jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 28, 2020 14:51:25 GMT -6
So B (4) has been constipated off and on since... I'm not sure really, but at least the past 2 years. He has had an awful time potty training and especially poop training. After some stuff the pedi said and a ton of research, I have decided he has encopresis. Literally every word I read was describing him. We have been doing Miralax off and on for about 1.5 years. We eliminated all milk and limited other dairy. He was lactose intolerant - severely - but seems to have outgrown that, however I still give him lactose free milk. We started back on the miralax nightly about 10 days ago and he's been going a bit more. He eats almost NO fruits and vegetables. Literally eats blueberries, raisins, and that's it. I try every day to get him to try more but he refuses. So A) any advice from people who have been there? Off the top of my head I recall tgrimes & tallb but I'm sure there's more. B) I'm trying to come up with ideas for school lunches that have hidden fruits and vegies that he won't notice. We made pancake muffins with blueberries in them (which he likes) and he refused to eat them, so they need to be super hidden. So far, we are going to make meatballs with pureed carrots and spinach in them. I'm doing an internet search but trust y'all more.
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 28, 2020 14:52:37 GMT -6
Also, he mostly eats meats, in any form. he'll eat some potatoes and occasionally rice, but 90% of his meals are meat.
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nam2013
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Post by nam2013 on Nov 28, 2020 15:07:31 GMT -6
First of all, I’m sorry. It sucks to have food issues. Does he eat red pasta sauce? I shred a zucchini very finely or blender the sauce... I also make a vegetable soup which I blender and put in a cup not a bowl... it’s been a nightmare to get ds to eat veggies.
Does he like dried apricots? Over here we have raisin like boxes that have chopped up little pieces, dd loves them & they’re good for constipation too.
We also got ds to ‘eat’ orange slices. I slice them, rind and all, and he sucks the juice out of it. It took a long time... first letting him see me make orange juice, then letting him do it, then juicing half and slicing the other half, letting him touch it, lick it etc.
Does he eat peanut butter? Both kids like apple slices with peanut butter. Ds initially needed some chocolate sprinkles to persuade him (to eat the peanut butter not the apples 😂).
Never tried it but there are a lot of cupcakes with shredded veggies in them, maybe that could work?
ETA wil he drink smoothies? Ds wouldn’t except for one, which of course isn’t sold anymore (because of course they wouldn’t), but it was more or less orange juice with a bit of avocado and fresh apple juice.
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yummeecookee
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Post by yummeecookee on Nov 28, 2020 15:42:10 GMT -6
What about those pouches? We gave them to the kids for quite a while bc it was a way to hide veggies. I know they say it’s better to give food in its true form rather than hidden but sometimes you just need them to eat and don’t care how! Other “hidden” veggie items my kids like: V8 fruit and vegetable blends juice, zucchini muffins, Mama Cozzi (Aldi brand) frozen cauliflower crust pizza [all cauliflower crusts are not created equal, we’ve tried some truly awful ones. You cannot taste or smell the veggie in this one]. How about beans? Both of mine love black beans and baked beans.
Good luck jewels. I hope you can get him to expand a bit.
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 28, 2020 15:44:14 GMT -6
nam2013He literally eats raisins and blueberries and that's it for fruit. He used to eat melon, grapes, and dried apples but stopped. I tried to get him to eat apples. We played with them, washed them together, etc and he was all excited. Then just handed it back to me and walked away lol. He's peanut allergic so that's a no go. We've tried smoothies with no luck, but I plan to keep trying I just found a recipe for energy balls w/ dates and carrots in it. They look like munchkins, so maybe?
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 28, 2020 15:46:14 GMT -6
yummeecookee he eats those pouches every day. And I buy the ones with extra fiber in them. But I guess it's not enough. He's never had beans but that's on my list to try for him. I don't anticipate him going for it though.
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Post by lahdeedah on Nov 28, 2020 16:11:51 GMT -6
Does he eat tacos? When I make tacos I “hide” spinach and avocado in them. Just mix the meat with those finely chopped and they don’t mind it. They inhale my tacos every time.
You could hide spinach it in hamburgers too if he eats those.
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 28, 2020 16:26:58 GMT -6
lahdeedah, he does deconstructed tacos. Basically he just eats the meat and a broken up taco shell or chips. So I guess he has some peppers in the salsa lol. I just saw a tip for adding cauliflower to tacos but we tend to have spinach or avocados in our house more often so that might be easier.
