Could my 8 year old have Anorexia?

[jewell1117]

My 8 year old son began as a very large baby.  At 6 months he weighed 24 lbs!  At about 8 months for no known reason he started refusing his bottles.  The Dr. gave the Ok for us to start him on whole milk instead of formula thinking that might taste better to him.  He would refuse that as well and did not like the introduction to solid foods at all!  The Doctors said he would out grow this and not to worry, he'll eat when he's hungry!  ( That still has not happened).  At about five years old they finally started doing sensory testing and everything came back normal.  So then we put him into counseling which seemed to make things worse.  He then seemed to have a true FEAR of food.  If you try to make him eat he will cry.  We thought  peer pressure would work, seeing his friends at parties eating, but it has not.  He has a variety of foods in his diet of a two year old.  He has never tried any meat beside chicken, he is a good milk drinker and thats probably kept him alive so far.  We have tried everything and I guess I need to know....Is it possible for him to have a form of Anorexia?  I have never heard of a child so young, plus being male.  We are at a loss as to what to do, so any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[jewell1117]

They checked his throat and everything physically is fine.  I definately am leaning toward a phobia.  He seems to have true fear of trying new foods.  I do notice he has a fear of getting fat, which made me think Anorexia, but he is still very young.  I pray in time things will turn around for him..  Someday I am afraid he be sooo mad that he never met his growth potential because of this.  Thanks for your help:)

[Sholow]

Also another thing, Maybe he has problems with swallowing?

[Sholow]

Immediately I thought of sensory processing disorder but you said he was tested for it so i guess that rules that one out! Another thought is OCD? My son is dxed with high functioning autism/aspergers synd. and has sensory issues and ocd issues galore and he is a very finicky eater at best tho he has opened up recently. Before he lived off of frozen waffles and milk. Id look up OCD otherwise if could be a phobia of some sort, i HAVE heard of that but i dont know the name of it. Maybe some sort of food anxiety? Just brainstorming here! I hope you find something to help you son, it must be difficult for you all and especially difficult for him. Good luck!

[Renee Radenberg]

His weight is just below the 10th percentile and his height is above the 50th percentile for his age which indicates he is normal for his age. Whatever he is eating it is keeping him in the Growth Chart. Children that age do not usually have anorexia. Have you tried is to engage him in the kitchen more because they usually love to be a part of making food. Have him help you with preparation of food and setting the table. Hopefully this will increase his interest in other types of food. Important part is to relax and do not make a big deal about what he eats or does not eat at meals. Introduce new foods and If he does not want them do not make a fuss, just let it go and give him food he wants. Try again in a few weeks. It takes about 5-9 times to introduce a new food to 'picky eater' children. Suggest giving him a chewable daily children's multi-vitamin so he does get all the needed vitamins and minerals. The Child Behavior Forum may give you additional information. Hoped this helped you.