Need more help than you’ve found in this post? Make an appointment to work with me here. I am not able to provide individualized care advice in this forum, but look forward to working with you. Thanks for stopping by!
Recently a parent was surprised to hear me mention that food allergies and sensitivities can create growth impairments in infants and children. Like many parents, this one had been told to turn to products like Pediasure to help his child gain and grow. But it wasn’t working.
I see this a lot in my practice. Undiagnosed and poorly managed food allergy, sensitivity, or food protein induced enterocolitis syndrome (FPIES) are probably the most common problems I encounter. But it still surprised me when a blog I posted on alternatives to Pediasure went viral. I realized that this means that Pediasure is possibly the top go-to for pediatricians nationwide, when they see an underweight child. And that is downright unfortunate.
As I explained in that Pediasure blog, if a child has a reaction to the proteins in Pediasure (milk and soy), then this product is going to do more harm than good. Besides weakening growth pattern, these reactions can cause diarrhea or constipation, rhinitis, dermatitis, or brochospasm. But, it’s routine for pediatricians to hand out Pediasure samples or coupons anyway, without checking if a protein intolerance, allergy, or other reaction is part of the problem.
If your child is experiencing symptoms described on this page, and especially a growth lag, it’s time for some lab work or professional guidance on an elimination trial. Inconvenient? Sure. But you might prevent months or even years of frustration as your child struggles with a withering growth or feeding pattern, frequent malaise, cognitive or developmental delays from low nutrition, or picky eating. This I have seen, all too often – and it’s all preventable.
Coincidentally, not long ago, I was contacted by Abbott Nutrition, the makers of Pediasure. They wondered if I would like to create webinars for them about autism and nutrition. I would have loved to, but I gently explained on the conference call that I rarely recommend dairy or soy protein sources for kids with autism, because our lab work-up usually shows these proteins to be reactive in these cases. So, no, I could not create webinars for fellow RDs or MDs that would keep this long-known piece of the autism puzzle out of the powerpoint.
That was sticky. So I threw the Abbott folks an olive branch by explaining that these kids can at times thrive with an amino acid based formula like Elecare, which Abbott also makes – and this is true. However, apparently, the Abbott people had somehow remained in the dark about all this for the last fifteen years. Needless to say, they later decided to “move the project in a different direction” – which I took to mean, find a dietitian who would help them sell Pediasure to families of kids with autism.
Hopefully that’s not you. There is so much more you can do, and do better. Solutions? If your child is already stuck in a growth or developmental rut, and showing diffuse signs like frequent colds or illnesses, fatigue, shiners at eyes, crabby or anxious affect, underweight, or funky stools, then it’s time to look for why this is happening. So far, in my fifteen years in practice, I’ve never met a kid who didn’t have a “why”. And we can usually find a solution.
Start with some thorough testing for reactions to foods. Here’s the rub: There are many kinds of reactions that the immune system or gut can contrive. If you’ve had basic allergy testing that was negative for your child, there’s probably more to the story. Here’s a strategy:
– If your child has IgE allergy symptoms like hives/vomiting/tingling of still unknown origin, complete a comprehensive IgE food antibody panel – go beyond the usual few foods tested (milk, wheat, corn, soy, peanut, egg). Great Plains Lab (GPL) and Genova Diagnostics (GDX) offer full panels, and I will request these for my patients where indicated.
– If your child does not have IgE allergy symptoms or positive results, but does have any of these: Bloating, reflux, mixed irritable stools, constipated stools, loose stools, anxiety, intermittent skin rashes, picky weak appetite, or trouble sleeping, then consider an ELISA IgG food antibody panel. GPL and GDX offer test panels to screen over 90 foods with one small blood sample. These reactions can appear often and independently of the IgE reactions, so testing both can be important.
– If you’ve done all this testing and still have no answers, consider a white blood cell antigen test with ALCAT labs. This is another option I offer in my practice. It examines yet another way that the immune system may react to a food protein, separate from antibody production. Looking at how white blood cells respond to food proteins is fraught with challenge because there can be false positives, but this test can uncover missing pieces in some cases.
– Even more detail can be scrutinized with IgG reactions to other compounds derived from food proteins in our bodies, and for cross sensitivity to our own tissue (autoimmune reactions exacerbated by food proteins) . Cyrex Labs offers these panels.
– If your child has firm or constipated stools, an extremely rigid appetite for wheat or dairy foods, and horrible behavior if he doesn’t get those foods, consider a gluten casein urine peptide test from GPL. This reaction to wheat and dairy protein is not immune-mediated. Instead, it assesses how completely the gut digests these proteins, and whether the gut wall is overly permissive in taking up poorly digested protein fragments (peptides) of gluten and casein. Not an allergy, but a reaction that can make your child miserable never the less. Peptide chains from these proteins mimic endorphins in the brain. This means they are addicting, and will not only create fierce rigidity in eating patterns, but will exert an opiate like effect on your child’s brain as well. Children with poor verbal or social skills, who have aphasia (no speech), or who have very delayed speech may be under the influence of these dietary opiates. Other features of dietary opiates are high pain tolerance, happy affect except when hungry (Jekyll/Hyde) or uncontrollable tantrums. Toddlers and young kids with an active opiate effect also tend to wake between midnight and three AM, when they may laugh, babble, want to play, or make noise, though may not be unhappy or crying for parents.
– If you already know that gluten is a problem, but aren’t sure what other grains are safe, several labs offer an array of tests to review this very question.
– If you’re still wondering if gluten is the problem, visit my blog on gluten free diets to learn about that testing.
There is no shortage of options for lab testing on food reactions. The trick is in picking the right ones based on your child’s history and presentation, and this is precisely what I do for my patients. Many of these tests are not in your pediatrician’s repertoire, or even your pediatric allergist’s repertoire (if they were, they would have offered them already). Once we have some results in hand, we interpret them in the context of your child, and can create a plan for what to eat.
Transitioning to new foods for a youngster isn’t as hard on them as it is on mom and dad. It means parents have to learn new shopping, cooking, and kitchen routines, and this can be disruptive at first. Balancing this with siblings is a challenge too. But for many families who have watched a child wilt into growth regression, weakness, developmental delays, or frequent infections, it’s worth it.
If Pediasure helped your child, fabulous. If it hasn’t worked in your family’s case, rest assured – there are many options, many answers. If you’d like help with your child’s feeding and growth, schedule an appointment – I look forward to hearing from you!
Hi,
My son is 3 years old.He is bit under weight and has trouble while sleeping some gastric reflux.I only prefer natural diet.I have never given any formula.Now my concern is his under weight,although his other activities are up to mark.Why aren’t natural foods supplying all the nutritients ,is growth boosters that much necessary .Is their any formula food available that’s really reliable to trust.I fear of giving too much sugar to kids.what about ELECARE® JR .Is it safe?
Food can indeed supply all of what a child needs without supplemental formulas, if two conditions are met: One, the child isn’t overly restricted and getting too little to eat. This is a circumstance I witness often, as children lose appetite and become severely picky, or as parents fear sugar, carbohydrates, dairy foods, fats, meats, grains or whatever other food is in the spotlight as “bad”. Two, the child’s digestion is fully functional. Even an ample and varied diet will fail if a child is unable to digest, absorb, and eliminate it comfortably. If growth is lagging, one or both of those conditions are not met. If it is the latter – that is, if digestion, absorption, or elimination is faltering at any point in the process, then assessment into why will solve the problem and illuminate the right strategy. Formulas can be a great help, but Pediasure is not one I reach for in my clinical practice. Elecare may help your child and is safe. It is used in cases of multiple food protein allergies or intolerances and can be very effective. For an organic dairy free option, check out Else formula. I don’t know if your child would tolerate it, but it is dairy free and more wholesome than Pediasure in my opinion.
My 15 year old started struggling with restrictive food eating when diagnosed with Lyme disease roughly 3 years ago. Since then, it has been extremely difficult to keep weight on her. She has anxiety and OCD surrounding food, eating too much and getting sick (again all this started with the Lyme diagnosis).
She is currently being treated for Lyme, but we are concerned about the lack of weight gain and the constant food battles. She will wake and not actively feel hungry until 3pm and will have several snacks. Sitting down to dinner will make her extremely anxious and then she says she doesn’t feel hungry.
We started adding in Kate Farms 1.4 Shakes to help with nutrition and calorie intake. She will drink one of them but refuse to eat as she feels too full and uncomfortable even 2 hours later. This is a concern.
Any suggestions? We’ve already had her extensively allergy tested, but not for food allergies.
This is a scenario worth intervention with a practitioner skilled in working with teens with chronic health issues. Check your e mail for a PM from me.
Hi Dr Judy,
My daughter is 6 yrs old. She has always underweight for her age, with very slim body physique. On and off, I have given her pediasure since she was 2. Still, there were not much changes with her weight. However, she used to have frequent episodes of upset stomach, which involved getting nausea and vomiting at night. But for the last 2 years, these episodes of nausea and vomiting have stopped. Now, For the last 6-8 months, she has started to wake up at night to pass stool. Sometimes she wont pass stool whole day and only at night. I have noticed that whenever she take late night meals, she definitely gets up in the middle of night to pass stool. In these 6-8 months, i have on and off given her pediasure because she is underweight, however, very active and eats well.
What should i do??
If your daughter is thriving otherwise, I wouldn’t do anything, other than give her something besides Pediasure – which per your details, has never helped her gain weight anyway. Browse my recipes here for some nourishing and replenishing snack options.
My son, now 8yo, started having tics. I wonder it there is a connection with pediasure he has taken since birth (8 years of taking pediasure everyday) to the tics he has now. He stopped with pediasure and lost weight. From 35kgs to 25kgs. He stopped for 4 months now but still has tics. Please help.
I’m wondering why your son has needed Pediasure for his entire life (even as a baby, when this formula isn’t indicated at all?)? Has he had an unresolved, ongoing challenge with being underweight? Can he eat a regular diet with enough food? If Pediasure worked for your child and kept him healthy, in good growth status, and free of tics, then – all good. If you withdrew Pediasure because of a particular issue, it must be replaced with something of equal or better nutritional value; otherwise, weight loss will result. There are many options for children as mentioned in this blog post; others have come to market also, that are not dairy based but provide strong nutritional support. Your son can also use boosting powders to mix with a non dairy milk alternative like almond milk, cashew milk, oat milk. Those milk substitutes must be boosted because in themselves, they lack the protein, calories, and nutrients to replace Pediasure. Use a collagen powder, whey powder, or other protein boosting powder – one hefty scoop per cup of milk – to boost. Talk to your doctor about why your son isn’t able to eat enough too.
Hi Judy,
My son is 18months old and his underweight for his age. He is just 9kg. In some days he will eat rice but most of the days he won’t.. He prefer to eat pasta which is still okay but not everyday we can cook it. Also he loves to eat banana and bread. In short his eating habit is quite fine sometimes, however he’s slowly gaining weight. The pedia recommended pediasure but since we started it, his vomiting got worse. Is this the effecf of pediasure or is it because he’s drinking it more than the recommended amount in the package? He’s drinking 4 bottles in a day (5oz). Also, his weight is still in 9kg. What should i do? Any recommendation if what formula milk should I give him?
A weak picky appetite that causes growth failure deserves some investigation, beyond tossing you some Pediasure! Your son may have a gluten sensitivity. Gluten is the protein in wheat flour, which is the main ingredient in pasta and bread. Gluten sensitivity can be active with or without celiac disease, and will cause growth failure just the same. Your doctor can screen for both celiac disease and for gluten sensitivity. These are two separate tests. A celiac test may not detect gluten sensitivity, so both should be done. Your son may have a milk protein sensitivity too. Milk is the protein in Pediasure, and if he feels more sick as he drinks more of it, then that suggests a dose-dependent response. Your doctor can do some blood work to screen for these reactions as food allergies or as food sensitivities to sort this out. Other than that, he may have a disrupted gut microbiome that leaves him uninterested in eating and lacking hunger. This deserves investigation too.
Hello, my son (now 15 months) was born 6lbs and went from 28% weight to 2% at 6 months due to reflux issues and not drinking formula. He has always been a picky eater and hes 18lbs on a good day. We went from Similac to 2 daily pediasure for a month now, with tiny amount of rice or roti or burritos (be he wont touch anything else). He used to be constipated but miralax took care of that. He has not gained even 1 ounce on pediasure. He has good development otherwise and he’s 80% for height, just his weight and not eating are a huge issue.
Let your doctor know that the Pediasure is failing. Second percentile for weight while at 80th for height places your son at a very low weight for height ratio that can compromise immune function, learning, sleep, and behavior. If his diet remains picky I would recommend looking into a diet free of milk/dairy protein, which is what Pediasure and Similac contain. See why at this blog – more details, and some possible next steps are there also.