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vino
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Nov 28, 2020 16:42:20 GMT -6
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Post by vino on Nov 28, 2020 16:42:20 GMT -6
Everyone has such great ideas, I’m sorry he’s struggling. I have a frozen pack of grated sweet potato and cauliflower mixed (Green giant) and keep it in the fridge freezer and pretty much add it to everything, ground beef for burgers, taco meat, add into the panko coating for chicken, spaghetti sauce, no one notices. www.greengiant.com/products/detail/green-giant-riced-cauliflower-sweet-potato/Also, there are apple sauces that are fruit/veggie mix. Another thing I’ve been adding lately is chia seeds, they’re small and full of fibre. I’m sure you’ve tried this but I’d also be having some very big boy discussions about nutrition and how our bodies need all sorts of yummy stuff to keep us healthy, that it’s important and fun to try new stuff. Maybe a story book about trying things you dont like, just to keep up with the messaging you’re portraying at home? Talk about how he loves the foods you cook up and there’s a trust there that you wouldn’t feed him something questionable.
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 28, 2020 17:00:21 GMT -6
vino I bought chia seeds last week but we haven't tried them yet. As to the discussions - as I've mentioned before, B is not really at a 4 y/o level... so a lot of those talks we have with him go right over his head. He just doesn't really get it. The other week I printed a colorful sheet with pics of fruits and vegies to try to get him excited about trying them. He was so excited for the paper, he carried it around with him and even asked to bring it to school. But every time I point to something and say let's eat that! He says "no thank you." He even told his teacher he was thankful for fruits and vegetables for the thanksgiving project. We were laughing about it since he won't eat any. S tries to help too. Thankfully S has a great diet and eats tons of fruits and vegies and he's always trying to tell B if he wants to be big and strong like him he'll eat the carrots/broccoli/oranges/ whatever. B does anything to be like him, but not that...
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Nov 28, 2020 17:28:23 GMT -6
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Post by wineallthetime on Nov 28, 2020 17:28:23 GMT -6
I'm sorry you're struggling! I feel like any trick I have you have tried. My kids really will only eat raw veggies, hardly any cooked. One thing A loves is edamame. Too bad he doesn't like smoothies. Does he eat yogurt? My kids are especially obsessed with the yogurt tubes frozen.
Does he eat pasta? There's a frozen veggies pasta that L likes. Soups? Even tomato soup he can dip crackers/grilled cheese in?
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chrisy01
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Post by chrisy01 on Nov 28, 2020 17:30:54 GMT -6
I use to blend spinach and put it on brownie mixture. We also do green eggs and ham for breakfast which I use puréed spinach to make the green.
I also make green egg salad sandwiches which I use avocado to make it green.
Generally you can purée spinach and hide it in a lot of things. Chocolate hides the taste well. So does pasta sauce.
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Nov 28, 2020 17:31:52 GMT -6
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Post by wineallthetime on Nov 28, 2020 17:31:52 GMT -6
Also hummus...either as a dip or spread on toast. Or even a hummus chicken since he likes meats?
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guster
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Post by guster on Nov 28, 2020 17:48:43 GMT -6
Everyone has great ideas— maybe try the veggies different ways. Raw peppers instead of cooked, carrot or avocado fries instead of sliced raw? Popcorn or kashi cereal is also a good snack to get some extra fiber in. Chia seed pudding or chia with cooked fruit may be popular, too. Charlie (who eats everything) goes to the bathroom so infrequently so I completely feel your pain.
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chrisy01
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Post by chrisy01 on Nov 28, 2020 17:51:11 GMT -6
Also switching out from white bread/pasta to whole wheat is good too. I also use the veggie pasta barilla (sp?) makes too.
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trtlcrzy
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Post by trtlcrzy on Nov 28, 2020 18:08:47 GMT -6
I don’t really have a lot to add for hiding veggies. Gogo squeeze has a new happy tummyz pouches that he might like. Does he take vitamins? A quick google search shows there are fiber gummies or Metamucil does a fiber chocolate thing. Maybe try prune juice? S really likes prunes, they’re sweet. Running around and getting exercise also helps to keep you regular.
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 29, 2020 13:02:44 GMT -6
I tried salted chick peas the other day, thinking he would like to eat them like chips. He did. And I Was so excited... till his face broke out later that night. So now we are staying away from chick peas/hummus as he is probably allergic.
