My 2 1/2 yr old son does not eat any foods with lumps or chunks. He still eats mostly baby food. I have tried making home made baby food, but he does not like the taste. Any lump or chunk he will gag. He is under weight for his age and He drinks pediasure. We tried Duocal in his meals and pediasure, but it didn't make a difference. He will eat ice cream, pudding and anything smooth and creamy. HELP
Thank you to everyone who responded to my request for help. So far, my son has been getting OT help and help from early intervention and recently started getting help from a speech therapist. He loves milkshakes and is starting to lick at a lot more things than before. He is taking prevacid for acid reflux too. Any other thoughts or suggestions would still be greatly appreciated.
A.,
Oh my, sounds like my 3 year old was. I have two words for you: Early Intervention. You need to get him evaluated. If there is a sensory issue, a speech therapist will work wonders with him. This could be normal toddler stuff, or it could be sensory.
D.
I am assuming has been checked by pediatrician and or ear nose throat Dr. to rule out any medical issues? My daughter had such swollen adnoids she gagged frequently when eating. If that all checks out OK have an eval. done by an OT they work with sensory issues like that. A friend who adopted had same problem she got OT and now child eats fine.
If I were you I would talk to your pediatrician. A friend of mine had the same problem with her son and he ended up having to go for eating therapy. He is now almost 8 and you would never know he went through any of this. His parnts ignored it until he was about 4 and he as actually asked to leave 3 pre-schools because he was a "choking hazard". His parents then opened their eyes to his problem, dispite everyone telling them for years to look into the problem and get him help.
I would deffinately look into having yourson evaluated to see if he needs therapy. I know no one wants to have their child "evaluated" but in the long run it would be better to get him help now rather than later!! Good Luck!!
Did you try having an occupational therapist evaluate him? he may have issues they can work out. you would go right through the school district at no cost and if he qualifies for services he will get those for free as well. If not you can do it privately through your child's doctor's perscription.
Hi Alison!
Could it be a sensory issue? My friend told me about her son who has a sensory issue. Different textures bother him. He is getting better with therapy.
Good luck!
S.
He might have a hyper-sensitive gag reflex. Talk to your doctor about it.. I know a friend of mine had her daughter see a pediatric neurologist, and there were some hyper sensory things involved.
The therapy helped her also, to desensitize the baby's gag reflex.
I am the mother of three boys and have lots of experience with eating issues. My youngest, who is now 4 would only eat fruit when he was 2. My middle one, now a teen, only ate pb&j. If your son does not have a medical problem, as many mentioned, perhaps it's just the normal phase of 2 year olds that prefer only one food, or type of food. I've heard of many children only wanting a very limited diet at this age - someone I know son only wanted eggs and nothing else, another girl I know will only eat dry cereal and yogurt. Check the medical possibilities and if it's nothing - don't worry - they grow out of it.
A., I don't know if anyone else has responded, but it seems like your son has an overactive gag reflex. Two of my kids had that too because their tonsils were too big. (They had other symptoms too-were mouth breathers, snored a bit, easy sore throats) Once they had their tonsils removed, that gagging on everything/anything, stopped. Have you looked at his tonsils? B.