You wrote a list of symptoms in this article including frequent colds, shiners, growth issues, picky/very low appetite, etc. This is my daughter to a T! She is almost 2 and instead of being on pediasure, she is on Elecare JR and she is absolutely addicted to it; so much so that she is actually rarely touching food anymore and only wants her vanilla Elecare JR formula. She was eating a wide variety of foods (though she has an egg, milk, and peanut allergy) until they put her on Elecare, because she was so below the curve weight-wise (1-5%). She has a chromosomal issue (18q 21 deletion syndrome) and she has hypothyroidism, but now she refuses most food and since we’ve upped the concentration of Elecare per doctors orders. They put her on Elecare after seeing allergy cells in her upper esophagus after a scope that they did because she chokes half the time when drinking water or oat milk from her sippy cup. But I swear, she is addicted to this formula and wants only that. She still has dark lines under her eyes most days, catches colds every month that last weeks, has varied types of poop which is now green and clay-like with a watery base. She’s the growth issues forever likely due to genetic issues and has always been sick with colds since week 1 of her life, but she thrived on dairy formula until turning 1 when she did not make the switch to whole milk well, puking it up. It seems like we’re going in the wrong direction with her now completely refusing to eat food and only wanting Elecare. She has always been stubborn and wasn’t an awesome eater before Elecare but now she is horrible and doesn’t eat food almost at all while on Elecare. She’s had comprehensive blood allergy tests done and had a smidge of sensitivity to almost everything but only noteable sensitivity to eggs, milk, and peanuts. Is it common to become addicted to Elecare?
Yes I have seen this addictive style of eating/drinking happen with elemental formulas. When this happens, I suspect deep dysbiosis is in play especially for commensal Clostridia species and possibly for low grade level of Clostridia difficile. These formulas IMO need to be used with thoughtful management for gut biome because they will skew the microbial profile away from what is beneficial for an infant or young child (or anyone at any age) if used exclusively. With the multiple food protein reactions she is expressing a diffuse leaky gut scenario, which can be repaired. It takes time and stepwise approach of identifying status of her gut biome (GI MAP, mycology culture), her nutrient deficiencies (blood draws), and identifying strategies to repair these things.
My daughter is 26months old. She’s a picky eater, under weight, was diagnose of speech regression and speech delay, also looks like she has growth regression too. Under weight, since 18months she weighed the same at 9.8KG until now present, last weighed date was Oct 26, 2022. Im so worried that shes not gaining.
She eats rice, any type of soup, chicken pork or beef but barely would eat any vegetables. She loves banana, canteloupe, and apple.
When she was 6mos old we noticed that she might be allergic to avocado because after she ate some avocado, she vomitted on her sleep. We told her pediatrician and was advised to avoid avocado until she reaches 1 year old. So at 14months old, i gave her some avocado to try and again same thing happened she vomitted while she was sleeping and never stops vomitting until the last piece of avocado is out of her stomach. Allergist told me that they will do the test until she reaches her 30months until then to avoid avocado. Fast forward now. She has constipation, frequent cold and flu like illnesses, weak appetite, does not like to drink water but rather milk or apple juice.
We gave her pediasure but to only mix it with her milk. She won’t drink the pure pediasure bottle but we didnt see any changes on her weight or her appetite at all. What do you think i should do? Please help.
Sounds like your advice so far has been “wait and see, wait and see”. I think you and your daughter have waited long enough. Age zero to three is an important window for the brain to develop and is not the time to let a child languish in an underweight, chronically ill state. Schedule the allergy testing, and in the meantime, try reducing or eliminating dairy protein altogether. Products like Else Formula or Kate Farms (example linked is the adult higher calorie version, and yes I’d suggest that one) may suit her better and are dairy free. If those fail you can ask your doctor about using an elemental formula like Elecare Junior, to at least get her pooping, gaining, and feeling better. These formulas aren’t perfect, but the milk protein is suspect here as she is not thriving on it and shows possible intolerance, malabsorption or allergy from it. Your doctor’s testing may shed some light on this, but you can get her off of Pediasure and milk in the meantime if you like. To fully eliminate dairy, remove cheese, ice cream, yogurt, and anything else that starts out of a cow’s udder. Replace those foods with non dairy versions – there are many now available from brands like Tree Line Cheeses, VioLife, or Miyoko. There are other factors in play to address most likely, but this is where I’d suggest you start.
I recently had my daughter switched to pediasure before that she was taking Nido formula never had any issues with her. She was a great eater wanting and excited to try new foods. After we switched just because her Dr didn’t like her taking Nido. She became very constipated. Wasn’t hungry at all. She would make faces when offering her foods. She was vomiting and very energetic. She would wake multiple times at night time.
I stopped giving her that crap! I refuse to give my child this! There’s also no negative reviews about pediasure which i think it was very Odd.
My 1 yr old grandson was prescribed pediasure. He has been so constpated since PS prescribed. I know this is the reason. Hes Crying in pain its awful. I had to give him enema yesterday. He has not gone all day again. Your comment on the reviews not mentioning constipation is so true. I stopped PS and went back to nutrimigen. He has failure to thrive.
Thank you for sharing this Yvette! The fact that PS was constipating while Nutramigen was less so means that the protein source in the PS (which is milk protein and soy protein) is not adequately broken down in the gut and is absorbed as small protein fragments that resemble opiates. These are called various names – exogenous opiates, dietary opiates, casomorphin – and they act on the central nervous system and brain. They slow motility of the gut, just as can happen when using an opiate pain killer – hence the constipation. The protein source in Nutramigen is derived from milk also, but it is treated enzymatically in that formula and can thus be less triggering for constipation and inflammation. To learn more about how opiate like peptides from weak digestion can affect children, click my blog here.
Hi! My son (currently 1 yr 7 months) was born at 27 weeks, 1 lb 14 oz. (currently 18 lbs, 30 in long). He left the NICU on an NG tube, and after a couple of months, transitioned to a bottle. About 7 months ago, his GI doc recommended starting his on pediasure. Before that, he was on breast milk and no solids. Since starting pediasure, he doesn’t want any solids. It’s not a chewing/swallow issue because he knows how to. He does it every so often, but not consistently and not nearly enough to say it’s a meal. If I’m lucky, he’ll eat 1/4 cup of anything. He has reflux and occasional constipation. We give him meds for both. I worry every day that my son will not eat solids. I’ve recently began to consider switching to kate farms. Would that be a good move? His nutritionist put some much pressure on me and I feel like a bad parent. His nutritionist is against getting off pediasure but at the end of the day, I will do want I feel is right for my son. I’m his parent. What do you think? Help please!!
Well first of all, you are not a bad parent. Second of all, there are many alternatives to Pediasure. Remember that dietitians in hospital settings are often only familiar with products shared by sales reps who visit the hospital, and may not have permission to explore other options on your behalf.
What you’re describing sounds like addiction to the milk protein in Pediasure. You can learn more about that here. This can arrest interest in other foods or textures, and keep kids stuck on drinking milk protein sources all day, for years.
Kate Farms is made with pea protein concentrate. This protein source is similar enough to milk protein that it can trigger the same addictive pattern. Otherwise it’s a fine enough product – in your case, if you try it, you should use the Kate Farms Peptide and not the regular version of that formula. If no change after 3 weeks in eating behavior with this product then it’s time for full avoidance of casein, pea protein concentrates like Ripple milk or Kate Farms, and try a product like Else formula or an elemental formula like EO28 Splash. There are non-commercial strategies also. If you’d like more detail with using those for your son, you can set up an appointment from here to work with me.
I was diagnosed with severe gastroparesis as well as a myriad of food sensitivities such as milk, eggs, fish, wheat, And soy. My health was declining to the point at which my parents could no longer look at me in the eye without starting to cry. I was admitted to a hospital and got a feeding tube which they used in order to administer boost supplements as well as pediasures.. I believed it could help, given how much my treatment team recommended them, but unfortunately, it didnt take long for my body to react negatively. This obviously led to further GI problems and conditions.. After many talks with my treatment team, I knew I had to try my best to find what was best for me and I finally found Kate Farms. These are plant based Organic nutritional supplements that are free of common allergens such as , dairy, eggs, soy, or wheat. I honestly have never gone back to any other supplement since I found these, and luckily, I was able to have solids after a few weeks of relying on Exclusive enteral nutrition (EEN). I was finally discharged and was able to have more solids. Then learned about my baby cousin who refused to have any solids and instead relied heavily on pediasures. He also seemed to always complain about tummy aches and wasn’t able to tolerate many foods either, which sparked many questions. I then recommended my aunt to give kate farms a try (they carry a big selection such as peptide based supplements, pediatrics, adults, 1.0, 1.2, 1.4and 1.5’s etc!) This was honestly very successful! His stomach disturbances lessened and He was able to eat solids again. Needless to say.. i wish we had more products like these and avoid further problems in the future.
Thanks Betsi, for sharing your story! Kate Farms is pea protein concentrate and can work for some as a milk / Pediasure alternative. Kate Farms also has a peptide option that is partly digested pea protein concentrate. I have used Kate Farms in several cases, with mixed success – great for some, fail for others. I’m so glad it turned things around for you!
My son has been on pediasure (recommended by his doc). He suffers from frequent colds and even loose motions (once in every 2 weeks). The doc got him tested for wheat allergies and lactose intolerance and even thyroid and RBS. All reports are normal. Now after reading this article, I’m getting an intuition that it might be because of pediasure.
Hmm, there is no blood test for lactose intolerance so I will assume that the testing done was for milk protein IgE allergy, which most pediatricians and pediatric allergists know how to do. If that was negative, it doesn’t mean that Pediasure is not a triggering food for his immune system. You can learn more about food antibody testing for kids here to see what I mean. Your son may have a negative IgE milk reaction but a positive IgG milk reaction and this will create loose stools and foster frequent colds. Since Pediasure also has soy protein, reactions to soy should have been ruled out too. In any case, if he isn’t growing well and is sick often, he deserves better, and it’s ok to either ask for a new option at your doctor’s office or explore on your own too. My free guide to protein powders for kids is available here as well, for more help.
I’m crying! My son is 2 years and has not eaten ONE thing since about 15 months. The pediatrician essentially wanted me to force him to eat and when I told her that wouldn’t work because he’s gagging and vomiting she of course insisted on Pediasure and that’s been his full diet plus juice and almond milk ever since. He’s been in OT for the past 6 months and while he’s becoming comfortable with touching the food he still gags if it touches his lips. He loves to bite into play food which makes me think he wants to eat but I’m convinced that there’s something internally that just won’t allow him to intake, swallow and digest. I’m also convinced after reading this article that he is addicted to the Pediasure but I’m not sure what to give him as a replacement or what to do period. Man I just want my baby to eat.
Hi Jasmine, a couple things you can try right away to replace this with are Else Formula or Neocate E028 Splash (comes in three different flavors). Work gradually on this transition – IMO, it’s easier than cold turkey! For step by step guidance, pick up this e book on how to move off dairy.
My daughter is 3 years old… my pediatrician recommended pediasure at age 1 because she was born with only 5lbs and said she was not “big enough” for her age.
When we started pediasure, she started to slowly going Wright, but became the worship pick eater. And now, she is having so many constipation problems.
My pediatrition still wants to keep her on pediasure “because she doesn’t eat well”… but after reading your post, I truly think pediasure is what’s causing all her health problems. The picky eating and the constipation.
How can I take her off it? Or change her diet? I’ve just been so frustrated with this. 😔
I’m sorry to hear it has been so hard! You might look at this blog to learn why the Pediasure is keeping her picky and small for age. To wean her off this and correct her picky eating – and in turn, her growth pattern can follow – you can start with this e book that gives some steps to break this cycle. I would be happy to work with you also to work her back to good health and functioning and you can access my calendar from here.
Hello,
I’m considering a growth shake for my 4 year old. He’s has a reflux issue and will gag/be sick with a lot of foods. He is on the 2nd percentile and I’m currently monitoring his growth over a six month period before the dr does a growth hormone deficiency test.
I think he lacks protein as doesn’t take in enough different foods. He eats fruit but will gag on veg and meat. I know it might be behavioural but it’s hard to argue when he is sick. He’s very bright and has no developmental issues mentally but physically he lacks for his age (runs slower, balance, strength etc)
Your priority here isn’t the growth shake! That is downstream of the picky weak appetite. What got it rolling to begin with? Usually this is caused by using reflux medicines and/or antibiotics early in the game (anywhere between birth and age 4). Once you correct the disrupted gut biome, then you can focus on a different high calorie shake. Kate Farms Peptide (not original) or collagen mixed with a hypoallergenic milk substitute like plain (unsweet) almond milk are helpful options. His physical challenges are secondary to malnutrition and will go away once the gut can do a better job for him. Lastly growth hormone findings can be impaired by the growth failure in itself and can correct once re-fed. Growth hormone won’t do much good when there’s no gas in the tank to begin with – kids need fuel to build new tissue and grow. It may give a nice bump but long term, it can’t fix the dilemma. Repair the digestion and biome and there’s your fix. Stay tuned on my FB page here and newsletter here for updates on new tools I’ve got available for parents!
