ADHD meds and appetite

[petesgirl]

So we took the plunge and started DS on concerta last week. We are working to find right dose and right medication, but I know all stimulants cause decreased appetite. So I need to find a way to deal with that. I am having legit panic attacks because he isn’t eating. I’ve been in tears over it all day. His lunch came home untouched every day last week and, besides my emotional state, I hate the food waste. Do I just not send him anything for lunch if he isn’t going to eat it? I hate to send it and then just throw it all away that night.
The Dr also said we need to fat-pad everything he eats with tons of butter, sugar, and corn syrup. Do you all do this? I’m pretty sure corn syrup Is the antithesis of healthy and I avoid it at all costs. What high fat snacks do your kids like? He won’t eat avocados or coconut oil. I’m supposed to feed him a big protein and fat heavy breakfast and I understand why, but with my MS I’m pretty dysfunctional in the morning. I barely manage to drag myself out of bed in time to get him to school, there’s no way I have energy to make a full fledged meal first thing in the morning.

[Philly Mom]

What about toast with Nutella?


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[bisous]

I have two kids on meds now. BUT all three of my boys (including DS2 who is NOT medicated) will routinely eat nothing for lunch all day. These are some skinny kids too. My plan for them is to include lots of packaged healthy foods. If they are hungry at all, I want them to have something to eat. BUT I hate the waste. So I'll put things like protein bars, applesauce pouches, or crackers in bags, etc. Then if it comes home, I can simply SEND IT AGAIN, lol. Honestly, I have this thing that I MUST send some kind of fruit or veggie with my kids every day to school and they never eat it. I must have reused some of the same applesauce pouches dozens of times, lol!

For breakfast, can you do something you heat up in the oven? I have purchased turkey sausage that comes frozen and heats up in the microwave. It is SO easy and my kids love it. Toast with butter is nice and fatty. I love the idea of Nutella. Who could refuse that?

I would do butter, but though I might use some sugary enticements, I don't think I'd load up terribly on either sugar or corn syrup. My kids have a HUGE snack when they get home from school. Like, meal sized. Then they eat dinner later.

I hope this helps!

[Kestrel]

Will he eat hard boiled eggs? you could do that a day (or more) in advance. Peanut butter toast and a hard boiled egg are a breakfast favorite here.

When we were told to fat-pad (for something else), they said avacado/guac, olives, peanut butter, or salmon - at least two of these a day. Use whole milk and full-fat cheese. You want to do calorie-dense. But no, I would not do corn syrup.

I think you need to ask your provider for more specific direction. Fat-padding I understand; I don't get why you would want to go high sugar. You might even be able to get a consult with a nutritionist.

[petesgirl]

Will he eat hard boiled eggs? you could do that a day (or more) in advance. Peanut butter toast and a hard boiled egg are a breakfast favorite here.

When we were told to fat-pad (for something else), they said avacado/guac, olives, peanut butter, or salmon - at least two of these a day. Use whole milk and full-fat cheese. You want to do calorie-dense. But no, I would not do corn syrup.

I think you need to ask your provider for more specific direction. Fat-padding I understand; I don't get why you would want to go high sugar. You might even be able to get a consult with a nutritionist.

He will eat hard boiled eggs, but only the white, and the yolk is the fattiest part! He won’t eat scrambled eggs unfortunately, but he will sometimes eat them in breakfast burritos. We have always done whole milk and full fat everything ever since he was a baby and he has always been less than 25% for height and weight. It drives me crazy!

[elephantmeg]

with my kids it got better after a month or so. We did instant breakfast for a while with a muffin for breakfast and added desert with dinner... I also really had to talk to him about needing to try to eat at lunch even if he was not hungry. They now pretty much eat breakfast, some lunch, a big afternoon snack and dinner... Hugs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

currently they eat: jimmy dean breakfast sandwiches (better if you let them thaw in the fridge and microwave for 50 seconds), yogurt, waffles (DD likes unicorn and DS likes choc chip). Lunches are uncrustables, ramen, turkey sandwiches. Snacks are whatever they hoover up. I buy a lot of granola bars etc. And encourage yogurt and cheese sticks.

