nearly four).

squoog

It sounds like a possibility could be hyperthyroidism (over active thyroid). When you pick up the blood form it is probably worth asking if his thyroid function is being checked. I hope you get an answer soon, it must be very wearing. I think you are doing absolutely the right thing in waiting for results before you make too many changes. Good luck, I look forward to hearing how things are going.

nzmegs

The sweating thing could well be indicative of a high metabolism (have you mentioned this to your doctor?). it sounds like his body is on the go constantly even when he is asleep. So he is waking up starving even after a few hours. I certainly would consider an over active thyroid. Sometimes this can be controlled by drugs or even surgery. In most cases people are kind of hyperactive and have bulging eyes. But it is usually a condition which kicks in as you get older. The blood tests your child has had should be able to confirm this.

I agree that more protein is worth trying. Make sure that each carbohydrate given has some protein as well. For example a peanut butter or turkey sandwich on brown bread or breadsticks and a soft cheese dip. Try eggs for breakfast as well as the porridge. Always encourage your son to eat the protein part of his meal first as it fills you up more and you may eat less of the carbohydrate. Avoid too much sugar and additives as these are addictive and especially avoid artificial sweeteners as they are thought to make the body crave more sweets.

While I know it is hard you could try a scheme of rewards for each hour he goes between meals without asking for food. Good luck

Kittendreich

Once all the checks have been done if they don't find anything why not see a dietician and ask for a meal plan for you son. They can set out everything he needs (calories and balance of types of foods) and then do a sticker type chart with him so he can see what he has had to eat - i.e. breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, tea, supper etc - after eating each one he gets a sticker to put on the chart to help him remember what he has eaten. He's probably a bit young to put a clock on it so he can also tell how long till he can eat again, but might be one to try if it carries on long term. This puts him in a bit more control, rather than it just being your decision whether he can eat. If it is something they can't fix he will need to learn to control it sooner or later or obesity will be very hard to avoid - better to start early so he gets into good habits.

Also - I think locking the kitchen is the right thing to do - you can't supervise him when you are sleeping. He can leanr to resist temptation during the day when you are there to help him.

mummyofboys

UPDATE (more for me aswell sorry lol )

Food diary so far-

Wednesday- (Nursery 8.15am - 5.45pm)
Breakfast- 8.30am
2x childsize portions of rice crispies and milk- Ate all
** Requested more at 9.20am not given

Snack- 10.15am - Banana- 3/4 eaten

Lunch-12pm
Chicken casserole, new potatoes- ate most
Jelly x 2 bowls-ate all

Tea -3pm
Vegetable soup + brown bread- refused soup ate bread
Grapes- ate all

Picked up at 5.45pm, in car asks for snack.
5.55pm Arrive at home and offer a plum, half way through eating he asks for another one, I say no and supper will be on its way soon. Offer a glass of milk.
6.10pm asks for a biscuit-say no and tantrum follows "i will kick you" ( he didnt) "I dont like you" I say supper is coming soon and distract him with a film.
6.20pm tantrum stops
6.40pm- supper- ham, cucumber sticks, carrot sticks and houmous - eats all
7.30pm bed

Thursday

Lewis sneaked down at some point between my partner going to bed at 2am and 8am and sneaks a tangerine that i had put in his nursery bag ready for todays snack. The peel is found hidden under playmat. Once asked he admits. This proves he is still sneaking down to raid kitchen but it is locked.
Nursery 8.45 - 5.30pm
Breakfast- 9am
Cornflakes x 2 -ate all
Snack 10am
Yogurt-ate all
Lunch- 12pm
cheesy fish pie ate all
Tea-3pm
egg sandwitches x 3
water melon x 4 slices

Picked lewis up at 5.30pm lewis had chicken , new potatoes, broccolii and peas x 2 child portions
Plum
asked for cereal at 7.10 pm, said no disracted with bath and bed at 7.30

Friday nursery 8.15pm-6pm

Breakfast-8.45am
Rice snaps x 2 ate all

snack 10am
1x plum

Lunch 12pm
Spagetti Bolegnese-ate all
3x pieces of water melon

Tea-3pm
potatoe wedges and dips
4x pieces of pineapple

Picked up at 6pm, was advised he was behaving inappropriatly and had spat at another child and bitten another child unprovoked. Brought home, show a lucky bag i had purchased for him as a treat but he was now not having, was explained to why it was naughty to act like this at nursery and asked why he did it- no response. Was told he was going to bed after supper and no story.
Supper- soup and wholemeal roll-refused and tantrumed due to no treat and being told off, tantrum continued for 20 mins so brought up to bed

aliasojo

Just in case it's of any interest, there's a prog on tv now about Prader Willi. Sky 3.

Savvy_Sue

FWIW, I had a friend whose motto was 'Feed the Crabby'.

I know it was a different schedule on Thursday and Friday, but going from 3 pm to 6.40 pm with nothing more than a plum may be more than he can handle. Mine were always given food as soon as we were through the door, or in the car if we were going straight out, often I confess a biscuit but more than a plum!

hngrymummy

Tish_P wrote: »

Animal protein is not the only protein. Beans, pulses and grains, including rice and wheat, contain protein. I think that menu looks very healthy.

edited to add: I'm not saying it isn't worth a go providing the higher protein foods suggested above. Just that "porridge contains next to no protein" is false. Oats are close to 20% protein, and if the porridge is made with milk that adds even more.

You beat me to it! I was going to post much the same thing. There is often an assumption that meat provides the only source of protein, which is just not true.

If he is craving carbs, could he be on a growth spurt or something? I'm currently a carb fiend as I'm pregnant (not that your son will be!!) and my body is demanding it. Sometimes it gets so bad that I have to go out of work in search of carbs! If he's getting a bad craving, then it will be harder for him to put it in to words than an adult, or maybe even understand what it is he's feeling, hence the tantrums.

Keep up with the food diary, and I hope you get some answers.