Not eating enough, always full

[KarlsRhys]

I have a 14 year old who is on Vyvanese, it is working great, but he has lost weight and Im trying to get him eat high protein meals, any ideas on what I should give him. He is very stubborn and doesnt like the taste of up and go, please anything that may help.

[Eclecticentric77]

Hi there, I have 2 recomendations

1. There is an organic protein drink called Orgain that is similar to a multivitamin and has multiple extra nutrients from vegetables and some fruit. It also has 16gm of protein, that way the meals he eats won't have to be as big. The drinks also thankfully have a good taste and come in multiple flavors.

2. I take a supplement called Lemon Balm to lift my Acetylcholine levels and slighty raise my GABA levels (two neurotransmitters low in people with ADHD). Great for working out/endurance , and also increases my apetite a bit.

[jjblake]

Our son has been on about 7 different medications until we found one that seemed to have the least amount of side effects (some had huge effects on hunger levels; some minimal). It was a 2-year long process, but I'm glad we persevered. We have learned to let him eat as much as he likes when he's hungry - even if it's 8:30pm or so at night and time to get ready for bed (he is 13). We emphasize protein and aren't concerned about fats; he is naturally thin and says it bothers him when others call him skinny. Our response is that as long as he is healthy and eating a (mostly) balanced diet, he shouldn't worry about what other kids say. We also supplement multi purpose vitamin with omega-3.

[Sainy in reply to jjblake]

Hi JJblake,

My daughter who is 11 years old. I turned down the Dr, preception the medicine for her ADHD when I found my daughter was losing weight drastically. She is now really healthy but her ADHD is not letting her focus on her home work

[Terrilynn04]

How long has he been on it? I went to an ADHD seminar and they said that most kids adjust to the eating after a couple months. My daughter started Ritalin 5 months ago and has started to eat normally again when she’s on it.

[KarlsRhys in reply to Terrilynn04]

Its been about 6 months now, so hopefully you are right. He has always been a picky eater since turning 2.

So hopefully there is a turn around, we also find when he has a growth spurt he tends to go up and thins out.

[desrada]

My 15 year old has been on Adderall for four months now, and he has the same issue with lack of appetite. I used to be able to give him a large breakfast before giving him his ADHD med and then he would eat dinner. Now that his stomach has shrunk from not eating as much, he only eats half his breakfast and won't touch dinner until later and later in the day. I'm just as concerned as you, and try to make sure that the food he does eat is as nutritious as possible. I'm hoping his body will get used to the meds and his appetite will normalize, as his doctor said. However, it's definitely worrying that the kid doesn't eat enough, especially in these crucial growing years.

[KarlsRhys]

Thanks for your message. I dont want to change his meds as they are working well. But tet again another obstacle to work through. We even tried up n go but he said yuck to this. Its also very hard when he is stubborn.

[eperez18]

Our 8 year sees a Nutritionist now because in addition to ADHD we learned that he has Gilbert’s Syndrome (mainly problems with liver and processing bilirubin levels- at birth we didn’t know that was the reason why his bilirubin levels were so high). The ADHD meds he is on decreases his appetite and caused him to lose weight quickly and in turn slowed down his growth tremendously. His Pediatric GI specialists (yeah, in addition to his Psychiatrists and Nutrionists he sees another doctor) monitors his Gilbert’s Syndrome and she along with his Nutrionists have given me a lot of ideas on how to sneak in some extra calories in his diet. For instance, in the mornings, for breakfast, I either make him a banana milk shake and I add some Carnation powdered milk in addition to his milk and he has no idea. The powdered milk adds more grams of protein and calories. I also make him eat one Chonani Greek yogurt and I mix about 1 tbsp of the Carnation powdered milk or Nestle’s Benecalorie (which can only be bought online). The Benecalorie is tasteless and it is loaded up with calories and protein. You can even mix it in their favorite drink or prepare meals with it. Another thing he likes to drink during his lunch at school is Nestle’s Boost Breeze drinks (which is something that can only be purchased online). These items do get a bit pricey but it is helping our child have more energy throughout the day at school and in his after school activities.