To ask what your fussy five year old eats?

[Slipshoddiness]

I’ve just gotten back from an appointment with dd’s paediatrician. She is concerned that dd has not put on any weight or grown taller in the last six months.

I have to weigh her again myself in three months and if she hasn’t gained any weight then she is going to have to see a dietician. She isn’t under weight.

I feel very guilty.

Dd has autism and has always been extremely fussy with food (well, proper food) I thought we were doing well because she had started to eat at least parts of meals if they are separated (like some bolognaise) but she never finishes anything.

She’d eat chocolate and chips until the cows come home, which I don’t give her often, but the paediatrician said not to just to give up and feed her sugar, but to add in calories and healthy fats.

I’m sat here at a loss as to what I can do to get her to eat healthy fats (try cream in her porridge and extra olive oil in her bolignaise is as far as I’ve gotten) or even just more food in general.

Do/Did you have any fussy eaters? Any tips on how to get more healthy calories in to them?

Thanks 🙏

My phone can’t accept the word bolognese.

I had a thread on this last week or so - my son is 5 and suspected to have HFA.

I’ll find a link to it but in the last year we’ve made masses of progress but we still have meltdowns if he’s stressed with it.

I don't have a five year old but my brother was very much like this (he's now an adult with a healthy appetite) doctor suggested milkshakes, we'd call them smoothies now. Frozen bananas blended with full fat milk, spoonful of peanut butter and or a drizzle of honey. He thought he was getting a treat, but it was one of the things that helped him to gain weight (he was under weight as a child)

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/3268632--to-tell-you-about-my-son-s-eating

Ah the smoothies idea is great, thank you.

Also thank you for the link to the thread, sounds very similar! I’ll take a look now.

Fun-shaped fish fingers with tomato ketchup,
those skinny chipolata sausages (fairy sausages),
smiley face pizzas,
a tangerine segment & slice of banana on a cocktail stick,
pea & ham soup through a curly transparent straw (winter)
puff pastry cheese twists made with olive oil
Three layer sandwiches - a roll sliced into three layers with ham in one layer and dairy lea in the other

home made banana smoothies

Some good sources of healthy fats for children:

Full fat dairy
Avocado
Nuts
Seeds
Coconut or olive oil

What does she like to eat? Best to start with something familiar and try and sneak it in.

You could try adding an egg to milkshakes, or cooking in coconut oil. I usually put a smear of cream cheese and avocado under beans on toast, for example, to up the calorie content, or hummus on a ham and cheese sandwich. Banana and full fat yoghurt 'ice cream'? Does she do dips - guacamole or cream cheese dips could be snacks? Peanut butter in smoothies. Proper egg mayonnaise with fish or egg? Woudl she snack on trail mix with chocolate and nuts and seeds?

Protein powder can also be added to a lot of foods.

My DS has Aspergers. He was a terrible eater. Truly I despaired. At one point he was having fish fingers 3 or 4 times a day because it was literally all he would eat. He is a strapping adult now, and very healthy. Please, try not to worry too much - though I know how hard that is.

My dc aren’t really fussy or as old as yours so I’ve no personal experience but I wonder if any of these suggestions would help;

Would she drink a milkshake ( full fat milk, bit of cream, some fruit) ? My nephew was very fussy as a young child but would always take a milkshake.

Does she like cheese? Make cheese muffins or cheese straws?

Frozen bananas have a nice ice cream texture when blended up ( just make sure you leave the banana out of the freezer a few minutes before blending so they aren’t rock hard on your blended blades)

Mash potato? Cream can be added

Does she like peanut butter? On toast, in porridge, even spread on a cracker.

Does she eat yoghurt? You could add a couple of spoons of cream to that