Dietitians??? Protein powder and kids - any thoughts???

[freckles and boo]

Recently we put our younger daughter, who is five, on the Daytrana patch. She is autistic and has ADHD. It was a long, difficult decision but it has made a world of difference in her ability to sit, pay attention, and learn! She is really doing well. However, one of the side effects is a lack of appetite during the middle of the day. She eats a good breakfast and we can usually get some dinner in her, but she doesn't eat any lunch at all and she has lost three pounds in the last four weeks. She is only 39 pounds so we don't want her to drop much more weight. Has anyone added protein powder to things like yogurt or pancakes help children maintain or gain weight? If so, what kind? Whey? Soy? I have been researching but much of what I am finding comes from manufacturers and since supplements tend to be unregulated I am not sure who to trust. Other thoughts on boosting her calorie intake would be welcome, too.

(PS - If you want to make a comment about medicating children or debate whether ADHD actually exists please start your own thread. It isn't up for discussion.)

 

[vettechick99]

Sure can't hurt. My mom tried to get me to drink those protein shakes because I was always skinny as a kid. I hated them so she didn't get very far with me.

Try and be sneaky with your tactics. I think tofu has a lot of protein and you can sneak that in and she won't realize it.

I also know they make some sort of medicine that helps ADHD kids with their appetite. I don't know what it's called, but it works and has saved many of my students from going off their meds because of this annoying side effect.

 

[FreshTressa]

Not a dietitian but my kids love shakes made with designer whey protein. I make them for me with fruit, milk and ice and they always want me to make extra for them.

 

[htmom]

I know the feeling, our six year old ds just made it to 35lbs. He has PDD and some sensory issues and is on meds. (he just started them) I would suggest talking to your ped. Awhile back ds was drinking pediasure drinks but I wouldn't suggest it unless the dr agrees.

 

[sha_lyn]

I'm not a dietitian but here's my thoughts on the matter....

I would avoid the soy protein because of the links between soy and early puberty/development in girls. If her appetite is low I would also be concerned about too much protein putting her into ketosis
I believe they make a powder for weight gain that is made up of complex carbs.

When my grandmother wouldn't eat the Dr said to have her drink 2-3 carnation instant breakfast a day. It is pretty close to Ensure or pedi-sure and cost a fraction of the price.


Best bet would be to talk to her ped and ask what the best thing to add would be.

 

[MareQ]

I would ask for a referral to a Nutritionist so you can discuss this with them. There's a lot of things they can help you with to boost the foods your DD is eating. In addition you can use Pediasure or Carnation Instant breakfast to boost the liquids. I send Pediasure in with DS's snack for school.

My DS is 9.5 and just broke the 40 lb mark. We monitor everything we put in him. A 3 lb loss for him would take close to 2 years for him to regain at his current growth rate.

Congrats on the success with the meds. We tried them with my DS 2 years ago and got nothing but facial ticks and the loss of appetite scared me to death with him. He just cannot afford to lose weight period! We're trying Nordic Naturals oils now to see if we can get some improvement with attention that way. I hope you can find the perfect balance for her so you don't have to worry about the weight

 

[Mickey~Mouse]

I'm not a dietitian but here's my thoughts on the matter....

I would avoid the soy protein because of the links between soy and early puberty/development in girls. If her appetite is low I would also be concerned about too much protein putting her into ketosis
I believe they make a powder for weight gain that is made up of complex carbs.

When my grandmother wouldn't eat the Dr said to have her drink 2-3 carnation instant breakfast a day. It is pretty close to Ensure or pedi-sure and cost a fraction of the price.


Best bet would be to talk to her ped and ask what the best thing to add would be.

that is not hte soy that is doing it, it is bgh. bovine growth hormone that is in your milk.
I am a nutrionist and I would talk to your ped. and find out what they would recomment.

 

[freckles and boo]

Thanks for the replies! We have an appointment with our pediatrician next Tuesday so I will ask for her opinions and a referral to a nutritionist or dietitian. It was like pulling teeth to get the last referral so I am not sure how lucky we will be, but it is worth a try. As for the growth hormone, we are now giving our girls organic milk with the hope that they will not hit puberty prematurely. I just wasn't sure about the difference between soy vs. whey. I also know that some people believe there are dietary concerns with the autism although our child really has tolerated all foods well and doesn't have any "leaky gut" issues. She has benefitted greatly from sensory therapy so we haven't dealt with any dietary approaches. The weight loss is just something we haven't had any experience with.

 

[Imzadi]

Have you read Jenny McCarthy's book that just came out? On Larry King she mentioned taking out & adding certain foods really helped her son's autism. Maybe some of her suggestions (along with a nutritionist's) can help you pick which protein powder or other suppliments.

Here's the Amazon link:
Louder Than Words: A Mothers Journey

 

[sha_lyn]

that is not hte soy that is doing it, it is bgh. bovine growth hormone that is in your milk.
I am a nutrionist and I would talk to your ped. and find out what they would recomment.

Mmmmm.... You might be a nutritionist, but you need to read up on plant estrogen. both soy and wild yam are used as natural female hormones for HRT

 

[bicker]

Let's not start casting aspersions on fellow members. The reality is that there is no consensus on this. The science is not advanced enough to know whether doing certain things are good, bad or indifferent. What's worse is that there is no consensus regarding which direction is most conservative. Following one nutritionist's advice could be worse than following another's, with no way to tell which approach, or whether following neither approach, is least invasive.

