My 4 year old barely eats

[xxxJess123xxx]

hi all
my son is 4. he has always been very picky with food but he is getting worse and worse with eating.

he will eat a handful of foods. old "safe" foods like pasta he will now not eat.

He will only eat sweetcorn for veg
bananas and apples for fruit

breakfast will be half a bowl of cereal, if that
lunch, he will only eat choc spread sandwich. will only eat half
dinner is a nightmare. usually doesn't touch a thing

wont eat cheese, most veg, fruit, meat apart from nuggets, beans, pasta,pizza you name it, he wont eat it.

he is tired, pale and must be undernourished

I have tried bribery, offering and not making a big deal, something he likes on a plate with stuff he doesnt usually eat. im out of ideas

any help please

also just to note, he complains of tummy pain alot
he is on 3 movical sachets daily for chronic constipation

Have you seen your GP, health visitor or school nurse?

A referral to the dietician would be a good first step.

I see the GP for the constipation but not for the fussy eating no xx

Hi OP,

Considering he complains about a painful tummy, looks like there might be more going on than him just being a fussy eater?

I would definitely go and see a GP.

X

Iv just done a online consultation request for him to see the GP
im worried if they recommend a dietitian, the wait is so long

If he’s healthy and is a healthy weight I’d leave him alone. But if he’s complaining of pain you need to see the doctor. They can do blood tests for things like coeliac disease and stool tests for various other tummy bugs.

Thank you mhw I’ll definitely read up

is he just like this with your cooking? or does he eat when at restaurants/families houses

Whatsyour
he’s like it everywhere. Restaurants, family, preschool

Consider getting this bundle https://solidstarts.com/guides/picky-eating/

If you are solo parenting or facing economic hardship they will provide all of the guides for free. The founder has a severe picky eater who is now in recovery

Hi I'm in the same boat, movical sachets the lot except my son won't even eat pasta or a nugget it's crackers or bread or granola bars not even any fruit or veg no meat no cheese no potatoes. I brought him to the doctor for it and they referred me on to the paediatrics with him so appointment is coming up soon, I'm keeping a food diary at the minute to give them a good picture of what he eats so we can get straight to sorting out what to do. I'm really hoping they can help me. Maybe give it that a go?? It is very worrying I know.🙂

My son is 3 and a half.

I'd imagine the tummy pain is the constipation, so uncomfortable for them, I give my little man plenty to drink, like beaker finished, I fill it again and maybe once more. It really helps get things out🙃 Would he let you massage his little tummy sometimes??

My granddaughter is the exact same. She survived on cows milk till she was 3 and a half. She's now 4. She's just recently started having a tiny bowl of rice crispies. She's above average height, doing really well in her nursery class. HV said its nothing to worry about.

No way, did she eat nothing else?

Has he ever been disimpacted? I think he could be full of poo. Similar thing happened with my DD, except she was much younger. Cleared her out and she'd eat again. But constipation can be a sign of food allergies. Did he have cmpa or any other allergies? I'd push the GP for a bowel ultrasound or xray (but they don't like doing xrays, although they did on my DD).

Join "Movicol Mummies" on Facebook, it's a very helpful group.

My oldest was just like this - chronically constipated and with a very limited diet. I was backwards and forwards to the GP and child development centre for years.
We were just advised to keep offering food she would definitely eat, alongside one or two new things at mealtimes. I have to be honest, we had limited success. But she survived.
We discovered when she was a teen that she's lactose intolerant, and I'm sure that had so much to do with it.
She's an adult now, still super picky but healthy and happy.

Love a good news story ❤️

Claire 2630, Yes seriously just milk. When her Mum introduced solids she would take a couple spoonfuls of fruit puree and that was all. Rejected everything, just bottles of milk she would ask for when she started to speak. Said she wasn't hungry. Loves water too, still does. At nursery her lunch goes untouched her teacher says.

Oh my word, she just didn't want it, at least she's starting to eat now 🤞🙂

I read somewhere once that children need to see touch smell and feel good a number of times before they eat it. I think you should mix his plate with food he likes and food that he is unsure of so that even if he doesn't eat it he becomes familiar with it. Don't pressure him to eat just make mealtimes an enjoyable experience sit with him and talk about something other than food. Make sure you are consistent keep introducing him to different foods alongside his favourites.
Another trick is to hide veg inside the food that he does like so he is getting something in him. If he enjoys fruit smoothies try mixing with a bit of fresh spinach it doesn't have a taste and he can get in nutrients that way. Also if you make your own nuggets they are better than the frozen variety and you can mix them up with veg he will eat and veg that he doesn't like cut into bitesized pieces.

Could it be gluten intolerance? Have you tried him with gluten free rice crackers or popcorn? My son's best friend was a pale little weed with constant stomach problems until finally (when he was about 10, IIRC) he went on a gluten free diet.

Hi
I've just found this afternoon goggling for my dd (4) and this describes her perfectly! Even the movicol and stomach pains.
What happened in the end?