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Underweight teenage son

2 replies

ToffeeWhirl · 16/07/2013 14:58

I'm really worried about my 13-year-old son's weight. He is 4ft 9inches (144 cm) and weighs only 4 stone 4 pounds (about 27 kilos). He has OCD and anxiety issues and we see a psychiatrist for him regularly, who is equally concerned about his weight. Part of the problem is that he worries about food contamination, so he will often refuse to eat things. He is now seeing a CBT therapist who is about to start tackling these worries, so I'm hoping that this will improve.

In the meantime, I am trying to encourage him to eat three meals and three snacks a day, at least. I have had informal advice from a friend who is a nutritionist, so I am adding extra butter, cheese, dressing, cream etc. to everything I can. I have also just bought him some Complan to further supplement his diet.

I'm not sure if I should take him to a GP to see a consultant, as I don't know what more they would do or if it is necessary, particularly as the psychiatrist is on the case and weighs him at every visit. But I'm so worried now that I just want to do everything I can to help him.

Also, my nutritionist friend says DS should be getting at least 2200 calories a day and I am finding it really hard to get that amount of calories into him.

Apart from looking skinny as a rake, DS also feels tired a lot of the time, which may be a result of his low weight. It is hard to get him outside and doing exercise because of his anxiety issues.

Has anyone else had any experience of this?

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Charmingbaker · 16/07/2013 20:35

It is definitely worth taking him to see your GP. It is possible that his tiredness is down to a vitamin D or iron deficiency, or there could be an underlying condition.
A simple blood test should be able to show if anything is up. It would also be worth taking your sons red book if you still have it, that would show if he has dropped a centile band since he was younger.

ToffeeWhirl · 16/07/2013 21:47

He had a blood test a few weeks ago which came back normal, Charming. Sorry, I should have mentioned that. Still, I am wondering if I should get him seen professionally about his weight on a regular basis. I didn't want him to know I was worried about it, but feel it's too much of an issue to hide now. Good idea to take the red book.

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