 

[grlpwrd]

Let's not start casting aspersions on fellow members. The reality is that there is no consensus on this. The science is not advanced enough to know whether doing certain things are good, bad or indifferent. What's worse is that there is no consensus regarding which direction is most conservative. Following one nutritionist's advice could be worse than following another's, with no way to tell which approach, or whether following neither approach, is least invasive.

Translation, please. lol j/k

sha lyn, you may not be a nutritionist, but what you posted is exactly what my dh's nutritionist said and my diabetic dietician told me. They gave us literature on it, too.

 

[bicker]

In case my earlier message was a bit to vague: Reasonable nutritionists disagree about what is right and wrong and so we patients have no way of knowing who to believe. Each side has their own research and their own literature that supports their own contentions. It's a bit like religion -- no it is exactly like religion!

 

[vettechick99]

The mentioning of Jenny McCarthy just reminded me (slightly off topic). Have you heard of the Feingold Diet? My sister's boy had such a hard time with school. He wasn't autistic, but he couldn't handle transitions well and he was prone to meltdowns.

When she switched him to that diet (basically taking out dyes, additives, etc) his whole personality changed. Almost immediately he was doing better in school (she didn't tell the teachers what she was doing but they noticed a change and called to ask what had happened).

I hope she gets her appetite up and maybe this diet would help her symptoms.

 

[freckles and boo]

The mentioning of Jenny McCarthy just reminded me (slightly off topic). Have you heard of the Feingold Diet? My sister's boy had such a hard time with school. He wasn't autistic, but he couldn't handle transitions well and he was prone to meltdowns.

When she switched him to that diet (basically taking out dyes, additives, etc) his whole personality changed. Almost immediately he was doing better in school (she didn't tell the teachers what she was doing but they noticed a change and called to ask what had happened).

I hope she gets her appetite up and maybe this diet would help her symptoms.

I have definitely considered diet changes, but I haven't looked into this particular diet. From what I have read, many changes in diet seem to help the symptoms she doesn't necessarily have. The strange thing about my daughter is that while she does have a number of traditional autistic characteristics, there are many she does not have. She doesn't seem to have digestion problems or sleep problems. Unlike many kids, she rolls with change very well. In fact, she loves new places and things. She is constantly asking if we are going anywhere. She also doesn't have any real physical "stims". She never "regressed" but instead only started talking about two and a half years ago. She is very repetitive when she is stressed and she retreats into echolalic speech when she doesn't feel like engaging. She is hypo (under) sensitive so she needs LOTS of extra physical stimulation. She can't read people well and has to be reminded about feelings. Add to that an extreme amount of energy, impulsivity, and inattentiveness!

I do appreciate the suggestion and will check it out!

 

[sha_lyn]

The mentioning of Jenny McCarthy just reminded me (slightly off topic). Have you heard of the Feingold Diet? My sister's boy had such a hard time with school. He wasn't autistic, but he couldn't handle transitions well and he was prone to meltdowns.

DD's "ADHD" was in fact sensitivity to food additives/chemicals with blue food dye being the one she reacts to the worst. I didn't go as strict as Feingold but was pretty close. We avoid all additives, dairy, soy and nuts but didn't avoid gluten, shell fish etc. Then we slowing introduced things back in, and I kept notes of when things were the worst. Her worst days were the ones following the evenings that she had a blue poweraide at Martial Arts.


Back to soy LOL.... I used soy formual to suplement DD's nursing and soy milk for awhile because of the speculation that avoiding known allergens can hlep avoid developing other allergies (ie some Dr were recomending avoid dairy in families with seasonal/pet and/or other allergies) Then the "specuulations" started coming in about soy causing early puberty so I stopped using soy products. Since then I've know 2 girls (both a couple of yrs younger than DD)
who do not eat dairy because of allergies (one is allergic, the other has a brother who is so mom switched the whole family to soy) who started showing signs of puberty very early (ages 5&7). On the recomendation of Drs both stopped consuming soy and in both the early sign of puberty have gone away.

 

[barkley]

my son is on daytrana and i've found that his appetite is much better than with the other meds he's taken-so you may experience that with more time on it (he gained 3 pounds over the summer ).

one product you might try is 'benecalorie'. it's tasteless, odorless and whacks an additional 330 calories into whatever you put it in. it was originaly developed as a means to add calories to the diets of chemo and other patients who have poor appetities. it comes in small container about 1/3rd the size of a pudding cup. it's kind of milky looking, but not terribly runny. i've mixed it into mac n cheese, pored it onto homemade enchiritos and nachos...my son can't detect a change in the taste so it's pretty effective. i purchased mine from walgreens on-line. i prefer it to the powedered drinks or the canned stuff because it does'nt seem to fill him up (when we tried the standard supplements he would get full and not want to eat his normal daily meals so it was basicly just trading off one for the other).

one of the suggestions a nutritionist made to us was to take advantage of high calorie stuff ds likes and incorporate it into as many meals as possible. ds LOVES ranch dressing so he uses it with fries, chicken nuggets, pizza bites...i've also gotten pretty good at making some of his favorite fast food type items at home which appeal to his appetite-he loves taco bell enchiritos so i always have a supply of flour tortillas, refried beans, shredded cheese and small cans of enchilada sauce, he likes nachos so i get jars of the most calorie ladden cheese sauce i can find and keep it on hand with tortilla chips, refried beans and olives. pb and j has been a good item for him too-when he's not willing to sit down and eat breakfast i can get him to eat a pb and j on the way to school.