I need to find something to curb my son's appetite.

[RyansFather]

My son is 10 and has an incredible appetite. We can not find anyway to curb it. Behavior mod therapy is striking out. Any tips would be appreciated.

[peglem]

The first thing I'd check is his thyroid, or any other medical thing that could cause insatiable appetite.

[milivica]

Is he on medication that could be increasing his appetite? If so, I'm not sure what you'll be able to do about a side effect.

[Ted Hutchinson]

Low carbohydrate High Fat (http://blogg.passagen.se/dahlqvistannika/?anchor=my_lowcarb_dietary_programe_in) The kind of diet our DNA evolved to live with will probably do the trick but remember our DNA evolved before the invention of sunscreen and while we were living more outdoors and will less clothing. So a higher Vitamin D intake combined with a Low carbohydrate HIGH NATURAL FAT diet will probably be more like the diet the DNA works best with.
Stephan has some interesting thoughts on thyroid problems (http://wholehealthsource.blogspot.com/search?q=thyroid) these fit in with the vitamin D, low carb diet our DNA evolved to use best.

[Prot]

I am not suggesting this is the case with your son but is Prader Willi more frequently diagnosed in those with autism?

[Ted Hutchinson]

Prader Willi Autism (http://www.fpwr.org/aboutPWS/PWS-autism)

[peglem]

By the way...Hi, Ryansfather, welcome to the forum. Hope we have been of some help to you. We'd sure like to know more about you and your son. And it would be great to find out if you're able to solve this problem.

[tgrimes]

Hi ryansfather -
We are having the same 'battle' here, and if you have one that refuses a lot of activities, getting enough physical activity to balance the heavy diet is really difficult.
Here are some things I am currently trying:
1. making double the amount of vegetables for dinner... I try to make so much that I plan on having half leftover. (If that doesn't happen, then it's a good thing.)
2. buying canned vegetables and microwaving them for in-between meal snacks.
3. Mixing up for both of us a glass of psyllium husk fiber in water, drinking it 1 hour before meals to help feel full early.
4. Replacing the good ice cream with the icky lowfat stuff, it last a lot longer (Tried to simply stop buying it, but some time ago had convinced myself my family was not complete without ice cream in the freezer)
Do you have any tips on things you have tried?

[moose53]

Ryansfather,

Welcome to BrainTalk http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/11/11_2_104.gif.

This is just a thought ... I don't have any experience with Autism or with Asperger's Syndrome. I'm just interested 'cause I like a lot of the people who post here and, most especially, like their kids.

Well anyway.

From my limited understanding of autism and the spectrum, it's a disruption of the sensory systems.

Have you thought of perhaps involving your son in creating Bento Box lunches (http://public.murl.com/moose53/HEALTH_AND_MEDICAL/DIET-NUTRITION-WEIGHT_MANAGEMENT/BENTO_BOX-LAPTOP_LUNCHBOX (press the [page-down] key two times to get to the appropriate section). There are some incredibly artistic versions out there. I was just wondering if your son were involved in creating some of these and in deciding what to eat if it might benefit him in the long run.

Good luck. Hugs.

Barb

[RyansFather]

Thank you for all of your replies. I can start by giving a little background. My son was diagnosed at age 2 when he lost his speech and went off to another land. We have tried almost every diet and treatment (except things like chelation and HBO therapy).

He is now quite a handful. Good days and bad. He is on Lexapro low dose which is the only med that has helped (and I think we have tried them all). His appetite dates back long before Lexapro was started. I would love to try a low carb/high fat diet (? similar to the ketogenic diet) but I can see the battle lines in front of me as I type this.

On the thyroid note, it has been checked three times. But on that note, we are awaiting an appt with a Ped Endocrinologist.

What has worked? Distracting him with things he enjoys, i.e. car rides. But how long can I drive. I feel like I could start working for Thomas Guide Maps Co.

Anyway, I like this format. Any help is greatly appreciated. I can empathize with anyone challenged with an autistic child. By the way, he is actually very cute and lovable.

Thanks.

[LIZARD]

His appetite dates back long before Lexapro was started. I would love to try a low carb/high fat diet (? similar to the ketogenic diet) but I can see the battle lines in front of me as I type this.

On the thyroid note, it has been checked three times. But on that note, we are awaiting an appt with a Ped Endocrinologist.

I am a 42 yo mom who was blowing up like a balloon because I was always hungry. I knew at a young age that eating kept my severe headaches away and was finally dx'ed with hypoglycemia in college.

Then after my kids were born, I let go out of frustration and ate whatever I wanted and as much as I wanted. At 305 lbs, four years ago, I joined Weight Watchers and lost 95 lbs in a year and a half.

Then my body went through World War III. I was suddenly hungry ALL the time and was eating constantly. The weight piled back on and I had a million other symptoms that finally got me a dx of hypothyroid.

That got back to normal in a few months with treatment...and then my vitamin D bottomed out to near ZERO. I was still hungry all the time, and many of my symptoms seemed to come back. The brutally cold New England winter made me wish for death. :( I took megadoses of D to get it back up...and then I was dx'ed with Celiac Disease.

That stunned me the most. I wasn't emaciated; hell, I was a whale!! How could someone like ME have Celiac?? Nonetheless, I started gluten-free eating immediately...and still couldn't lose any weight. In fact, I kept gaining!

Something new was happening, too...relentless sugar cravings. I was like a crack addict with it, having it some 6 times a day, so I started reading up and was stunned and upset to determine that, in all likelihood, it was Candida, or yeast overgrowth in the intestine.

I'm taking the slow boat with treatment because, despite eating healthy, I have to cut a LOT of things out. Right now, I'm getting rid of artificial sweeteners and starting to tone down on caffeine and grains...and I already see improvement. :) My weight loss is slow because I still have many changes to make, but I'll get there. It's holy hell because I also have neuro conditions that complicate everything. As a result of them, I also have oral sensory issues, but I WILL make this happen...and then I'll figure out how to start my son on it, because I see many of the same symptoms in him. :rolleyes:

I hope this helps you. Thyroid is certainly not the only weight gain culprit. If it's normal, keep looking.

Good luck!

LIZARD :)