He definitely runs around... kid is super active. He eats almost no breads, so switching won't do much. He almost never eats pasta, and when he does, it's only a few bites. we already buy the veggie pasta anyway.
We're gonna try a few new recipes this week and see what happens. Thanks yall
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tgrimes
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Post by tgrimes on Nov 29, 2020 13:49:39 GMT -6
jewels Sorry, I haven't been on much this weekend. Yes to the miralax. It needs to be daily and he should probably be on it for awhile. Don't stop giving it to him just because he starts going again. I want to say you mentioned before that he wouldn't drink apple juice, i could be mistaken though. Apple juice can help them go as well. He needs to be getting enough liquids daily to make the miralax work. Keep trying the smoothies. Hopefully you can find a flavor he'll like that you can hide a crap ton of stuff in. Flax seeds can be put in almost anything. Meatloaf, baked goods, sauces, etc. I also give both of my kids fiber pills. I have some recipes somewhere with hidden veggies that I used to make in bulk and then freeze for M's school lunches. I'll look for them today/tomorrow. Also, the cookbook Deceptively Delicious has a bunch of good options. The fruit/veggie applesauce pouches are good. The boulder berry and pear flavor have the most fiber per pouch, from what's offered at my stores. H will still eat regular pouches from Happy Tot & Sprouts so I just look for the ones with the most fiber, like you do.
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jewels
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Post by jewels on Nov 29, 2020 16:26:39 GMT -6
tgrimesYeah, the miralax is driving me crazy. he's been going and now is leaking poop. so that's fun. But everything I read says that's normal. You are correct, he doesn't really drink juice. He does drink a ton of water though so that's good. I just did a whole foods order to get better probiotics that I read will help. I ordered some frozen smoothie blends so hopefully one of those works. MH is currently making an apple, orange, spinach muffin recipe that looks yummy, and we made turkey meatballs with zucchini and carrots in them for dinner. I have a few others that we are going to try once we get a few key ingredients. But I'd love some tried and true links. He lives on the Happy Tot pouches. They have ones that are superfood and ones that are protein and fiber that I mostly buy.
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tgrimes
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Post by tgrimes on Nov 29, 2020 16:57:52 GMT -6
tgrimesYeah, the miralax is driving me crazy. he's been going and now is leaking poop. so that's fun. But everything I read says that's normal. You are correct, he doesn't really drink juice. He does drink a ton of water though so that's good. I just did a whole foods order to get better probiotics that I read will help. I ordered some frozen smoothie blends so hopefully one of those works. MH is currently making an apple, orange, spinach muffin recipe that looks yummy, and we made turkey meatballs with zucchini and carrots in them for dinner. I have a few others that we are going to try once we get a few key ingredients. But I'd love some tried and true links. He lives on the Happy Tot pouches. They have ones that are superfood and ones that are protein and fiber that I mostly buy. Yeah, we get those too. H loves them! Do you have a mini muffin tin? That’s what I used to make the meatballs and then freeze them in smaller portions. Does he have any dressings he likes? M loves ranch and will eat carrots & cucumbers with it. Maybe you can find something similar he’d like to douse other veg in. lol. We started doing races with H to get him to finish eating, since he’s always so distracted. Maybe he’d eat a few bites of things that he normally wouldn’t eat if it’s a race and he’s not paying attention?
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jewels
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Nov 29, 2020 17:04:26 GMT -6
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Post by jewels on Nov 29, 2020 17:04:26 GMT -6
tgrimes we love the mini muffin tin. I don’t do races bc B tends to choke a lot. He shovels food in or takes too big a bite and gags. So I try to work on him slowing down lol. He eats no dressing The raw thing is my fault. I was so afraid of things like carrots (due to the choking) that i never gave them and now he refuses. The veggie muffins came out of the oven and we tried to give him one. S ate it, of course, but B wouldn’t touch it.
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tgrimes
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Post by tgrimes on Nov 29, 2020 17:15:17 GMT -6
tgrimes we love the mini muffin tin. I don’t do races bc B tends to choke a lot. He shovels food in or takes too big a bite and gags. So I try to work on him slowing down lol. He eats no dressing The raw thing is my fault. I was so afraid of things like carrots (due to the choking) that i never gave them and now he refuses. The veggie muffins came out of the oven and we tried to give him one. S ate it, of course, but B wouldn’t touch it. If he likes meat, you can hide veggies in there for the time being. Also in pasta sauce, like chicken parmigiana.
