Life Balances -- Eating Problems

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Eating Problems

Eating problems have many complex components from physiological to psychological. Eating disorders can range from an annoyance to being life threatening. A physician should always be consulted to determine any medical condition that is interfering with the ability to eat. Beyond any medical condition, a blood test should be run to evaluate any blood chemistry imbalances that contribute to eating disorders. Low iron and sodium, for example, can cause loss of appetite.

When blood chemistry imbalances are extreme, the health, behavior, and development of the child is seriously impacted. Besides appetite loss, the imbalances may create extreme physical and emotional sensitivity. The child who is easily upset either physically or emotionally by touch or social situations has blood chemistry imbalances. They lack the nutritional buffers which allow people to cope and handle stimulation.

Where do these blood chemistry imbalances come from? Dietary habits are arguably the most important contributor. Described below are some scenarios that can contribute to imbalances even in the youngest infant:

Mom and Dad have food sensitivities so they restrict their diet. Common restrictions are dairy and wheat. Restrictive diets prevent access to all potential needed nutrients. These diet restrictions create nutritional deficits for the baby since the baby's health is totally dependent on the nutrients it receives from mom and dad. The baby then 'inherits' the food sensitivities.
Mom and dad have chosen unconventional diets based on philosophical positions. These diets may include no meat, no dairy and no sugar. While sometimes based in compelling reasoning, these diets take out foods which the parents and their parents and their great grandparents ate before them. These foods become part of the genetic makeup of the family. Babies and children may not thrive because they lack the nutrient pool from the foods that built their family.
Mom and dad have poor dietary habits. They skip meals, eat too much fast food, don't know how to cook, plan a menu, or shop for food. The baby or child's health will suffer from any of these circumstances.
Mom or dad may have had a drug or alcohol problem which leaves a negative impact on the baby's health.

These scenarios certainly don't cover all the possibilities, but they represent a large percentage of families whose children suffer from eating disorders. Parents don't intentionally create these problems. Parents make decisions based upon the information they have and try to do what's best for their child.

The good news is that with appropriate intervention, food sensitivities can be eliminated, chemistry imbalances can be corrected, and people can learn to cook and eat healthy meals.

Another important issue arises with eating disorders - what part is physical and what part is behavioral? This issue is especially tough for parents of special needs children. Sometimes a child may be not be eating as part of a power struggle, a symbol of independence, or out of anger or frustration. The National Association for Child Development (NACD) and the Attachment Center are resources for intervention when behavior is an issue. A book entitled, Poor Eaters: Helping Children Who Refuse to Eat by Joel Macht (Plenum Pr; ISBN: 0306434512) may also be helpful.

If a child ingests any kind of food or drink, the potential is there to eat and drink normally. Appropriate intervention takes careful evaluation of the medical, blood chemistry, psychological, and behavioral aspects which contribute to the disorder. With appropriate intervention along with time, diligence, consistency, and love, these disorders can be corrected.

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