Hi Dr. Judy! My 2 year old has had feeding difficulties since he was born. He was formula fed (nutramigen) as a baby, with severe vomiting, failure to thrive, always sick. Around the 6-9 month mark, he would never try purées, if he did, he would gag, vomit. He’s been in OT and ST and PT since he was 6 months old. GI has done several EGD’s, xrays, swallow studies, all normal, except severe GERD. Started lansoprazole and Pepcid, and his vomiting has since vanished completely. March 2020, we decided to try Kate farms for calorie use only. He had allergy testing around 6 months old (as he has eczema and “reactive airway”), and this was essentially normal. We do Kate farms 1.5 and it’s $700-$800/month because he drinks it orally, he has gone from failure to thrive, to 60% for weight and has been catching up developmentally. He does eat very little still, he eats normal food great at daycare , OT thinks maybe it’s an anxiety situation being home (where he vomited 2-4 times daily for a year). He eats crackers/breads/cereals, drinks water well from any type of cup. He is a “go go go” child and is very active. We started this week on Kate farms 1.2 (less than half the cost) and we’re adding one scoop of pediasure powder to make up the calorie difference. He takes his 3 formula bottles daily (am,noon,night), but we always offer food first before bottles. Is there any other high calorie pediatric formula that doesn’t cost me a second house payment per month? (I am an RN so I understand why Kate farms is so expensive)
Lots of great progress, which is so good to hear! The weak eating pattern signals that there is entrenched gut dysbiosis, and this will continue the cycle of picky weak eating (and challenging digestion.. is he also on Miralax or tending toward constipation?). The dysbiosis is set up by the PPIs, which will leave the stomach altered long after they are withdrawn. Not sure here if he still uses these drugs, but until this is repaired, he won’t be wanting to eat much, and won’t be digesting whatever he does eat very well. The other piece shutting down interest in food is the exorphin peptide addiction formed from pea protein concentrate, soy, and casein in the Kate Farms and Pediasure (see this short video for explanation). You need to fix these problems before you can expect much to change! Meanwhile lose the casein, soy, and pea protein sources. Hate to say it, but the formulas that accomplish this are expensive too: Neocate, EO28 Splash, Elecare, Kate Farms Peptide, or Else Formula for toddlers (not high calorie however, would need augmenting with MCT oil or full fat coconut milk). BTW I recently worked with a child who vomited daily for several months, fell into FTT, and was given only G tube as next option. We fully reversed this with restoring normal acid function in the stomach and correcting gut dysbiosis.
I started my almost 5yo with Pediasure last week because I was hoping to add more calories. He’s underweight and does not really love eating, he’d rather play. I’m noticing amber urine and semi loose stool. Could this be a sign of allergy?
If your son is underweight, has loose stool, and doesn’t like to eat, something is afoot and Pediasure may not be much help. Give it 2 more weeks and if no change, or if he suddenly prefers to just drink Pediasure all the time and behavior issues ensue, it’s time to do some digging. You can switch to product like Kate Farms Peptide 1.2 instead and note if these features of loose stool and picky eating improve.
Judy, reading your article almost brought me to tears. I truly feel like my child’s pediatrician and I have let him down. There were two sections in particular that stood out to me, when you talked about bloating, reflux and other stomach issue symptoms, and when you mentioned the picky eater and behavior issues when they don’t get those foods they want. That’s my child’s story. Any time I brought up concerns about his eating habits or potential stomach concerns, the doctor would say he’s doing well for his age. They never mentioned that his speech delay could be connected or that him possibly be autistic could go in and in with his dependency on wheat. After years of trying to get different doctors to finally take a deeper look at what’s going on, they’ve only now decided to do something because he’s now considered under weight. However, the solution has been get him reevaluated for Autism and give him Pediasure. I would love to get him to a lab to see if he has any food sensitivities, and start correcting this mismanagement of his dietary health. Any resources or next step suggestions?
I’m sorry to hear this journey had been so fraught. You’ve done your best, and followed advice of the people you trusted to have answers. The good news is there is a lot of possibility for your son to feel better and thrive. Pick up a copy of this book for more detail and instructions. I’m not taking new clients on just now, but stay abreast of announcements on my Facebook page for updates on resources when I can make them available.
Hi, 4 months ago I started by son on pediasure. My son is almost 3 yrs now and he is on the 5th percentile for height and 25th percentile for weight. He has delayed speech, he understands what we say but speaks very few words softly and not clearly. He also wakes up in the middle of the night babbling, making actions before falling back to sleep. He is not potty trained, he is a very active child otherwise but apart from his family he has poor social skills. He has anxiety and OCD where he gets uncontrollably upset when his belongings are moved without his consent. He does have some blank stares during the day. But he is NOT a picky eater. He eats his meal and in addition we give him pediasure 225ml twice a day. However, lately I’ve noticed he refuses breakfast just opting for pediasure in the mornings. We are using pediasure complete not pediasure grow and gain. And it helped increase his weight from 10th to 25th percentile. Can pediasure help my sons height as it did for his weight? If so, does it happen at the risk of other side effects? Please help us. I’m seeing confusing results. What should I substitute pediasure with for him to climb up on his growth chart.
You are getting confusing results because your son is milk-addicted, that is, he is literally addicted to the protein sources in Pediasure, which are casein and soy. Click here to see what this is all about (including why he wakes up at night, and doesn’t have much expressive language). The solution is to wipe all dairy source protein from his diet. Because soy, gluten and pea protein concentrates can behave the same way, your best results will be seen if you eliminate those too. Replace these with meats, fish, chicken, legumes, nuts, collagen, eggs, quinoa, rice, beans – these are all proteins he can use instead. He will eat these once he is done with the opiate-like peptides from casein that keep him fierce about just wanting Pediasure. This sounds like a big task … but truly, it really doesn’t have to be, once you simply embrace it. You will likely see a difference in about three weeks. Grab this e book for more detail and how-to. You can replace Pediasure with your own dairy and soy free nutritious “shakes” (1 scoop plain or vanilla collagen such as from Josh Axe Ancient Nutrition – I have no affiliate relationship there – add a half teaspoon of olive oil, a spoonful of peanut butter or safe nut butter, half banana, and mix all with plain almond milk in a blender). You can also use an elemental protein source like Elecare or Neocate in format like EO28 Splash; convenient, but pricey if you don’t have insurance coverage for it. If you need more help, use my contact form here to reach out for an appointment.
Hi my son’s height doesn’t increase well.. in just couple.of months he increases by 3cm only.. he is now 9 months with the height of 68cm only.. does pediasure can help my son’s height? Thank u
Two problems here: First, Pediasure is not made for babies under one year old, making it a bad choice for this problem at this age. Second, I don’t know if Pediasure could help even if your baby was older, without assessing why his height (or at this age, length) has slowed down. Usual causes are using a reflux medicine (which reduces protein absorption over time), inflammation from the protein in the baby’s diet (this can cause too many loose runny stools, so nutrients leave too fast to support growth), not eating enough protein, or not eating enough total breast milk (or formula, or solids, which many babies are eating at this age). Have your pediatrician assess why your baby’s length is faltering, before diving in to a strategy.
My 2 year old is non verbal, with severe behavioural issues and severe oral dysfunction. They have him on Pediasure as he can’t chew and will only eat pureed foods. Please help. His behaviour is out of control.
I have worked with hundreds of children in your son’s situation, and have seen it resolve or vastly improve when these concerns are assessed and treated: First, milk addiction. Pediasure is a problem here because it is made with milk and soy proteins. This explains the non-verbal and behavior part. Next, gut dysbiosis. This will also cause behavior and feeding problems if out of balance. Weak mineral status from poor diet will also negatively impact behavior, sleep, and feeding. Lastly, if your child has had the usual schedule of vaccines as well as antibiotics, an immune component may be in play also. This short video encapsulates the problem. You might find this e book helpful as a guide to understand further. I’d also suggest you pick up this book for even more detail on how to redirect this.
My 10 year old son is in the 2nd percentile for weight and I would like to add a high calorie, high calcium supplement to his diet. He has a dairy and egg allergy (diagnosed at 10 months.). He tolerates soy very well. He does not like foods like smoothies, avocado, nuts or nut butters and he won’t swallow a calcium supplement. He naturally gravitates toward lean meats instead of beef. I am wondering if a product like Elecare Jr or Neocate Splash could help? He eats small portions and feels satiated faster than most kids, so body-builder size portions look great on paper but do not work in the real world for kids like him. Any thoughts or cautions about supplementing with Elecate Jr or Neocate Splash?
Either the Elecare or Neocate may work well enough, but why is your son at 2nd percentile to begin with? Is this his expected growth pattern? This is determined by a few things: His birth weight and length, his growth pattern in the first years, and your weight and height (as well as his dad’s). If he is below where he should be, then the reason deserves correction. As a clinician, I would troubleshoot this before making any recommendation. I’d also want to know why his appetite is so small and picky (hint: it often has to do with weak stomach acid, caused by long term use of reflux medicines and/or antibiotics), and I’d fix that, so he can just eat enough food to grow and gain well, whether he uses a high calorie formula or not. On that note, 24 ounces/day of either of these formulas can fill much of his calcium needs. If you want to add something, look for a liquid suspension in a 2:1 ratio of calcium to magnesium, from brands like Integrative Therapeutics or Metabolic Response Modifier – there are several of these out there, and they don’t require mixing with anything. You can just eat them off the spoon, or stir in to juice or liquid if preferred.
Pediasure is not for infants, it is for kids over the age of one year. And if milk or soy proteins are a problem, then this formula would not work even at the right age, because it is made from milk and soy. Elecare Jr or Neocate Splash may work just fine, but why is your son at 2nd percentile wt to begin with? Is this his expected growth pattern? That is determined by a few factors: His weight and length at birth, his pattern in his first year, and stature for his mom and dad. As a practitioner, I would not be comfortable simply telling him to drink a new formula. Besides being specific about how he might best use a tool like one of those formulas, I’d trouble shoot why his growth pattern and appetite are suppressed, and why he can’t eat enough to sustain a healthy growth pattern. If you’re looking for an easy to use calcium supplement, look for liquid formulations that don’t require mixing in anything, like a calcium-magnesium liquid in a 2:1 ratio from manufacturers like Integrative Therapeutics or Metabolic Response Modifier. These can be mixed in with juice or drinks if need be, but can be eaten just off spoon.
Hi, I’m concerned about my little boy. He is 4 years now. He is drinking pediasure since he is 2 years old. Now he is 4+ years old. He understand what we are saying well but he speaks only 2 word combination sentence that too not clearly. He is not talking as expected milestone . And he is not potty trained still in diaper only. Very active. He never tired. Very picky eater. Moody type like He will eat or play or do something only if he as mood to do. Otherwise very stubborn. He is getting emotional for small things like crying and feeling sad. I thought this is normal part of development. But after reading ur article. I am worried that is this pediasure is the cause of concern.
Your son is showing all the usual signs of milk addiction. This will arrest expressive language and may be why your son isn’t speaking. It will also create hyperactive behavior, poor sleep pattern, and inability to potty train. Pediasure is milk protein (and soy protein), some sugar, and some vitamins and minerals. It is not suitable for kids with milk allergy or intolerance. A child can have milk intolerance if the milk protein is not digested and absorbed normally; this is different from allergy, and the effects are often behavioral, exactly as you are describing. It will cause the same problem as whole milk, if it is not absorbed normally. Here is more information on milk addiction in this book.
Hey greetings from Kenya I am concerned my baby’s growth he is 14 months old he is eating his food but vomits one or two times for every 3 or 7 days and i have worried about the vomitting he can olnly take small amounts of food and he is on cow milk before cow milk he was aptamil formula but he was still vomitting do you think camel milk will help him other wise his milestone are perfect and he little thin
Camel milk might be a wonderful support, but can’t be a full time formula solution for your toddler. The source of vomiting should ideally be identified, with a stool study for pathogens or parasites, and perhaps blood work to screen for infection. If no fever or concerns in that regard then it is likely that this is a milk protein intolerance. Switch to a hydrolyzed option like Alimentum RTF, Gerber Soothe, Nutramigen, or once old enough, use fish, chicken, and legumes like lentils soft cooked with rice for proteins.
Hi. My son gags a lot. Cannot tolerate apple, carrots, eggplant, chocolate, among other things. I am considering giving him pediasure. He is 3 1/2 yrs old. He has not gained weight and height for about 6 months. Is that failure to thrive?
Hi Hervie, a growth plateau of this duration at this age meets diagnostic criteria for “nutritional failure”. This is also “failure to thrive” if a child lapses down the chart to the fifth percentile for weight for age or less. Both can be happening at the same time. In my practice I repair the underlying triggers these problems. The gagging and poor tolerance of foods is a clue – has your child used reflux medicine? This can make these problems worse over time. Pediasure may not fix the problem, but if you want to just try a boost drink, pick an option with organic ingredients, like Orgain. To test if it’s the milk protein that is the problem, use one that has none in it, like Kate Farms
I am too my daughter is 3 diagnosed as global developmental delay with focal epilepsy. We are using pedia sure but still failure to thrive.
If Pediasure hasn’t shown a clear benefit within 3-4 weeks, time to shift gears. See my blog on underweight for more information. The nutrition features of global developmental delay have many overlaps with autism spectrum diagnoses, so have a look at this book for details and strategies you can apply right away.
Hi
My daughter was born underweight. However, overall she is healthy and playful. But whenever I take her for her routine height weight check up, I’m always told that she is a little short than the average children of her age. I thought of giving her pediasure. But she suffers from acute constipation. Should I continue a little more or stop right away.
Pediasure can be constipating for many kids. If your daughter is severely constipated, find out why and fix the problem. One of the common causes of constipation in kids is fungal overgrowth in the intestine, as described here. A single course of a medicine like Nystatin (taken orally) can often fix that, so kids can poop. You can also try chewable digestive enzymes for kids to help her digest the milk protein in Pediasure, so it isn’t constipating. Lastly, your doctor should be able to tell if your little girl is growing as expected according to her own pattern, or if she is actually smaller than she should be. Even for “small” kids who grow along the bottom of the chart, this may be ok, as long as they are keeping their pattern and show all the right signs for being in strong nutrition status. Constipation is a sign that she may not be absorbing her diet as well as she should be.
