Jimmy is not eating much. At 19 months, it's getting pretty worrisome. He's also stopped growing vertically and his weight gain is extremely slow. He's gone from 95th percentile in weight at birth to 5th percentile and dropping. We thought we'd gotten him eating well in the last month or so, but he's now stopped again. He just doesn't want to eat, only wants the boob! There are some things about him that worry me. He's very pale. I know this can be a sign of anemia. Since he's noy eating well we're giving him half a flintstone vitamin daily. He has a bunch of patches of skin with no pigment. As he gets older and exposed to the sun I notice more. I have read that these can be related to autoimmune diseases, some connected to the intestines, that can cause malabsorption of vitamins and cause anemia etc. and failure to thrive. Maybe eating makes him uncomfortable so he refuses food? I wonder if there is something wrong with his throat? He tries to gag himself a lot, sometimes even makes himself vomit. When he was born they shoved a bunch of tubes down his throat and sucked the crud from his lungs. Could they have damaged his throat in some way that would make eating uncomfortable? I am so worried! Am I just being overanxious or should I really be upset?
Could he be a celiac? I know as a vegan you're pretty limited and rely on grains a lot, but maybe you should try eliminating all gluten-containing foods from his diet.
Last night DH and I had a long talk about it and he feels I'm not being oversensitive, that there is something not quite right. Hippy, I was thinking maybe celiac. Thats the least awful of all the awful things it could possibly be. So I'm going to make an appointment with the ped and we're going to outline all our concerns. So far though, he seems to be of the belief that if we cut out the boob, he would start eating and thriving. I'm REALLY reluctant to do that. If something IS wrong then I've just eliminated the one constant source of nourishment he gets. And I have tried putting my foot down and saying no to nursing as he suggested. It doesn't make him eat. He gets really distressed and stops eating ENTIRELY! Any ideas on how I can bring this stuff up to the Dr. so he'll see our concerns more seriously? Is there a test for celiac disease?
On a positive note, he's REALLY smart and healthy in every other way! Lately he's obsessed with "War Wars" (Star Wars). He thinks he's a "Dedi" (Jedi)!
Get a better doctor? Seriously. I have never understood how people can have a doctor that doesn't listen to them! If I told my doctor that I thought Manny wasn't eatting properly and that I was concerned there might be a food allergy she would have me in for screening the next day. In fact, if Manny had dropped that large of a percentile, I doubt I would even have to mention it to her... she would tell ME that she was ordering tests. Get a better doctor. Find someone who is proactive about your family's health. Until then, say "As you have probably noticed, my childs weight has dropped dramatically in the past X months. I am concerned about his eatting and food absorbtion rates. I am also concerned that he may be having a reaction to something that he is eating. Will you please check this out?"
A dip in growth from 95% to 5% is alarming and I'd had to find a doctor who didnt need to be told that.
The best test is to just eliminate all gluten exposure (even on pans, pots, plates, utensils, cups, etc). After a month, evaluate how he's changed. Maybe give it 3 months so you can see any real weight/eating/attitude differences. Keep a daily journal of how much he eats now, his attitude, find a good scale and weigh him daily. Then keep it going. Find a new doctor. Especially if he is a celiac, he needs a sensitive, understanding, knowledgable doctor. And any doctor that isn't all out alarmed in such a drastic weight loss, and just attacks bfing just isn't a good doctor. *hugs* Hope this helps!
