Feeding problems

[smartwoman202004]

Hi everyone im a mother of a 1 year old boy. he has had feeding problems since he was 6 weeks old where he would drink by bottle but wouldnt intake as much as he should ahve been for his age. he has been in and out of the hospital 5 times and no one has been able to diagnose him. the pediatrician says he has acid reflux disease and is on 2 types of meds. He is tube fed so all of his meds and liquid goes through his tube. he is hard to feed cause he gets aggitated or difficult to fee and sometimes dont want to eat. he is now off formula and is on source for kids which is like a protein shake. i was just wondering if anyone can give me advice or some techniques i can use to help his eating more enjoyable. also he spits up so any advice on that or how to avoid it. thanks

[lib and jrs mom]

gagging on food is something some kids grow out of.  i know my 6 year old daughter still does it.  when she goes out to eat with someone or to their house for a meal i tell them a list of things not to give her because if they do she is SURE to vomit.  jello is one thing that she always tells someone she loves, but will definitely throw up after the first bite.  i learned the foods she liked, but maybe couldn't handle the textures, and changed it enough for her.  an example of this.  when she was one she loved mashed potatoes, but gagged on the creamy texture.  so, i would put mashed potatoes into a pan and put them in the fridge.  once they became stiff i cut them up into little squares.  it was something i knew she wouldn't choke on because it was pureed, but is was firm enough from the refrigeration for her to chew and not gag so easily.

[smartwoman202004]

thanks this is helpful information. my son is increasing in his appetite now he eats his baby toddler jar foods great but the casserole one and ones with chunks he still gags alot on.when he has went into the hospital the doctors have called it FAILURE TO THRIVE i dunno if anyone has heard of this. right now my son has been taken away from us CAS took him blaming all this on us saying we neglected him, and malnutritioned him and didnt give him enough stimulation so im going through a rough time with that just because this has been going on since 6 weeks old and we are trying our best top get the best possible care for him and wanted him sent to a different hospital and seen by a different pediatrician to see if they knew why he has had these probs and what is causing it. but i will deffinetely try some of these techniques i ahve tried some of my own already but he vomits easily also dunno if the acid reflux causes alot of vomiting or not.

[AnnieBrooke]

Here is what one website says about it.  You probably know all of this, but it seemed like a good list of who should check over a child with very low weight for his age.  

"Children with failure to thrive need the help of their parents and a doctor. Sometimes, an entire medical team will work on the child's case.  In addition to the child's primary doctor, the team might include a nutritionist to evaluate the child's dietary needs and an occupational or speech therapist to help the caregiver and child develop successful feeding behaviors and address any sucking or swallowing problems the child might have. Occupational and speech therapists are often helpful because of their expertise in the muscular control that's involved in eating.  Because treatment of failure to thrive involves treating any disease or disorder causing the problem, specialists such as a cardiologist, neurologist, or gastroenterologist may also be part of the care team."

Good luck, I hope they find the cause soon.

[smartwoman202004]

thanks everyone this is helpful. i did research failure to thrive but alot of it relates to the parents and thats what the medical team is basically going by. this one doctor specializes in failure to thrive and CAS and everyone is going by her report on us this is why they are blaming it all on me and my hubby. I have 2 other children who are fine. i have asked a numerous of time to ahve him sent to sick childrens hospital in toronto and i finally got my referall he will be sent there when they are able to take him. right now he is 13 months and is only still in the 17Ibs range and is still below the 3rd percentile. he is also behind on his gross motor skills. and everyone is involved u name it they are involved to help him. im just hoping at this other hospital they find something that the dr.'s here arent. if not then the wanna operate on him and put in a permanent gastric tube in him through his stomach.