My daughter is extremely underweight since beginning. She is 10yo and weighs 40lbs. Her pediatricians always say she is active, so not to worry. But, she just cant have food more than certain amount which is very tiny. She is always complaining that she feels full and thus very uncomfortable even if she has little bit more amount than usual , which is much less than half of amount eaten by other 10yo kids. She also gets frequent headaches especially in winters. I gave her pediasure and she wont have more than half bottle a time even after that she would still be uncomfortably full after drinking that much. She gained bit weight but started too much resistance towards pediasure and finally I gave up. After that she hasnt even gained any weight in her usual slow pattern. Doctors refuse to do anything. Can you suggest?
Forty pounds at age ten is failure to thrive status, and this is costly for children. It injures cognition, learning, behavior, and infection fighting.
If your pediatrician thinks living in failure to thrive status is ok for a child, what else is s/he ignoring? Step one: Get a new pediatrician! Pediatricians aren’t well trained in nutrition, but there are others out there who can at least appreciate that your daughter deserves better. You are free to choose a provider who supports your family toward good health and well being.
Next – where did her appetite go, and when? It’s important to rule out underlying physical causes that may make eating painful or uncomfortable. A sensation of fullness after just a few bites or sips is partly her small stomach having adjusted to starvation; it’s possible to gradually increase this, with incrementally larger meals. But, any underlying physical causes for pain or discomfort must be assessed or treated. To rule these out, your pediatrician should refer your daughter to a gastroenterologist. Bloodwork, stool studies, or endoscopy may be in order, and the GI doctor can determine that.
Otherwise, a simple but common cause for feeling full too fast is weak stomach acid. Stomach acid must be very strong to initiate digestion, and when it’s weak, it can’t do this very well, and the sensation that you’ve had a lot to eat when you haven’t will ensue.
Lastly, a simple test to do right away – even with your current pediatrician – is a test for gluten sensitivity and a test for celiac disease. Both should be emphatically negative. If either approaches upper ends of a normal range, it’s possible that a gluten free diet may help.
Little one is almost 5, feeding disorder as an infant, took formula but had Oral adversion. Is ASD and now looking at ARFID. Lives only on pediasure and a few bites of chips. What are possible complications of a diet based only on pediasure long term as this is the only food he has ever had and probably ever will
Despite what most websites, doctors, and dietitians will tell you, no, Pediasure is not a healthy food, and is not successful as sole source nutrition or exclusive feeding, in my opinion. Sadly, it is relied on way too often for this purpose. Your care team (and you!) should expect better care for your son, who gets to thrive and be healthy, and enjoy a normal life. It is hard to reverse this at age five, but not impossible. Obviously, if your care team knew how to do this, they would have – but they don’t. Read this blog, and then buy this (very inexpensive) e-book and then I also want you to watch this short video.His developmental features can improve also, if this nutrition intervention is done correctly.
My nephew is grunge fed with Pediasure 1.5 with extra calories in which he is fed 210 ml every three hours. My concern is the irratibity, loss of sleep, hair loss, and constant gas issues. What other food is good for him to be fed by G-tube.
Hair loss, irritability, and constant gas are signs that something is wrong and needs attention. It may be the formula that is irritating him; it may be other nutrition and gut biome concerns; it may be all of the above. Unless someone has done a deep nutrition assessment – beyond just checking his growth pattern – there is no way to know what is going on. A formula switch can help you diagnose whether the Pediasure is the problem, but it’s likely just part of the problem or one of many that are causing his discomfort. To switch formulas, ask your team for a trial of an elemental formula (like Elecare or Neocate) or of a hydrolyzed formula (like Vital Peptide). These all have GMO and artificial ingredients in them. If you want cleaner options that are organic, check out products from Functional Formularies. You can also build a formula yourself (this is called modular feeding) by using individual organic ingredients like collagen, healthier oils and nutrients. I have done this for a number of clients, and if you’d like more help, schedule a New Patient series from here. My calendar will auto-reply to you with instructions and details once you schedule.
Hi!
Interesting article, i’m an MD myself and learned a lot from it. I myself am struggling with my little one. He was breastfed for 15 months, then started drinking pediasure a few times a day. He ha always suffered with bloating/cramps and reflux. He has been below the 1% since birth. He is now 8 kg at 19 months. He is an extremely picky eater and pediasure seems to be the only thing he accepts. I tried to wean him off it to see if he’ll eat more but he just simply wont/doesnt have the appetite. His celiac screen, thyroid, anemia were all negative. Not sure where to go from here. Any advice?
Your son only accepts Pediasure because he is literally addicted to it. This can occur due to exorphin peptides formed from the casein and soy in the formula, which have CNS effects and engage endorphin receptors. They look like false opiates to the nervous system, and they are literally addicting. Besides extreme picky eating and refusal of foods that don’t form opiate-like peptides, other signs that this chemistry is active: Expressive language delay (is he talking or babbling or forming phrases?); proprioceptive hyposensitivity (is he a “crash and bang” kind of guy? Does he seem a little too immune to spills and bangs?); sluggish, firm or constipated stools; and harder-than-ordinary tantrums; and a tendency to be wakeful between 1-3 AM. If he has used PPIs and antibiotics, these exacerbate the problem, by reducing protein digestion and making it easier for the gut to absorb these proteins in the exorphin form. You can learn more about this here. You will have to replace the Pediasure entirely as well as completely omit all opiate peptide forming proteins (gluten, casein, soy, pea protein concentrates like Kate Farms milk or Ripple milk). This isn’t easy but it does work and requires a sequential, multi layered process to succeed. Gut biome needs to be optimized; minerals need assessment and replacement too. I’ve written an e book here to guide families through this.
My son is 7 days shy of turning 2 years old & is beginning to fall behind on the growth curve. He was diagnosed with FPIES at 6 months with his triggers being oats, rice & banana. He also has ige allergies to peanuts. He eats alot of food but his growth doesn’t seem to reflect that. I was considering Pediasure and Carnation Breakfast Essentials to boost his weight & help with growth before finding your website. Any suggestions will help. I’m not sure what to do!
Your son has multiple known food reactions of various types; unless someone has assessed for IgG reactions too, there may be more. These don’t have to be forever, but while he is balancing his immune system and gut environment (both of which need to be settled and organized to digest food well and grow), you can do better than pesticide laden milk and GMO soy proteins, which is what Pediasure and Carnation both contain. Use grass fed organic collagen as a powdered boost to add in a non-triggering milk like unsweetened almond milk, or mix into soft foods. Boost with a tablespoon or two of full fat canned coconut milk in every 8 ounces or so of milk substitute, and add flavors he likes. You can also buy chocolate or vanilla grass fed collagen peptides from companies like Vital Proteins or Josh Axe. Meanwhile someone needs to do a proper nutrition assessment to find the real reason for his growth delay. If you’d like more help you can set up a new patient series here.
Does pediasure allergy cause puffiness around eyes , LO has constipation n diaper rash after taking pediasure
This sounds like allergy (puffy eyes, diaper rash) as well as poor tolerance of this formula (constipation). Tell your doctor. In my opinion, you should stop this formula. Your child may need an elemental formula like Elecare, Neocate Junior or PurAmino. I also create non-GMO hypoallergenic formulas from real foods for my clients in cases where that is preferred. Either way, puffy eyes, constipation and diaper rash are deal breakers for me.
Judy, My DD is 21 months now and weight only 9kg, height is 79cm.
I am 164cm and my husband is 167cm
She weight 8.2kg at 1 year and since then only added 800gm in 10 months. We are worried and she looks really small for her age and very petite.
She used to vomit any cow based formula during early months and was always breast fed until she was 1 and then the paediatric suggested to perform her milk allergy test which came up 1.13KU/L and we were suggested that this is normal and there is no milk allergy. We were suggested by paediatrics to start pediasure(200ml everyday) but she is very fussy so she only takes 100-150ml every day and 100ml milk some days in addition.
This has continued for 4 months now without any visible improvement in her growth.
She is otherwise very energetic and smart girl. The sleep in day is 1-2hrs but still gets up during night 1-2 times without any reason and takes an hr to settle and get back to sleep.
I am convinced something is wrong as she eats well including meat, steamed veggies, cheese and occasionally yogurt.
What should be our next step to identify her growth issues, 800gm in 10 month is concerning.
Your next step would be to make an appointment with me so I can spend time reviewing this history in greater detail. If she isn’t growing well, even if she seems well otherwise, this is costly for her, and unnecessary. My first suspicion is she has an active IgG reaction to casein and whey, and possibly other proteins. Pediasure will fail in that context. If her gut biome is disrupted, this will further interrupt her feeding, eliminating, and growth. Your next trial should be elemental formula like Neocate, Elecare, or PurAmino.
My teenager has Celiac and is truly struggling with such a limited diet due to Celiac and other dietary restrictions such as not tolerating fodmaps. He seems to not be absorbing nutrients from foods or supplements. He is an athlete and is lanky in build(as were his great grandfather, and great great grandfather). We are concerned about the malabsorption. Since his diagnosis in 2017, he has gained and grew a little, but seems to be not gaining vital nutrients that he needs. We have used pedisure and store brands of pedisure in the past with a little success, but I feel he is still missing vital nutritional components and really would like him to be healthy and not in constant pain. Any advice would be appreciated.
This does sound like things are indeed not working. Celiac diagnosis with correct diet measures should have improved your son’s growth pattern, not compromised or stalled it. Many celiacs are also casein sensitive with the same reaction that they have to gluten (elevated IgG to casein as well as gluten), but this is generally never screened by GI doctors when diagnosing celiac. There is nothing magic about Pediasure, and if he is indeed reacting to the protein in it (which is casein) then it will harm him just like gluten. In that case it isn’t nourishing for him at all. Let go of the fear that there will be nothing for him to eat, and definitely don’t bemoan that to him (that’s your problem, not his, because it isn’t true). Demonstrate possibility to him, not fear or lack. The reality is there is plenty to eat for people avoiding gluten and casein, and if you’d like expert guidance on how to enjoy life without them and feel good, let’s connect.
Judy,
My 2.5 year old toddler is small for his age and somewhere between 5-15% weight percentile. He has not gained any weight in the last year and recently he has become really constipated. He tested positive for CMV, but they say this has nothing to do with the way he is feeling. He had 9 days of low grade fever for a few hrs every day. I did give him pediasure protein to see if I could get him stronger, but that only made him even more constirpated. He is currently taking 4 cap fulls of Myralax a day for regularity.
CMV is absolutely impacting your child – I disagree with this assessment on your doctor’s part. Many people with CMV have chronic fatigue and low grade fevers. This also makes your child more likely to tolerate vaccines poorly and/or have stronger reactions to them, in my opinion. No growth in a year for a toddler means your toddler has failure to thrive. This is a costly circumstance with profound impacts on the immune system and the brain. It’s medically negligent on your doctor’s part to not treat the failure to thrive condition. Ask for a referral to a pediatric nutrition specialist. If you like, contact me here to work with me remotely or in person. This can be better for you child!
Hello,
My son is 8 years and 3 months old, since 3 months his motions were lose(3-4) /day. Vomits aswell after 2-3 days or so. Started losing weight(4 KGS in 3 months) and had poor appetite. Feels pain in chest n gaseous feeling in stomach. Fecal calprotectin level is <1000
IgG and IGA tests are negative. Ultrasound shows inflammation and narrowing of small intestine and some times shows short segment intussception as well.
Endoscopy result was mild gastritis, antral and duodenal nodularity, and normal colonic mucosa. Doctor had put him on pediasure milk for 10 days. Not allowed to eat anything else.
Confused about that all, what is your opinion regarding his diseases as doctor didn't informed us his disease yet. He is taking enterogermina probiotic, 2 ampules a day since 15 days.
This requires more thorough professional oversight for feeding and supporting your son’s gut environment. Pediasure is likely to be constipating as well as inflammatory and there are better options. If your son did not immediately improve on it, then it is likely not going to work well for him. Calprotectin is quite high and this means inflammation. Your team should discover why there is inflammation. Is there infection? What is the plan to resolve the intussception? What is the cause of gastritis? All of these questions need answers. IgG and IgA negative does not mean anything – negative to what? Are these total undifferentiated levels, or specific to certain foods or other antigens? There are surely strategies here than can help but many good clues are not being acted on by your team so far. Press for more options, details, and information. If it isn’t forthcoming, schedule a spot to work with me remotely by clicking Work With Judy.
Hello, I would like to ask if I will switch from milk to soy brand because my 3 years old daughter have retention with poop because of her spina bifida. We are having trouble in giving her prune juice because of its taste. Nan made her more constipated. She had better poops in Frisolac, she is now on Friso 4 and would like to have an alternative milk, since it is always out of stock. I am having a hard time comparing the nutrition facts from each milks.
You won’t likely see much improvement with soy. It may seem a little better at first but because it is a similar protein to casein (milk), it is also constipating. I’d suggest an elemental toddler formula such as Neocate Junior. You can make your own formula using collagen or other proteins, but for this strategy some professional guidance is best.
All the praise hands high for this! My 11 year old daughter has ADHD, mood swings, picky eater and weight was 0.08% 😳
My pediatrician pushed ice cream and pediasure and told me that an elimination diet was the worst thing that I could do for her. And refused all labs.
After 3 months of free from gluten, dairy and soy and bumping up her protein intake she gain 4 pounds! And had improvements in behavior!