Is he losing weight or just losing percentile points? If he is actually losing weight it could be a serious problem. If it's just percentile points he could be leveling out on his growth. Still this much of a change is something to check into. I agree with everyone else about getting a better doctor. And the gluten thing. Our first peed kept telling us that Dakota's problems could not be related to food allergies or the immunizations. It took a chiropractor to figure everything out. The doctor started screaming at me about taking him to a chiro but I took him anyway. It was the immunizations that caused all kinds of food allergies and sensitivities. Fortunately he has outgrown most of them now. But hestill reacts to some foods. Find a doctor who will listen to you. We did and it really helped. Kathi
He hasn't LOST any weight, he's just not growing. We're going to try the gluten free diet and see how that helps. DH thinks that may be the problem with his bowels, the symptoms fit him to a tee and it would explain where J possibly got it. The Ped doesn't bash breastfeeding exactly, he's just not very concerned about J yet, thinking that it's the boob keeping him from eating. The Ped is actually vegetarian and a very well known Dr. He has a radio show and everything. He came highly recommended by a vegan friend whose DD has seen him since birth and he's very supportive of our diet. That's why I'm hesitant to go somewhere else where possibly our lifestyle could be faulted by someone who knows jack about nutrition and then we could have trouble. I've started a food journal. Hippy, what do you mean about cross contamination? Should I throw out all my cooking utensils, or do you just mean don't stir the gluten food with one spoon and then stir the non-gluten with it without washing? Also, I'm going on the diet too anyway but, do the gluten proteins get into the milk? Thanks for all the feedback!
He hasn't LOST any weight, he's just not growing. We're going to try the gluten free diet and see how that helps. DH thinks that may be the problem with his bowels, the symptoms fit him to a tee and it would explain where J possibly got it. The Ped doesn't bash breastfeeding exactly, he's just not very concerned about J yet, thinking that it's the boob keeping him from eating. The Ped is actually vegetarian and a very well known Dr. He has a radio show and everything. He came highly recommended by a vegan friend whose DD has seen him since birth and he's very supportive of our diet. That's why I'm hesitant to go somewhere else where possibly our lifestyle could be faulted by someone who knows jack about nutrition and then we could have trouble. I've started a food journal. Hippy, what do you mean about cross contamination? Should I throw out all my cooking utensils, or do you just mean don't stir the gluten food with one spoon and then stir the non-gluten with it without washing? Also, I'm going on the diet too anyway but, do the gluten proteins get into the milk? Thanks for all the feedback!
Well, gluten intolerance varies ALOT between people. Some people can't eat anything off of a table that had play-dough on it 6 hours before, and then was scrubbed and disinfected. Other people can tolerate mixing bowls being shared between gf and gluten. But for a TRUE elimination diet, it's best to use different utensils/plates and bowls/cooking ware. *hugs* It's hard for people with meat-eater diets to go gf. I really hope you have an easier time!
When Dakota was reacting to the immunizations, he actually started losing weight. He lost 2 to 3 pounds which doesn't sound like much, but whenyou only weigh 20 pounds it's a lot. Instead of looking at what was making him lose weight his crackpot doctor tried to tell me he had cerebral palsy. She never would admit to immunization injury. We finally took him back to a very basic diet which consisted mostly of rice. He drank rice milk and ate rice. He could also eat some fruits and vegetables, but he didn't really like the texture of them. We also put him on probiotics and a German herbal mixture called Iberogast to help heal his tummy. He had been taking Zantac twice a day tohold down any food at all. The day after we started the Iberogast, we threw away the Zantac. Within a week we were able to start weaning him off the steroids he was taking for his asthma. It took over a year to heal his little body. But now he is a strong healthy 55 pounds. He doesn't take any supplements any more and he can eat almost anything he wants. He is still very intolerant to milk, but he can eat cheese, yogurt, and ice cream. Milk will cause immediate asthma symptoms. But if it is processed in any way, heated or whatever, he can tolerate it. He has been free of all symptoms for well over 2 years. For him it was the immunizations that caused the whole thing. But it doesn't matter what the cause is, what matters is helping your son get relief. For us, it was a wonderful and loving chiropracter who was able to guide us through the recovery process. Dakota still has problems with certain textures but he is getting better all the time. I would suggest finding a good alternative health care professional to assist you. Find a new peed and tell the one you have now why you are leaving her office. Take your son's diet back to very basics and unfortuantely for you as well so nothing passes through your milk to him. We bought the baby acidolphilus (sp) and the Iberogast at Whole Foods. The nutritionist there can help you with dosage amounts. I'm thinking we gave Dakota 15 drops twice a day in a small amount of liquid. Good luck on getting your little guy back on the road to health. Kathi