[basil]

My kids aren't on ADHD meds, but my DD is a very skinny light eater. I've had success with whole milk greek yogurt mixed with a spoonful of jam, some fruit, and some cereal (she likes multigrain cheerios). Has a lot more calories than cereal and milk without really seeming like it. You could mix it up in the PM, then just pour in the cereal and give it a stir in the morning.

If you like baking I'm sure you could make some calorie dense muffins with coconut oil and raisins or nuts if he'll eat those, whichever flavor.

What about pancakes? You could add an extra egg to the batter and fry them in avocado oil. Make them ahead and reheat.

My DD likes fresh mozzarella, so I'll send that for lunch with some Triscuits a fair amount of the time. She also likes if I take leftover pizza and cut it into bite size pieces.

[lizzywednesday]

... I hate the food waste. Do I just not send him anything for lunch if he isn’t going to eat it? ...

Hi, I also hate food waste.

For DD, what I ended up doing was sending half anything I'd normally have sent until her appetite re-regulated. So, instead of a full sandwich, I sent half. I'd also send a whole piece of fruit, as they had an afternoon "working snack," because if that came back it wasn't as much to worry over.

... What high fat snacks do your kids like? He won’t eat avocados or coconut oil. I’m supposed to feed him a big protein and fat heavy breakfast and I understand why, but with my MS I’m pretty dysfunctional in the morning. I barely manage to drag myself out of bed in time to get him to school, there’s no way I have energy to make a full fledged meal first thing in the morning.

What kinds of foods will he eat?

DD was eating steel-cut oats for a while, so if your DS will eat those, you can cook them overnight in a CrockPot with cream, butter, and top with fruit. This is one recipe; I made it and found the dried fruit a little horrifying, so you could probably skip that. (Alton has "reloaded" the recipe since and it looks even easier: https://www.cookingchanneltv.com/rec...loaded-8670507)

Switch from 2% milk to whole.

If he'll consume smoothies, you can probably add avocado to one made with whole milk Greek yogurt (higher protein %-age than regular), whole milk, and whatever frozen fruit he likes. (I wonder if the fruit/avocado can be prepped & frozen to make it easier on you, though? It's been ages since we were heavily in the smoothie rotation, but I think I'll be bringing them back in January to stop her CONSTANTLY eating on camera.)

We were also feeding her scrambled eggs when she refused oatmeal. (Now she's refusing both oatmeal and scrambled eggs and I'm about to lose my mind because all she'll eat is Nutella on toast and it's not enough!)

[DualvansMommy]

Not on meds but I have DS2 who need high fat in his diet due to his long list of allergies. So the traditional breakfast type of food like hard boiled eggs, toast with PB etc is all out as he’s allergic to PB & eggs.

I switched to whole milk for him from our usual 2%, I make dense calorie muffins over the weekend and get him one some mornings or as a snack. He does eat fully fat Greek yogurt which I usually add honey and blueberries or other fruit. He loves lox on bagels and pancakes with butter snd a side of turkey sausage. It’s all the things you can heat up in microwave. Toasted bagel etc.


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[gatorsmom]

Ds3 has been on a Concerta for 5 years. He no longer eats lunch. For the first couple of years his teachers pushed him to eat and we had some battles. Now they understand too. Like Bisous, I used to send him to school each day with a lunch of protein bars and apple sauce packets. Now he just keeps it in his locker in case he wants a snack during the day. He rarely does.

There are plenty of very healthy, high calorie food out there and we make sure he has these for breakfast and dinner. He has always loved chocolate milk in the morning so now we make it with whipping cream. It’s so delicious and very filling with all that fat. We make him a milk/cream/chocolate shake in a blender bottle every night and give it to him in the morning with his pills. In the evenings he’ll eat a regular dinner whatever we are having and I’ll add a smoothie with full-fat yogurt, greens, avocadoes (to make it creamy), frozen fruit and juice. A full-fat dinner helps him sleep better too. He absolutely can’t go to sleep when he’s hungry.

One thing you have to watch out for is dehydration. When DS3 isn’t hungry he’s also not thirsty. I have to remind him to drink water and Gatorade. This can be a problem in the summer.

Despite the side effects, Concerta has been fantastic for DS3. It evens out his emotional storms, helps him focus and prevents him from annoying and distracting others. Its been wonderful.