The pediatrician said “well I guess there might be something to this” 😉
Hi my son is currently on pediasure. He’s 3 turning 4 on april. What other brand of milk would prefer? After i read this i plan on not giving him pediasure anymore.
Moving toward anything organic and GMO free, without corn syrup or gobs of cane sugar, is always a better idea. Next question is what protein is best in his case? If he was fine with cow’s milk protein, then give him whole full fat organic grass fed cows milk or goat milk. The only thing Pediasure adds beyond that is nasty pesticide filled fats, corn syrup and a few vitamins. You can boost cows milk with extra collagen, maple syrup, lucuma powder (a plant sweetener), or organic cocoa powder if you need to add some carbs.
Help! Wondering what I need to do next for my daughter? She is 11 years old and has always been a picky eater. She is not even on the growth chart maybe in the 1 percentile. For the last 6 months, We have been in out of her PCP and ENT and GI doctors even counseling for anxiety. They have run blood tests, urine, abdominal X-ray, swallowing X-ray so on and so forth. Nobody can help figure out what’s wrong with her. These are her symptoms… stomach aches every night and sometimes during the day, feels nauseous, overall feeling icky, mostly constipated, weak, tired but has problems sleeping, she’s so sick of feeling sick all the time and nobody has answers for us and keeps moving us along to the next Dr./Specialist.
Your story is a common one in my pediatric nutrition practice. Your daughter is stuck where insurance-covered, conventional medicine fails. Providers here are well meaning but reach the limits of what their institutions allow for screening or what their training provides for exactly how to work with integrative, functional nutrition care. They either can’t or don’t know how to solve the problem. Several options come to mind for screening and intervention with what you describe. Did she have a just celiac test, or a more complete panel that includes deamidated gliadin antibody? Did she have IgG panels done for other foods, for Saccharomyces, Candida, Epstein Barr or other viruses? Did she have stool screening only for pathogens like Giardia or Shigella, or did she have an expanded panel that checks for DNA of everything from protozoans to fungal strains? Is she taking reflux medicine? Did she have a complete iron study with ferritin, or just a CBC with hemoglobin and hematocrit? What is her zinc status? Has anyone reviewed her food diary with you? What are the z scores on her growth pattern? Unless someone did a nutrition-focused physical exam as well as a functional medicine focused nutrition assessment, then the solutions may remain invisible – but not impossible. Use my contact form to reach out if you are interested in getting to solutions.
My 20 month old son has HLHS and
WPWS and was put on pediasure by his dietitian. He is completely tube fed so it’s his only source of nutrition. He’s been getting diarrhea 4-6 times a day, and now after each poo with in 2 min it burns him bad enough that he bleeds. Screams in pain every nappy change and I’ve tried all the creams and powders…… He won’t take food orally and until he gets a peg put in we can only feed fluids…… Doctors have been no help and I’m grasping at straws now. I’m getting to the stage where I’m worried about potential infection…… Any advice?
Double back with your local care team and point out exactly what you’ve shared here. Obviously your child isn’t tolerating this strategy very well. If they can’t offer anything else, I can work with you to redirect this via one on one consult, and you can schedule a spot to get started anytime by clicking on “Learn With Judy” then “Work With Judy On Line or In Person”.
Hi.l hope u can help me.my son have liver cirrhosis due to lch and to gain wait the doctor gave him pedasure peptide vanilla after that he started to vomit and he’s stool become very soft like mucous and develop abdominal pain and they did every thing and all came negative.and they did endoscopy they found inflammation and redness in stomach and internal and colon but they didn’t found what is the reason.due thing this may be from the formaula and we miss that please help me
Hello Lamis, tell the doctor who gave this formula what has happened. Your son may need an elemental formula like Neocate or Elecare. The cause of inflammation in his gut should be identified before feeding strategy is set. Tell your doctors to rule out all food allergy and all food sensitivity reactions before you are advised on what to feed your son. If you need more help you are welcome to set up a new patient series of appointments with me as well.
My son was diagnosed with ASD last October and just turned 4 last month. He is currently on Promil Gold and because recently he does not drink as much of the milk I was told by his pediatrician to try Pediasure. After reading this I plan not to anymore. What other brand of milk would you recommend that will boost and not hinder his growth given his diagnosis? He does not also take afternoon naps and sleeps at least around 9 hours at night.
Most likely, you can’t use milk protein in your son’s case. It may worsen autism features, due to a number of factors: Poor digestion of the milk protein (from any source – yogurt, cheese, pudding, Pediasure, ice cream, pizza, cheese crackers etc), allergy to milk protein, sensitivity to milk protein, or cross-reactivity between milk and other similar proteins like wheat (gluten), soy, or pea protein concentrates. Pick up a copy of this book to learn the detail you need to tackle this successfully.
Hrllo
Wonderful blolg
Thanls for this awareness
I have noticed excessive urinatiom in my kids aftet having pediasure even bedwetting…
Pleaae enlighten
This can be related to either the formation of false neurotransmitters (casomorphin) from the casein peptides in the formula, or from poor tolerance of casein peptides per an immune system reaction, which may be either IgE (allergy) or IgG (non-allergy) mediated.
Hello, my baby just turn 1 and his GI doctor put him on pediasure and is taking medication for constipation. He is underweight and has oral aversion. He doesn’t really want to eat solid food unless I blended. I try giving him cows milk and he lost one pound. I’m so frustrated please help!!!
Hello, the Pediasure may not help much if the casein and soy proteins in it are a problem, which they appear to already be, given what you’ve said here (Cow’s milk has casein in it). Tell your doctor that you want to try a formula like Neocate or Elecare, they should have samples. The protein in that will not be constipating. If you’d like more specific guidance I’m happy to help – visit my calendar (see “work with Judy”) to get started.
Hi, I’m concerned about my little girl. She is now 4 and she us been drinking 1 pediasure for the last 3 years everyday, can be that dangerous? Please help me!!
Hi Cindy, how is your daughter? Healthy? Growing? Happy? Sleeping soundly? Comfortable eliminations every day or so? Hitting milestones like talking, playing with peers? If yes yes and yes to all then stop worrying. If you’d like a non-GMO option, check out Orgain drinks instead – same stuff without the weird GMO angle to disrupt gut flora.
Hi, my son just turned 2, and he’s only 21.5 lbs. He was born full term at a healthy 6 lbs 6 oz, but he’s been underweight ever since. He had milk soy protein intolerance as a baby, but sadly after he was diagnosed, we moved and we couldn’t find a new pediatrician who believed MSPI was real. His MSPI symptoms (bellyaches, constipation and diarrhea, severe reflux, trouble sleeping) all went away shortly after his first birthday. I figured his MSPI days were behind him, so now he consumes dairy and soy on the regular. I had never heard that slow weight gain could be a symptom as well. Could he still be suffering from milk and soy protein intolerance even though he has no other symptoms?
Hi Mary, the only way to know if the milk and soy protein reactions are still active is to look for them. They may shift into creating deeper and seemingly unrelated symptoms, such as asthma events, eczema, other inflammatory conditions, frequent ear infections or colds, inattention or difficulty with age appropriate learning tasks, tantrums and behavior concerns that seem harder than usual, or speech and language delays. If your son is experiencing all around excellent health, growth, feeding, eliminating, sleep pattern, and playing, fabulous! Either way, the correct testing can be done to rule out lingering reactions and to decide if any action is warranted.
Hi. My son is 5yrs 6mnths. He is way too much underweight and short for a 5yr old. He weighs 12kgs and his height is 101cm. I have tried giving him pedia sure 2 years back but it was not effective.
He gets stomach infection 2-3 episodes in past 1yr. To the extent that we have to give him iv fluids due to his excessive vomiting.
These days i have restarted pediasure. But recently he is having some stool issues and complaining of head pain. I am so worried about his growth as it has now started to take a toll on his self confidence.
Please help me.
Your son surely needs close nutrition monitoring with assessment by a professional. I have asked my assistant to reach out to you so we can explore working together. Thank you for being in touch.
Hi, My daughter is 3 and half years old and she has been taking pediasure since 2 years. Since birth she seems to be weak she was only on powdered milk. She hardly drank mothers milk, as she was our first baby. the problem is she gets cold nearly 2 times a month, with very bad cough. we did blood test many times. and doctor said everything is normal. When i read ur article i think pediasure may be an reason. She is also underweight and have lot of fuss to eat. Please suggest? I am thinking of changing to Enfagrow.
I would disagree that this frequency of illness, underweight, and difficulty feeding is “normal”. I think your instincts are right! If you’d like me to review labs and make suggestions on other feeding strategies, click the appointment tab above and we can get started anytime. In the meantime you might try your daughter on an alternative like goat milk, camel milk, semi-elemental or elemental formula. Your doctor should be able to direct you to these options, and you can always ask them to if they have not offered.
Where can I find your book(s)?
All can be found here on Amazon
Hi Dr. Judy, my son is 5 years old. His problem started about 7 months ago he got 3 stomach virus in a lapse of 3 months and lost some weight. His appetite hasn’t been good since then, Pediatrician recommended pediasure to help him gain weight and even dough he is slowly gaining, our concern is that his behavior has changed so much he has trouble speaking, he repeats words constantly and also has repeating behavior (does things over and over) in his frustration for speak he makes loud noises too! We are so worry because before that he was a very normal child and had a normal development. Is it possible that pediasure is giving him bad side effects or in your experience he is facing a different problem? Thank you in advance for your advice, it is greatly appreciated!
Hi Monica, well first off, I’m not a doctor – I’m a licensed registered dietitian/nutritionist. Ok next – clearly the Pediasure is not being well tolerated if you are seeing these effects from it. I would be happy to investigate for you but can’t do that unless we are working together – you can make an appointment by clicking the appointment tab above, which brings you to my calendar. If your son is forming a casomorphin peptide from the Pediasure, which is a possibility, then yes it will interfere with speech and behavior. Urine testing is available to show if this is happening. If positive, then your son would need to avoid casein. You can read more about that on this blog post here
hi good afternoon i am atik i like to know my son 5 y his w 20 k last year he was also 20 k but now he is become slim i can give him Pediasure he had NAN 4 i can continue nan 4 or better to given him pediasure please help me what will be good for him (For growth)
thanks
Hello Atik, I don’t know if your son can succeed with those formulas. Best to check with your GI and pediatrician on this. If they are unable to help, you are welcome to make an appointment at any time, via my calendar. Click the tab for “your appointment” above and it will prompt you to my calendar.
Judy, great, thought provoking article.
My question is pretty much: What are the impacts of food allergies/sensitivities on Poop and Sleep!
I just started my 2.5 year old son on Pediasure. He’s only taking half the bottle once or twice a day. (A week in, I fear the posts saying their kids started chronic vomiting at about week 3)
He’s only slightly below average for height and weight, but average is small in a family of giants (his twin sister has a solid 2 inches on him).
My issue is that he DOES NOT SLEEP! Could this be attributed to food allergies/sensitivities?
It takes him hours to fall asleep, and he’s up throughout the night (averages 4-5 sporadic hours). Even at 2am his mood is cheerful and playful (mine is not!). He is a very active and silly/mischievous kid, doesn’t eat much (about half of what my kids typically eat, and they EAT!). Also, he prefers milk to juice, which I like, but he only get 2-3 cups a day. I now wonder if he has a milk allergy. Can he both love/tolerate and be allergic to milk?
I don’t know if it’s a related symptom, but his BMs are VERY loose/mushy. He hasn’t had a really solid BM in months, maybe years (I don’t really document). I will say his BM this morning was certainly the most solid I’ve seen it, so maybe Pediasure is good for him?
A sleep study last year determined his sleep patterns to be behavior (unlike my 8 year old who at 4yr had his tonsils and adenoids removed and WAS on the Autistic Spectrum, now ADHD with Anxiety).
I have 5 kids, 8, 4, 2, 2, 10mo. They all eat the same and he’s the only one with issues – poop and sleep!
Thanks for your insight.
Meghan
Hi Meghan, you got issues! Yes of course allergy, sensitivity and many other nutrition related factors impact sleep. A sleep study does not look at ANY of those things whatsoever, so telling you it’s a “behavior” is a cop out. Sleep specialists aren’t tasked with assessing nutrition factors, so they have no idea how this may factor in. But – you mention several clues: Chronic loose stool for years, history of infections and inflammation necessitating tonsils be removed, insomnia, and he’s inexplicably smaller than his siblings. There’s clearly something different going on for this one of your brood. It’s easy to find out. You can set up an appointment with me to investigate, or start with this book to sort it out.
My grandson is a healthy 5 yr. old, active and slim. His other grandma is from the old European school in which they have to be chubby in order to be healthy. But he is a picky eater and so she has been giving him Pediasure daily as she has him after school for a few hours. He does not like it but she makes him drink it. We have all tried to tell her not to give it to him but she will not stop so now my son is considering looking for other care for him, which will cost a lot..my grandson is hyper all evening after being with her, gets to sleep late and is tired in school.. What can you suggest we tell her to convince her to stop?
Tell her your grandson is hyper and unable to fall asleep when he drinks it, and send him there with an alternative or recipe to mix up a healthier option.
