11 year old son will only eat what he likes

[chippy]

I have an 11 year old son who diet consists of gammon, cheese, pasta, white bread, burger,jammie dodger biscuits & lemonade, sausages but not the skin, cheese biscuits. When he was four he was diagnosed as sensitive to additives which makes him hyperactive. I controlled this by cutting out all additives, colours etc. Which was really difficult to start with when he see other children getting sweets, but worth it as he was like a different child, much calmer.
We try & get him to try other foods but hes made up his mind he wont like it before he has even tried it. We are worried he is not getting enough nutrients, he is about four & half stone & looks very thin, he is always pale. I recently took him to the doctors as for months hes poo has basically been just brown water, they ran several blood tests, 1 for chrons disease & gluton intolorance, also took a stool sample all came back negative. To eat a meal takes him about one & half hours by which time it is cold & he wont eat it anyway. He will also drinks about one & half pints of lemonade. As a baby & toddler he was a really good eater & I always made sure he had fresh homemade food i weaned him on blended vegtables, at about 18 months old his father left the home, for a while i didnt do much cooking as there was just the two of us & i feel his eating was never the same. He has long feet size four & half & large hands so i know he is going to be tall, his father was 5'11. If its something he likes, he will eat loads so he is hungry, but with something new hes almost sick.
We have tried ignoring it, bribing him, staying at the table til his tried it, having his mates round to eat it with him, but we are worried & at our wits end, we get annoyed & frustrated with him & he often starts crying. We dont know what else to try. It is embarassing to take him to friends to dinner.
I have also noticed for several years, he seems to go through phases of a compulsive order, where he has to kiss everything he picks up, or touch everything several times, or put things on his head before he can use them, hes school teacher told me he cant get on with his work til all 30 class rulers are put away, otherwise he cant settle & concentrate, so the teacher makes him collect them so he knows they are all there in the right place & he can settle. Certain things he has to have in the right place at home to. School tells me he is a really bright boy& doing very well in all subjects, very interested in art & football, although other children take the micky out of being so thin.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

Relative to the latter observations, your son displays symptoms typical of Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. It is likely, though not by any means obvious, that this also plays a role in his eating habits. It would be wise to arrange an evaluation with a pediatric mental health professional.
Relative to the eating habits themselves, many children have a very limited diet, and this in itself is not a need for worry. The key point to address is whether he is developing normally. His stools should be formed, not watery, and this is a sign of a problem. One thought that occurs to me is that, since he was eating normally until the departure of his father, he may be experiencing a depressive reaction to the loss ofhis father.When young children suffer the loss of a close person, particularly a parent, diminished appetite is often a sign of the melancholy they experience. This matter can be investigated by the clinician as well.
Finally, consider the possibility that he may have sensory issues and this variable can be investigated by an occupational therapist.

[JoAnnaRF]

On top of what the Doc said, I just wanted to add that maybe you could see a Dietician for some pointers and to make sure he is eating properly. I have 5 children, and initially as a young mother I worried over their diet. The pediatrician told me that their weight was in the Normal range and that children, if allowed and given the opportunity, WILL balance thier own diet. My daughter sat one day and ate 3 or 4 helpings of nothing but black eyed peas. She left the chicken, potatoes and bread completely alone. Well, next day all she wanted was potatoes and green beans. I have always allowed them to eat what they wanted. And no I don't mean ice cream and candy, LOL but I never made them clean their plates or eat all of their vegetables. I would offer them a well balnced meal and let them eat what they wanted from the plate. By the end of the week, they had taken in all of the requirements for a balanced diet. They are all older now, ages 10-17 and they are all healthy and none are overweight or underweight. To this day, they still make the right choices when eating. So I can only conclude that the Peditrician was right 16 years ago. Try not to worry. Encourage him to eat properly and give him options. If all he wants to eat today is potatoes, then let him eat potatoes. Tomorrow, it might be spinach, LOL who knows! Good luck to you both!
--J

[smile4me]

Thanks for the tips. I hope it works for us,we have been after this for years and can't seem to get anywhere with it. I have talked with the Doctor about this and she doesn't seemed worried. There has to be a answer to this problem. Now it is time to find the answer and get him to start eating so he can be a heathly young man.



                                      Thank You Again
                                            Heather