Weight loss 13 year old

[Pjtime]

DS has been losing weight over the past few weeks.
DS has an autoimmune condition, he’s currently taking a low dose (10mg) of steroids. Usually the steroids would cause DS to gain weight as his appetite would increase.
DS was highly anxious at the end of the school year and his appetite decreased. As a result I checked his weight and was surprised to see he had lost a few lbs.

His specialist nurse suggested DS was checked by the GP for underlying issues which could be causing his weight loss as it’s unusual. The GP thought it maybe related to the steroids DS and prescribed omeprazole. This was two weeks ago.
DS is still continuing to lose weight (his anxiety has decreased now school is over and he does seem to be eating more), he’s lost 8 lbs in just under 5 weeks.

I need to take him back to the GP but was wondering if anyone had any idea of what I can ask them to look for.

This sounds a bit unusual and in the presence of a complex autoimmune condition you may not get loads of useful fruit from the tree of Mumsnet BUT celiac worth a test if not already checked for at some point in his care.

Depending on how talkative he is likely to be on the day at the doctors' you might want to try to get a sense from him beforehand at home where he feels safe what are the reasons around him not wanting to eat - feeling full? makes him nauseated? food tastes bad? etc. As this age group not always the most forthcoming in consultations.

I would consider asking for blood tests including coeliac, and maybe a finger prick test for sugar while you are there? Some autoimmune diseases increase the risk of diabetes, and steroids can also increase the risk.
Just a few lbs could be nothing, but given his history certainly get him checked out and check his weight on the same scales every week or two.

Thanks I’ll ask about coeliacs.

Getting answers about of a 13 year old boy with asd/adhd is near impossible so it does help to have an idea of what sort of questions to ask him. Will look into coeliacs and see if anything fits. I do ask him to weigh and send me a picture and looking back he was 124.6lbs on 20th June and is 116.4lbs today with all weights in between showing a decrease.
One of my children was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis last year so I think I’m feeling over anxious about these kind of symptoms.