Hi Judy,my LO is 2.5 years old .As she turned 2 her paediatrician recommended her to have PEDIASURE as she is just 23.14 pounds which is very low (underweight) for her age. Also, she is under height as well. But now after having PEDIASURE once a day with three scoops, she ends up having really bad constipation and for that every alternate month i am giving her stool softener as the poop got stuck and it was a really painful site for me as a mother. Please suggest what else i can give her for appropriate height and weight at her agE? as i am no longer giving her PEDIASURE.
I wouldn’t know what to recommend without working with you in more detail: What is her growth pattern since birth? Why isn’t she eating enough to maintain her growth in the first place? How much weight does she need to gain to resume her expected trajectory? What other foods and proteins does she eat? Does she have a dysbiotic gut, does that need correcting too? Has she ever been screened for food allergy or sensitivity? There are many options besides Pediasure, but picking the right one warrants some investigation. If your pediatrician doesn’t know how to do that, contact me and we can get started anytime.
Hi, just finished reading this article and I found facinating all the information you explain here. My son is almost 4 years old and has speech delay, as a baby he used to vomit after every feeding and the pediatricitian told me was acid reflux. He used to poop regualry when he was exclusive breastfeed but since he was 1. Years old , he pooped every other day or every two days. He is now a really picky eater and loves milk and crackers. He has a lot of the behavior you describe on the gluten casein urine peptide test. I will request that test on my next visit to his pediatrician. In the mean time , what should I do ? What kind of diet should a follow ?
Hi Lis, your doctor won’t know about this test as it is not a routine test. If you’d like more info on this test click here. I can request this test for you. If you need individualized diet advice for your son, I don’t offer that in this forum, but do provide that in my practice – you can schedule an appointment any time from this link. If you don’t want an individualized care plan, try starting with instructions in either this book or this one.
Hi Judy
My daughter Hannah is 1 yr old and she has trisomy 18. Shes been doing real good she weighs 17 pounds n is a very happy baby. The doctor orderd pediasure for her to drink well she has a feeding tube so she gets her nutrients through there..Is pediasure good for my daughter meaning will that full her tummy but most importantely give her the nutrients she need to thrive
Hi Patrice, that’s great your daughter is happy. I don’t know what your doctor based the formula recommendation on, as there are several options. Pediasure can fill her tummy (you can fill a tummy with anything)! Your clues that it is the right choice will be reflected in her growth pattern, her appetite, whether her skin is clear, and her stool pattern.
My son has had a gut issue since birth. Transplant of pancreas, liver, and bowel. Last 4 months he has not been able to keep food down for more than a week. His MD recommended pediasure and since then he has vomitted this up and cannot tolerate it. But the same foods he has always ate irritate his bowel now too. I’m not sure what to do. I ordered the IGG and amino acid kit. Am I on the right track?
Hi Nina, see my reply on e mail.
Hi Maren, yes, you can find all this info on my site here https://nutritioncare.net/make-your-appointment/
Hi judy,
I was wondering if you also accept care credit as form of payment.
Hi Judy,
I hope you can help me too. I have a 4yo son,underweight, a g6pd.
Is Pediasure not good for him since he has g6pd?
TIA!
I can’t advise on what is best regarding G6PD for your son, but there is nothing magical about Pediasure that addresses G6PD issues.
My child is 11 months old she started vomiting when she was 6 weeks old ,she’s drinking formula ,I have tried many formulas but the doctor told me that she has a little bit of acid reflux,she doesn’t want to eat at all but I’m forcing her to eat she is weighing 14kg the doctor told me that I must give her pediasure ,please help frustrated mother from 6 weeks until noe
Your doctor should find the cause of the vomiting and food averse behavior and fix it. This can be infection in the upper small intestine or elsewhere in GI tract. I screen for these issues in my practice and your doctor can too. You can schedule an appointment to work with me on this if you like at any time.
I hope you can help me, my daughter is 3 and she completely stopped eating food and drinking juice or water a few months ago. My pediatrician said its normal and to give her pediasure. All she consumes is two bottles a day of pediasure and whole milk. She usually poops little brown or black balls but today and yesterday her poop was a very very bright green my grandparents and I have never seen anything like it. Mind you I have no crayons in my home and she does not eat candy or drink anything with a dye in it. I’m very worried for my child do you think her poop turned green due to bile?? If so how can I get her to eat
I agree that this does not sound healthful, comfortable, or sustaining for a three year old. I can best help if you would like to make an appointment, visit NutritionCare.net and click Your Appointment.
Hi Judy,
My daughter was induced at 38 weeks due to concerns with her growth. She weighed 5 lbs 12 oz. Since birth she has struggled with eating. I tried breastfeeding, but her latch was poor and she wasn’t consuming enough. So I started pumping and giving her bottles. She still didn’t eat enough. During this time she had a bout of really bad bowel movements that were bright green, frothy and mucousy. I was told by my doctor to remove all dairy and soy from my diet. However I hadn’t eaten any dairy products for years and consumed very little soy, so I knew this was likely not the problem. My daughter’s weight was under the 1st percentile for a few months. Eventually we had to supplement with formula to try and get more calories in her. It seemed to make no difference to her what kind of milk was in the bottles, she did not want it. She did spit-up frequently, but I don’t think it was anything out of the ordinary. We were referred to a feeding team of a dietitian and OT where we were advised to increase the formula concentration to 26 kcal. This did help her to gain some weight, but she would only take bottles in a sleepy state. As she got older, she was no longer as sleepy, so we had to distract her with toys and videos in order for her to take her bottles. She is now 11.5 months old and in the 3rd percentile. She is not overly interested in solids either. We have just recently tried Pediasure and she seems to be more interested in it than any other type of milk we’ve offered, but I am not overly keen on it because of the dairy and sugar, but it seems to be something she’ll willingly take and has a high calorie content. To this day I am still baffled (and frustrated) as to why she has not been interested in eating. I am wondering if you may have any insight. Thanks.
Yes I would have insights for you, and these would become obvious in an assessment. Triggers for your daughters’ struggles may have included poor tolerance of vaccinations; any history for you for autoimmunity or chronic infections including yeast infections; antibiotic exposures for you in pregnancy, delivery, or lactation, or for her directly. I also observe that mothers vaccinated while pregnant bear babies with more GI disruption from birth, though I know this is quite an unpopular opinion to share. As for what is happening now, where she strongly prefers Pediasure, this is consistent with being addicted, literally, to the dairy and soy proteins in the Pediasure (see this e book) and to the sugar in it. These are fierce addictions that keep kids refusing other foods, and keep them in weak growth patterns for years, unless they are directly corrected with functional gut biome restoration and nutrition support. What typically follows here, when parents stick to Pediasure, is referral to a feeding clinic (behavior based) to break the rigid dependence on Pediasure; this requires months of weekly or twice weekly visits, and triggers snails’ pace improvements if any. Or, you can cut to the chase and restore normal appetite, digestion, stooling, and growth with functional nutrition intervention. This can begin to turn things around with 2-3 nutrition consults and 4-8 weeks time. Much faster, and cheaper.
Hi Judy, My son is 3 years and 10 months. he weights just 26 lbs. he was born with weight of 9.259 lbs.
He was diagnosed with
1) Gluten and egg allergies by allergy specialist 2 years back. Six months back he had food challenge test for egg and doc suggested to offer him egg indirectly. I.e in the form of baked items like breads, cakes, that to not use more 2 eggs. Still avoiding gluten and wheat from his diet. Unfortunately, he developed with eczema. Not sure why this triggers occasionally.
2) He fall sick every 15 days once with colds, stuffy nose, chest congestion, wheezing and fevers.
Now he is on alburtol and besusonide for wheezing.
3) He is picky eater, never eats properly.
sometimes he develops constipation. Unfornately he was diagnosed with adenoids by his ENT specialist.
Recently started giving him pediasure grow and gain with fiber. He started to gaining weight bout much worried about his immunity and frequent chest congestion, colds and nasal congestion.
How to improve his immunity?
How to avoid constipation as he is not on wheat diet.
How to prevent wheezing , Chest congestion.
Do I need to modify his diet, if so how?
please help me as I’m getting depressed .
Thanks in advance.
Your son clearly had unresolved nutrition concerns despite all the specialist visits. Pediasure is likely a non-starter for him with the symptoms you are describing, but there are likely other underlying issues as well. Obviously I can’t dispense detailed medical nutrition advice here, but am happy to help you reverse these problems if you are ready to work on that – make an appointment anytime and we can dive in.
Hello Judy,
My son is diagnosed FPIES To soy, dairy and oats. We are using elecare.
He was born at the 58th percentile for height and now at 1 he is in the 2nd percentile.
After discovering FPIES and switching from alimentum to elecare he’s gained weight very well (from 2nd to 18th) but his height is now an issue.
Do you know anything about this? I’m concerned of course! He’s also receiving speech and feeding therapy services for food aversion, but despite not eating much he should have completely nutrition from the elecare correct?
Please advise if you can based on this limited info.
Thanks!
Jessica
Hi Jessica, if he’s gaining weight but not length then he is not getting and/or absorbing enough total protein. Yes Elecare is a “complete” medical food but without more info about his total intake and medical history I can’t offer much help. Also: What I find in my practice is that FPIES is about more than just protein intolerance. There is much more to the story, and the GI community has some catching up to do on this – it’s emerging in the literature but not fast enough in practice. There’s much more to do than feed him Elecare and hope it all resolves. See this blog post if you haven’t already. His food aversions should be resolving, and if they are not, there are solutions to this as well. I’m happy to help – schedule an appointment if that seems right for you.
Hello Judy,
My son has had problems with reflux, vomiting, eating since he was a baby. He is prone to illnesses and seems to me has a weak immune system because of how frequently he gets sick. He has tubes in his ears due to too many ear infections, which he got when he was about 2 years old, he is now about to be 3 in two weeks. Sometimes he goes days in a row without eating much. He’s always had separation anxiety and at times was worse. He acts out a lot too but I feel that it may be because of his age. My main concern is his weight. He is in the 30th percentile for his weight, I keep asking his Pediatrician for help but she keeps saying he’s okay because he is just a little underweight. I can see his shoulder bones, spine, and ribs. I don’t think that is normal. Also one more thing, he vomits after drinking milk it happens almost every other day or every 2 to 3 days. He especially vomits after drinking PediaSure, which is how I got to this forum. He also gets a hoarse cough after drinking PediaSure too. Couple weeks ago when he was sick, he developed Croup overnight. As a baby, I had changed his formula multiple times and ended up at Nutramingen then tried cow’s milk after he turned 1 year old as the doctor said he should be fine. I thought he was okay so I never really bothered trying to change it, besides I was pregnant and had my daughter right before his 1st birthday. Do you think he might be lactose intolerant or has a milk allergy? Please help. Thank you.
What you’re describing is certainly common, but it isn’t normal and definitely not healthy. If your pediatrician is under 40 or 45 years old, then she may be confusing “common” with “normal”. Not the same, and pediatricians of yore did not see this as often as the younger ones do now. I can help you but not in this forum. You do need to be my client in order for me to advise, ethically and legally. Click the appointment tab on my website and place yourself on the calendar. It will auto reply with information about your first appointment, and we can get started.
Hi there
I was wondering if you could give my advise my twin daughters one struggles with exzema en the other with constipation pediatrician said the one with constipation struggels to tollerate milk products so we have change to lactose free everything yohurt, cheese etc. But she is still constipated can it be the pediasure milk they are almost 3 years old can i give them normal lactose free milk at this age? They are both underweight but has very good eating habits
Hi Annette, you are indeed giving your daughters milk products if you are relying on Pediasure. Lactose free milk is also … milk. Both Pediasure and lactose free milk like Lactaid have the exact same protein in them that is in regular milk. This is a likely trigger for your kids’ eczema and constipation, and so, that means the lactose free dairy products won’t do much good (though they may reduce bloating or gas a little, but that won’t change the constipation or inflammation part). If your kids are both underweight, even if they have good eating habits (? if they do, why are they underweight), something is not working. Sounds like you need some professional guidance and you can access that by clicking the Learn With Judy menu above then Consult Online Or In Person With Judy.
Hi,
My 4 year old son is experiencing same now. Can you help?
Hi. I was just doing research on pedisure peptide and allergies. My 4 year old special needs son is currently on it. We are battling with his gi doc. He was recently diagnosed with e.o.e. but i was pretty much called a lier in terms. He said that there is no way he can be allergic to pedisure peptide. And that i wasnt giving him his antacid pills regularly. He only ever eats his pedisure and he gets his meds religiously. Can he still be allergic to the pedisure peptide? Im at a loss and dont know how ro push. He has had 2 scopes and all show the e.o.e. is not getting better. Thank you! I can provide more info if needed.
LOL! Of course he can be reactive to Pediasure. It contains soy and dairy protein and is not a hypoallergenic formula. Perhaps your GI doc has not read the ingredient label. Pepdite is a safer choice as it is made from hydrolyzed (partly broken down) soy protein, and contains no dairy protein. Some children with extreme soy sensitivity still react to this as well. The EOE is probably not improving because he may need elemental formula instead (Neocate or Elecare). Other measures should be offered to restore a healthy gut environment but many GI docs don’t work with these: Glutathione, pre-biotics, probiotics, correct diet, butyrate, vitamin D, and more. If you want help engaging all the good stuff, plus elemental formula (which I often work with), set up an appointment and we can dive in.
