Dd1 always so pale, poor eater.

[Marne]

Hi ,i have also posted this in SN.

My 6 year old dd1 has Aspergers and has a limited diet, i try to feed her healthy food but she refuses to eat it. Please don't tell me i should give her veg and if she doesn't eat it she will go hungry, i have tried this and dd1 refused to eat anything for days, he condition means she has a lot of sensory issues with food. So heres my post :

Starting to get worried about dd1 (6), she's always been a picky eater (lives on pizza, chips, smiles and sausages), she will not touch Veg or any meat (other than a sausage). Up until now she has always looked healthy but skinny, since the summer she seems to have been ill 2 times a month (mainly with colds and temps), in the past few days she has look really pale and her eyes are slightly sunken. She was off of school last week with a cold and now D&V is going around the school (maybe she's coming down with this?).

She's also very constipated which must be making her feel rough, she poo's every day but its like rabbit poo (sorry if TMI).

I'm worried that she's not getting enough iron as she refuses to eat veg or red meat, she will eat fruit (mainly berries) but is only really eating 1 portion a day.

I give her multi Vit tablets but these don't contain Iron. Is it possible to get iron supliment for children?

Should i be taking her to the GP to ask for advice?

Which are the best suplements/vit to give her?

bump, i'm not sure if i should take her to the GP's tomorrow for a check up, i'm worried as she looks ill.

Hi, my ds is a poor eater, pale and anaemic. Boots do a multi vit with iron called complete a-z cheweble tablets - their own make. My ds is also on iron on prescription called Sytron which is very pleasant tasting.. I would take her to the doctor and ask for her to go on it - it hasnt made him constipated which could be a side effect but he does eat a lot of fruit so maybe thats why... taking it on top of constipated may be a problem - have you tried lactulose for her - to loosen her up a bit - the doc can prescribe this too...maybe she could take iron in the morning and lactulose at bed time??

hi marne i would take her to gp for check up but have noticed with my ds ASD that when his constipated he looks awful

i use boots vitamins its liquid form called tonic tastes orange i think this also contains iron

also do you get lactulose or senna for her as my ds gets both from gp

but also my ds goes so pale if coming down with something he looks awful so its also possible she may be getting this bug thing going about

if she eats sausages could you get the ones that are also stuffed with veg or would she refuse these

I have lactulose at home for dd2 and have given it to dd1 in the past.

I have been out and bought her lots of fruit for when she gets home from school. I think i will try and get her to the GP tomorrow and see if he thinks she's anemic. She looks really ill but seems happy she also has really dry lips at the moment which is making her look even worse.

oh bless her its this weather though as well im looking really pale with dry cracked lips too

bubble- if she spots anything veg looking in her food she refuses to eat anything at all, if she spots anything green in her food she gets very upset. She did say this morning that she like celery so i have got her some to go in her lunch box tomorrow.

U need to get really crafty, try making soups/caseroles where you liquidise veg & some meat into a sauce, no way she would see anything vegy-looking in mine! I had to do that with my ds for years, still do soups like that. One mum I know said to her fussy dd that she has to eat some meat to grow healthy - it did work!!

Also, make fancy omelettes with olives, ham, mushrooms, onions, garlic, herbs (parsley v. good for iron!), get her used to a variety of things on the plate for colour. Then change/tweak things one at the time for variety again.

Make compotes with all sorts of fruits and/or use jelly to set them into a desert - far better then shop-bought coz they can be almost raw (ed chopped up apple, strawbs, pretty much anything really.

well thats a start isn't it bless her i guess smoothies are out the question

Spatone (mineral water sachets very high in natural iron) is suitable for children over 2, I think. You can put it in juice to disguise the rather metallic flavour. The problem with iron tablets is that they may make her stomach problems worse. This doesn't happen with spatone because it is absorbed better.

Eggs are high in iron.

I hope you sort something out - it must be very worrying. I'm sure that the ladies on the SN board will have loads of great advice!

I told her we could make a chart with new foods on and she can tick or cross them after she has tried them (the problem is getting her to try things as she decides she doesn't like them by looking at them).

Even bought her a fillet steak to try, she only hates meat because she struggles to chew it so maybe a tender steak might tempt her (if not i will be happy to eat it for her).

slow cooked meat from a casserole or something wouldn't require much chewing - it would practically melt in her mouth. Might that be an option?

yep, my ds could't do chewing for years, so I used to make my own nuggets with mince & loads of onions, mushrooms, egg, herbs - that was OK for him. But when smal cooked pieces were liquidised into nothingness, he would not bat an eyelid.
Mine doesn't do beans even now(I think it's the beans more then the sauce he didn't like), but would eat thick home-made veg-tomato sauce as in spag bog type food.

or maybe tell her what's good about a particular food and how it will make gher grow (carrots to see in the dark etc), I said crafty, didn't I?

Marne, will she eat chicken? It's not as high in iron as red meat but it's not as bad as processed meat. Homemade chicken nuggets are yummy, and if you make the coating out of crushed cornflakes it has added iron.

When she's really hungry i can get her to eat chicken (in the form of a nugget). She might be more likely to eat something different if she helps to cook it (she loves making pizza).

Regarding the iron, try giving her spatone. It's fab!

We're veggie and I worry about my fussy DC's iron intake. Only downside is that it's £££ (£6.50ish for 30 sachets).

Thanks i will look at spatone, can you get it from the GP?

hmmm i don't think so. might be worth asking though!

DS is on Dalivit (prescription)

Could you do a pizza sauce with various veg?

Is there anyone local to you who can give you specific support given that your child has sn? Is there a support group accessible through parent partnership?

Just an aside, but my ds was pale, sunken eyes, had poor appetite before being diagnosed with diabetes - if your dd starts being very thirsty and visiting the loo a lot then get her seen quickly by a gp.