Hi judy, My son is 23 months old, he is very active, playful, lovable and caring son. He used to say ma ma, pa pa, calling his grand parents, and do play hide and seek, stacking colors towers, reading playcards, animals, birds, vegatables etc. He used to see newspaper every morning with my dad and babble something after seeing pics in that. He will call me and walk through to dining table and ask snacks, water or some other toys in his play area. He used to sign me and ask what he need. He will sing and dance to songs and rhymes. He will say bye, welcoming persons with hands.So i’m still worried he is not speaking properly at this age. Whay should care for him to speak properly. My husband is saying if a baby is delaying to speak he will be very intellectual like Einstein. Tell me a solution judy please.
Are you saying your son had skills, then lost them? This is an ominous sign. Kids do evolve at varying paces but when a child has had a skill set which then vanishes, I do think this is cause for concern. There is no need to wait and see or worry – Go to a developmental pediatrician and get an evaluation, and be sure to describe all skills previously present that have faded. In any case, if nutrition, feeding or GI features are prominent, that is my purview. Make an appointment if you want to have an assessment for those pieces, so I can assist in creating strong support for brain and body development for your toddler.
Hi Judy, my toddler showing different actions everyday for example he used to keep two pencils in each hand and beat on the table as if a drummer. And next day he will climb and sit on the dinning table or climb nearly 40 steps to reach 2nd floor of my home. He is active in nature, playing differently. But my concern is he is still babble like mama, papa,bye.
How do i improve his speaking skills? Should i consult any speech therapist? he can able to hear my voice and find me even if i hide somewhere else in my home. He will sing with some words and babble a lot .But I’m worried whether he will speak properly or not?
Ask your pediatrician for a referral to a developmental pediatrician. That person will be able to tell you if you toddler is tracking typically or if you ought to consider any interventions.
Hi Judy, I need a help with this situation. My son is 14months old and he doesn’t eat any solid food. He’s been refusing to eat ever since I introduce him solid food which was at 6month. He has eczema and MSPI. He started Neocate infant when he was 3months old and he’s been doing great with it. He started having acid reflux around 3month so he was on medication until he was 8months old. I recently switched his formula to Neocate jr. Unflavored and he loved it. But it was too expensive because he finishes up a can a day. So he went to see his GI Doctor yesterday and she told me to give him pediasure because his growing is well (70 percentile for both weight and height; it’s all because of Neocate) So I gave him pediasure yesterday and he woke up with eczema looking rash all over his back this morning. He has mucous in his stool as well now. What does this mean and what should I do? Thanks in advance.
It means your son is still milk protein intolerant and needs the Neocate. Your GI doctor can write a prescription for Neocate as well as a letter for medical necessity. Ask her to do that for you.
Hi..my son is 13 months old,.he is constipated he is hard to get passing stools..3-4 days before he can have bowel movement and i use laxative.. I try promil,hipp,nan,friso,enfa pedia recommended and now nido but still he has a problem passing stools..i hope u can help me.. What should i do..
GODBLESS
kristel
Hi.my son 22 months old was failing to thrive at 12 months old.he has had several blood samples taken to test for allergies.it was positive for milk,nuts,soy,egg white.he had complications with his chest and eczema.due to this he was placed on pediasure.it initially helped and he gained weight but has a delay with his speech.also I have noticed that he wakes up often during the night crying or calling out for me.my instinct is telling me it might be the formula.even though the effects of sleepless nights and foul,very soft stools weren’t noticeable at first, he might have an intolerance to it now.I decided to not give him the bottle he has before sleep and coincidentally he slept through the night.I am very concerned as not giving him the correct diet could be causing him more bad than good.I am at a loss but starting to think that a plan of action is required and if it means stopping all formula then i will do so.please can you offer me any guidance?I was told to continue him on pediasure.
Your instinct is right: It’s the formula. If your son tested positive to allergy from milk and soy, then he should never have been placed on Pediasure. The protein sources in this are milk and soy. A better choice would have been elemental formula like Elecare or Neocate. These can trigger problems of their own but would still have been the better choice, based on what you’ve shared here. I can best help you with an appointment, please feel free to schedule anytime by following prompts to my calendar here.
Hi Judy
My son is 20 months old and doc suggested to use Enfagrow since 18 months.. What I noticed is hard stools and difficulty in passing stools.. He has also not gained much weight since his 9th month and prone to cold n illness often. Should I stop using Enfagrow and switch to any other health drink, please suggest?
Let your doctor know that your son is not growing or gaining as expected, and has problems passing stools. Ask for a new plan. If none is offered, I am happy to help – but can’t advise on specific changes to your son’s care in this forum. If you like, click here to set up an appointment.
Hi. My son is 21 months. He’s autistic and put on a gluten free and dairy free diet by his doctor. I’m still giving him milk based formula. One to three bottles a night. Would this be bad for his diet?
Umm…. Your doctor maybe didn’t give you enough instruction or support? Your son is not on a diary free diet if he is eating milk based formula. If it is true that removing gluten and dairy are indicated in your son’s case, then he needs to lose that formula, and replace it with foods or formula of equal or better nutritional value. There are elemental formulas available that contain no gluten, dairy or soy protein but are nutritionally adequate for toddlers. A proper nutrition assessment would reveal if he needs formula at all, or if he can just work with foods (always preferable if possible). 21 months is on the young end for receiving an autism diagnosis, and it is definitely young enough for his trajectory to change for the better, if you intervene correctly. Save yourself months of mistakes and please pick up a copy of this book: Special Needs Kids Eat Right – Strategies To Help Kids On The Autism Spectrum Focus, Learn, and Thrive. This book details, step by step, how to use special diets for kids with autism features.
Hi, my son is 15 months and is barely 20 pounds. At first the doc pescribed toddler formula when he was 12 months and in that time frame he has gain a pound. At his 15 month check up a different doctor took him off of the formula and pescribed pediasure. My son is a very picky eater some days he only eats one meal and refuses to eat other meals. OK so he doesn’t like drinking the pediasure so I mix it with the formula I still have left and I also mix it with his oatmeal. Every time he drinks or eat anything with the pediasure in it he immediately poops. He is not going to gain if he is constantly pooping. I could really use your advice. Thanks
I’m not able to deliver the support you may need in this forum, but am happy to help – check my calendar here to set up an appointment anytime.
Hi Judy, I wish I would have read this over a year ago. My daughter was born at 24wks and is now 3 yrs old and only 24lbs 3oz. She’s been vomiting daily as soon as I transitioned from breastmilk to pediasure. I pumped for 18 months. She has reflux and the meds seemed to help off and on. Recently in the past month she has been throwing up at least once daily and it’s not just a little spit up. It’s full on vomiting. She throws up at the taste of anything with sugar and has an exceptional palette however only eats a few bites of anything therefor need to rely on pediasure for the mere 900 calories she gets a day. On a good day she will eat an egg for breakfast then maybe a cracker or couple olives at lunch and maybe a half an avocado for dinner. She loves Greek yogurt and even asks to take her fish oil drops. She is a interesting toddler;)
Anyway, any information would be extremely helpful. I cry lots and lots over stress and frustration especially now that she can make herself throw up whenever she doesn’t get her way or is upset. She barely has any hair and I can see all of her spine and rib cage. She is healthy though with no brain bleeds, cardiology problems, and good vision. She is also pretty smart for where she came from. Endocrine wants to start her on growth hormones and she has an ENT apt next week to determine if there is scarring from being intubated for so long. She was in the hospital for 5 months after birth and came home on oxygen for another 6 months.
Thank you! Thank you!
Hi Tanya, my goodness, your daughter does sound malnourished, and there are solutions. Growth hormone injections won’t fabricate the building blocks that only food can give. Growth hormone is sort of like a software code for growth; it’s not the hardware, it’s not the material needed to build a body up. Giving these injections in a malnourished child is like throwing a blueprint on the ground and expecting the building to appear, without delivering any of the bricks, beams, or nails! That part is the food. I have met many kids offered growth hormone injections when they simply needed the right food and corrections to digestion/absorption so they can use it. With your daughter being born so early, her gut biome never developed normally, and the signs you mention (vomiting, reflux, poor gain, poor appetite) are classic signs that this is still needing restoration. I do this in practice often, let’s get to work if you are both ready! Contact me for an appointment anytime.
Hi! I have a 2.5 year old daughter who is experiencing constipation, GERD, picky eating, poor appetite, and underweight. She also has developmental delays (speech, occupational, physical). She has taken miralax, Prevacid, and Culturelle probiotics. It helped for a little while but now she is back to being constipated and vomiting about 1-2 times per month. She also has intermittent skin rashes and had eczema as an infant. She has had an upper GI, ultrasound, and EGD done. The only results that came from those tests were that she definitely has acid reflux. Her favorite food groups are grains and fruit. I have a background in nutrition so I believe in the healing power nutrition. Can u offer me any advice on what steps I should take to help her heal? Should i still try an elimination diet even though the EGD didn’t show any allergies. She hasn’t had a skin or blood allergy test. We recently moved from AR to IL so I’m currently trying to get her in to see a new pediatrician. I’m not sure if she is into integrative medicine so how would you suggest I approach her about getting the Igg Ige tests done? Any help you can offer will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Jay.
This is a typical story in my practice, that you’ve been everywhere and done everything that non-integrative care offers and your child is still not growing, not thriving, and dependent on prescription drugs. Pediatricians in my experience don’t offer IgG food antibody testing, unless you’ve found an out-of-network, functional nutrition doctor who offers this a self pay option. Some mainstream peds may do initial IgE testing too, or may refer you to an allergist MD for this; in this case, it could be covered for you. Either way, unfortunately, you’ve described an entrenched pattern that needs a new functional strategy beyond just food reactions (which do need assessing as you suspect) that you’re not likely to find with mainstream pediatric care. I can absolutely offer advice on next steps, and invite you to schedule a time so I can do that. I offer Skype and phone consults, so you don’t have to travel here to receive help.
Hello I have A 3 year old daughter That eats alot but also have to feed her my self at times because she wont eat on her own.She is very very active.I took her to a doctor appt.back in 8/2015 and was at 26 lbs.Took her to the Wic Office yesterday 01/27/16 And Did not gain a pound.I have always delt with her having a hard time for her to gain weight.So yesterday I started her on Pediasure grow/gain.Iam really worried.Need your help.Thank You
Hi Zayda, WIC has nutritionists on staff who can troubleshoot this for you. Request a visit specifically to review your daughter’s eating patterns. They may ask you to show what she typically eats in a day. She may do fine without Pediasure, if there is a way to up her intake of regular food. If you have time to do some cooking and have kitchen access, this isn’t hard to do, and the WIC staff are there to guide on exactly this kind of scenario. Here are some ideas on alternates to Pediasure in the meantime. They can also tell if she really needs the Pediasure or not.
My son was born 9 weeks premature (3lbs 12 oz). He was started on Simulac Neosure for extra calories, but had a hard time with constipation and spit up. He was then put on Simulac total comfort. He did well on the for a couple of weeks but then went back to the constant spitting up. My husband and I decided to go to the extreme and just go to the Alumentum. My son did great on that and stayed on it till he was 18 months or so. At that point we put him on the Grow and Go. He has done well on that too. He still has issues with constipation and hard stools. He was on Miralax since he was born till he turned 2. He was also on Prilosec from 12-24 months.
He is now 28 months he is about 23.5 lbs and around 24″ tall. We tried giving him whole milk a few times and he would throw it up with in 15 min of drinking it. The docs say he is small and should be put on pediasure with prebiotic fiber. I feel like my son has some sort of allergy, but he is fine drinking his grow and go (milk based) and is fine eating yogurt and cheese. He also loves his ranch dressing. He just seems off and I don’t if I am seeing something that isn’t there.
What you describe is a classic scenario in my practice. These stories just make my head spin, because I wonder how our medical providers do this to kids but don’t notice that it isn’t working! Your son has had clear signs of milk protein intolernace/allergy from birth. Milk protein should have been withdrawn and replaced entirely at that time – there are elemental formulas available that may have worked nicely, or he may even have done well on pumped breast milk, or a goat milk infant formula. Instead, your son has been given milk protein or hydrolyzed milk protein formulas, and managed with Miralax and reflux medicine, to mask the symptoms of the milk protein’s effects on his gut. Meanwhile his gut has continued to sustain damage. This is the inexplicable, unfortunate, ineffective, and unnecessary standard of care in the US pediatrics today. Both drugs are detrimental to digestion and absorption, and neither are FDA approved for long term use in adults, much less infants. The good news is this is reversible – but it takes work and time. You have over two years of mismanaged care to reverse, so be patient. Though he is small due to his early start, he can probably grow and eat better. This won’t happen until he stops using dairy proteins entirely, even partly digested ones (as is the case with Alimentum). Though these are foods he is used to and may like, they need to go. He needs measures to withdraw the reflux medicine and Miralax, restore normal digestion and elimination (pooping), and needs careful replenishment and monitoring throughout this process, which usually takes several weeks. Once kids are on the other side of this, they eat better, accept more foods, and grow. Call for appointment if you would like help, or pick up a copy of my book Special Needs Kids Eat Right for some DIY. Your care team won’t like this, so be prepared for push back. If they had other skills or tools, they would have offered them by now. They don’t.
My son is 30 months old has been on Pediasure for a couple months now and now has been throwing up the past couple days after drinking it and acting normal during the day with diarrhea . From 1 years old he would have really bad diaper rash after drinking cows 2% and 1% milk but not with Whole milk. My doctor thought I was weird for thinking this but once he was strictly on whole milk he seemed to be fine. He has been little his whole life weighing 20 lbs now at 30months. He has not been gaining weight on the Pediasure, he has been intaking 3 bottles a day. Should I be pushing for some tests to be done? Don’t know if its relevant, also he has a younger brother 18 months at 17 lbs, that was throwing up with any dairy and is on Elecare Jr vanilla, thinking he has a milk protein allergy (never tested) and tested for having gastric slow to emptying and now has a G tube to hope it will fix it and he will gain weight. His older sister is little as well at 5th percentile now as well and had the same problem with pediasure as her brother and so we took her off it and she can only handle a little milk at a time with other foods or she throws up and/or gets stomach aches. Am I crazy for thinking they all have some common denominator of a allergy?
The only crazy I see here is with your GI doc! I’m sorry to hear this was permitted by any doctor to go so far as to result in a G tube, underweight, vomiting, and growth concerns sprinkled across all three kids. I agree with you that there is probably milk protein intolerance or allergy afoot here. Pediasure is milk and soy based. If your son has not gained on this after two months then it’s time for a new strategy. You can try Elecare for him too, and/or you can use several alternate proteins in other foods and blended drinks. Elecare does shift gut bacteria away from what is most healthy, while food will support healthier bacteria and thus better digestion and better immune function. Check my blog on Pediasure alternatives for ideas.
Thank-you for responding to me. It was been a rough battle with all my kids and their eating and I feel like I have not gotten any answers. At the children hospital in CO springs they pushed the G tube on us as the only way to help my 17moth old with his stomach slow to emptying, after staying at the hospital for 3 weeks trying to figure him out, but so far he has not been tolerating his feedings and been throwing up and hasn’t really gained any weight at home. It’s just been super frustrating. Then I found your site.Hoping maybe I could find some answers for all 3 of my kids. If you think you might be able to help us then I could try and afford set up an appointment, right now we are on Medicaid.
Hi Judy,
My daughter is 3yrs old. She is on enfagrow 3 times a day. She gags at the sight of food and gags during eating. She used to projectile vomit her food n milk but she has gotten over the vomiting stage . But her appetite is very bad? Having said that, she is chubby . Do u think I should change into another brand of milk? Feeding her is a chore now:(
This is another milk protein based formula with GMO sources for corn and dairy. There is no reason to give her this artificial formula instead of real food – plus, the symptoms of gagging and vomiting history indicate a milk protein intolerance. Transitioning will take some time and probably will necessitate some targeted support (supplements, herbs, probiotics) for her digestion and gut health. Let’s talk soon if you’d like help with this, you can contact me here to set up an appointment.
Hi my 10 months old daughter weighs approximately 16 lbs, and she’s 89th percentile in height. She’s underweight. She throws up a lot on and off especially when she was younger. Although doc says maybe she’s too full. I really want her to grow chubbier before her 1st birthday in January 2016. She takes cereal, fruits, Similac spit up and the normal one too, she likes yogurt too,blended with blue berry and whole grains.
What can I do?
Worried Mom
Kenny
My first suspect here is milk protein intolerance. If so, then both her formula and any yogurt, cheese, or other dairy foods will disrupt her growth and gain. Soy based formula is not a great option for several reasons, so I wouldn’t jump to that. To really get her nourished and replenished without triggering more of the same poor growth pattern, vomiting, and so on, I can help you if you make an appointment – can’t do that over the web on my blog, but an appointment or two would probably clear this up. I look forward to hearing from you!
Hello.
I’m concerned with my 33 months old daughters weight gain and bowel movements which for the past few months have be en every 2 to 3 days. She’s otherwise very active . I give her pediasure once a day. She has a history of skin allergies and allergic bronchial asthma till she was two. Doctors said it is the kuwait weather Now she gets periodic colds which I’m quick to act as I’m worried she might suffer from chest congestion immediately. She’s not a fan of milk. Please help.
Hi Julia, if no one has checked IgG and IgE reactions to milk and soy proteins for your daughter (Pediasure has both) then this is something to consider screening. Obviously if your doctors thought this was important they probably would have done it already, but I find this simple solution is often overlooked. These reactions can be the cause of skin and bronchial irritations, or may underlie the frequent colds. Both proteins can also be constipating for some kids. Once you know what the triggers are, you can build a better diet from there. As always, I am available for phone or Skype consults – happy to help if you like.
Hello,
My main concern here is my 5 year old. He’s very active, yet doesn’t like to eat Much
I have not turned to pediasure due to all the bad reviews about it. I doc whatsoever give them flinstones vitamins with iron it works great on my 4 year old he’s gained a good few lbs. My oldest is still the one struggling to eat! If you can give me or recommend me something he can use I need him to grow and gain some weight as well. I would greatly appreciate it!
Hi Gabriela, unfortunately I can’t make specific nutrition care recommendations in this forum – your best bet is to make an appointment with me. Usually there are underlying reasons why appetites in kids get stalled. These need professional assessment and intervention that’s individualized to your kid. In the meantime, peruse other blog posts here on picky eating and recipe ideas; you can also pick up my books for even deeper strategizing.
My daughter(18 months old) is on Elecare Jr(vanilla flavored). I’m wondering if there are any health risks associated with the use of this formula. She is allergic to milk, soy, and peanuts. Those allergies were confirmed with skin testing but almond, tomato, avocado, and beef were either missed or are not ige allergies. She also has reflux and some aversions/pickiness to food. Thank you!
Elecare is an elemental formula with a protein source that is not actually whole protein from any food – it’s an assemblage of amino acids that are absorbed without needing any digestive breakdown. That is a big help for kids like your daughter, whose guts react to several proteins. I do use these formulas in some circumstances in my practice, and used judiciously, they can be healing and effective. Caveats: The carbohydrate source is genetically modified corn, which harms beneficial bacteria in the gut, and may have other negative health effects (EU countries do not allow GMO ingredients in baby foods). This is a problem because beneficial gut bacteria help repair the gut wall so inflammatory reactions from food proteins can self-correct. Elemental formulas tend to shift gut bacteria away from the healthy strains that do this, and that help digest and absorb food. Using a good multi-strain probiotic while on Elecare is important for my patients. Meanwhile your daughter may have active IgG food sensitivities (non-allergy reactions but inflammatory nevertheless) that worsen reflux and pickiness. Without knowing what these are, it may be slower for her to progress.
Gosh I wish I could just take you along to all my appointments for my twin girls. Delayed (working autism diagnosis for both), one never gains much weight and the other still won’t speak at 16 months. Reflux was terrible as infants. Tried every formula out there and now as toddlers they get enfagrow next step but the pedi just changed it to pediasure. Diarrhea and TERRIBLE rashes have ensued. I’m so lost. I want to try a new diet to see if it improves speech. They are in feeding/speech/occupational therapy with few results. I’m just exhausted.
I’m so sorry to hear this Jamie, it is exhausting for parents in this situation. It boggles my mind how little our pediatricians are trained to truly help these children with nutrition. Obviously the Pediasure is not working for your twins if diarrhea and rashes have ensued, and the solution is not to medicate those away with more drugs. I’d be happy to work with you, contact me if you like. Take a look at Special Needs Kids Eat Right book or Special Needs Kids Go Pharm Free. These can help you get started.
My 22 month old is 20 lbs. always been below 0% on the growth chart. And just recently got more picky about what he eats. He’s been to a GI doc and all she did was put him on medicine for a few months to gain weight. He’s also not talking. Hearing is good. He loves his milk. I’ve added ovaltine to it for added nutrition and just recently tried PediaSure. He’s had dierria since. I thought maybe a vial infection but now I think it’s the PediaSure. I don’t want him on medicine again and I don’t know what else to try
Cecilia, I’d suggest you download a copy of my e book on milk addicted kids. Pediasure and Ovaltine are milk source proteins, so, same problems will occur – stunted language, constipation, weak growth, poor appetite. Here’s the link: https://www.amazon.com/Milk-Addicted-Kids-Brain-Dairy-ebook/dp/B01IIUZ7R4 Download that and get started today with how to turn this around. If you need more guidance, I’m happy to work with you, just set up an appointment on line anytime and we can work via phone, Skype, or in person.
Hello,
I’m not sure what to do my daughter has had eczema since she was 3 months old. It was easy for me to treat it with mild soap,lotion,and eliminating fish,peanuts,and giving her almond vanilla milk. A month ago she started with eczema like sores around her neck ! Her pediatrician says its something that I have changed.i explained I have cleaned my house thoroughly I just don’t know what to do anymore as they don’t go away. I don’t sleep My toddler is in constant itch I feel like crying every night . I feel helpless as a mom. She only has it around her eyes,scalp,and neck. Doctor says she is too young to get tests and would hate to put her through it. She was in infant when she dramatically changed after giving her this purple similac milk,after I gave her elecare jr. But then she has been on almond milk for 1and a half. I need help . If you can rely info for me please do so I hate seeing my 3 year old suffer.
Hi Jenny, I disagree that your daughter is too young to be tested. Ask your pediatrician for a referral to a pediatric allergist. I am also happy to help and you can schedule a session with me anytime. If your daughter is relying on almond milk as a main protein source, she needs nutrition support for sure.
Hi Judy,
Please help!
My 18 month old son has milk allergy and he is underweight.
My pediatrician has recommended giving him 16 ounces of pediasure a day.
I dont like giving him pediasure.
Also he is a very very picky eater.
Your help will be greatly appreciated.
Thank!
Sudha
Hi Sudha, If your son has a milk allergy, Pediasure is contraindicated, as it has both milk and soy protein in it. Have a look at the recipes in this blog for alternatives. If you’d like more guidance, let’s set up an appointment to get your son on his way to feeling and growing better! Pediasure will definitely not help him do that, if he has milk allergy and low weight.
Hi, my 4 year old son has been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease and the doctor give him a 6 week long liquid diet only consuming 5 bottles of Pediasure/day. We have just started 3 days ago, but my son really struggling to drink it, as it gives him tummy aches, plus a very runny diarrhea. Sould I contact the doctor as maybe this product is not helping but harming him?? She told me, this diet will give a rest to his tummy from the inflammation, but doesn’t look that way right now. Don’t know what to do.
This implies your son cannot tolerate casein (milk) and soy proteins. These are the protein sources in Pediasure. It also implies there is entrenched gut dysbiosis that is being fed by the carbohydrate in the Pediasure, which is corn syrup. I would not suggest using a casein or soy formula (or corn syrup especially in the quantity that is in daily exclusive feeding of Pediasure) in a child diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, unless I had both IgE and IgG lab tests proving for me that these were non-inflammatory. If your doctor did not do any tests, and the formula is failing, then you should stop (in my opinion). Switch immediately to an elemental formula like Neocate Junior, EO28 Splash, or Elecare. Ask your doctor to prescribe this so it is covered (you can order them without Rx, but these are expensive, and it should be covered under his diagnosis). I would not use a product like Integrative Therapeutics Physician’s Elemental Formula because the glutamine content in it is too high and often disruptive for my younger patients. If you’d like more expert guidance on feeding a young child with Crohn’s, you can get on my calendar by starting here
My daughter useing pediasure from 10 days she having hair losses i dont kone happening with it may I stop to pediasure Or have to take a advice from doctor..
Tell your doctor immediately. She may need a different formula.
Hi,
My 2 year old daughter is on pediasure. My daughter was born very early. She was 3lbs 3oz. At 4 mo old I started giving her baby food and she did great. Her pediatrician told me to immediately stop giving her baby food as she needed the extra calories from the formula. She told me to resume baby food after a year old. Well my daughter did not respond to that. She is now used to the bottle and the minute I try to give her any type of food and soon as it hits her mouth she throws up right away. She is almost 3 and will not take anything but a bottle. We had went to an eating disorder clinic who put her on pediasure. I don’t want my daughter on a bottle any longer and don’t know what else to do. She won’t even take a sippy. Please help.
If this hasn’t happened already, you need a referral to a pediatric occupational therapist (OT) or a pediatric speech and language pathologist (SPL) to make sure there are no mechanical chewing or swallowing disorders, which can evolve when solids are not advanced on a usual schedule. These professionals have expertise in how to re-train a young child so that they can eat normally. Barring those possibilities, it’s likely that your child is addicted to the milk and soy protein in the Pedisure. In that case she will indeed refuse most other foods as well as the more demanding task of chewing anything. This can arrest developmental progress for feeding, expressive language (talking), socialization, potty training and more. To learn more about that and get suggestions on what to do, see this blog post or this e book. Even if your daughter is growing well enough, have a look at the info in those resources.
my 2 years old baby boy eats nothing only wheat cereal and Enfagrow milk powder. Since he was born he has been drinking and drinking Enfamil(stage1 &2) i m still breast feeding him because he doesn’t want to eat solid food. When he eats fruits he does not swallow them, he crunches on them and then he spits out. I thought he had a throat problem but his pediatrician says he is fine. Can he have an intolerance to milk proteins and gluten after consuming it since he was 5 months old?
He does not lose weight and is in good health (14kgs) but i noticed that he is starting to have signs of autism (spinning toys) and i m freaking . He doesn’t speak yet.
What can i do plz?
You’ve shared enough here to raise concerns for me. Growing well isn’t all that toddlers need to do. That’s a good sign, but if you are seeing stagnation developmentally, there is no need to “wait and see”. Have a look at this e book for more information on whether or not your child should move beyond his picky diet. It isn’t nourishing enough in itself.