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tgrimes
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Post by tgrimes on Nov 29, 2020 17:15:54 GMT -6
Most kids don’t like raw veggies. I wouldn’t worry about that.
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Nov 29, 2020 18:08:22 GMT -6
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Post by wineallthetime on Nov 29, 2020 18:08:22 GMT -6
tgrimes we love the mini muffin tin. I don’t do races bc B tends to choke a lot. He shovels food in or takes too big a bite and gags. So I try to work on him slowing down lol. He eats no dressing The raw thing is my fault. I was so afraid of things like carrots (due to the choking) that i never gave them and now he refuses. The veggie muffins came out of the oven and we tried to give him one. S ate it, of course, but B wouldn’t touch it. Raw veggies... Obviously not most kids but all 3 of mine like pepper slices, cucumber slices, grape tomatoes halved. All easy to grab and easy to eat so worth a shot!
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Post by lahdeedah on Nov 29, 2020 18:12:54 GMT -6
tgrimes we love the mini muffin tin. I don’t do races bc B tends to choke a lot. He shovels food in or takes too big a bite and gags. So I try to work on him slowing down lol. He eats no dressing The raw thing is my fault. I was so afraid of things like carrots (due to the choking) that i never gave them and now he refuses. The veggie muffins came out of the oven and we tried to give him one. S ate it, of course, but B wouldn’t touch it. Stick a little icing on it, tell him it’s a cupcake and see if he goes for it. Maybe worth a shot?
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klong11
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Nov 29, 2020 18:50:32 GMT -6
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Post by klong11 on Nov 29, 2020 18:50:32 GMT -6
You may have to do the opposite of what we do. Cadence hates meat/proteins, so in order to get the fruits she wants she has to eat 2-3 bites of protein.
For him, just say 2-3 bites of fruit/veg inorder to have the meat/protein.
I think I read it takes 7-9 times of trying something before they decide if they like it or not.
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jewels
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Nov 29, 2020 20:00:21 GMT -6
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Post by jewels on Nov 29, 2020 20:00:21 GMT -6
tgrimes we love the mini muffin tin. I don’t do races bc B tends to choke a lot. He shovels food in or takes too big a bite and gags. So I try to work on him slowing down lol. He eats no dressing The raw thing is my fault. I was so afraid of things like carrots (due to the choking) that i never gave them and now he refuses. The veggie muffins came out of the oven and we tried to give him one. S ate it, of course, but B wouldn’t touch it. Stick a little icing on it, tell him it’s a cupcake and see if he goes for it. Maybe worth a shot? Lol this is exactly what we did. He had about 1/3 of a mini muffin after dinner. So I guess success that he tried it? But he wolfed down the turkey meatballs that had zucchini and carrots in them so that’s a win. And we made a huge batch to freeze so that makes me happy.
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jewels
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Nov 29, 2020 20:03:18 GMT -6
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Post by jewels on Nov 29, 2020 20:03:18 GMT -6
You may have to do the opposite of what we do. Cadence hates meat/proteins, so in order to get the fruits she wants she has to eat 2-3 bites of protein. For him, just say 2-3 bites of fruit/veg inorder to have the meat/protein. I think I read it takes 7-9 times of trying something before they decide if they like it or not. I’ve tried this. He’s perfectly happy just not eating then Hopefully 1 or 2 of the other things we are making work. And we will keep giving him tons of blueberries. Eventually he’ll eat more Honestly I wouldn’t even care if it weren’t for the poop situation We are about 10 days into the miralax and he just keeps having loose poops in his underwear. So that’s fun. I just want to get to a point where his issues can be controlled by food (I know that might not happen... but let me dream!)
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guster
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Post by guster on Jan 14, 2021 13:38:32 GMT -6
jewels, i’ve been meaning to find this thread to tell you that we’ve been going through some of the same issues with Charlie on and off since about late November (mostly the constipation but some seeping and daily miralax). I just had a conversation with his ped, and he said that sometimes the cause can be a gluten intolerance, if not even a full celiac allergy. We’re going to try and go gluten-free for the month, and see if it makes any of those changes better. Then we’ll go for blood testing . I wanted to throw another idea your way in case things haven’t been getting better.
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tallb
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Jan 14, 2021 18:26:48 GMT -6
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Post by tallb on Jan 14, 2021 18:26:48 GMT -6
jewels, i’ve been meaning to find this thread to tell you that we’ve been going through some of the same issues with Charlie on and off since about late November (mostly the constipation but some seeping and daily miralax). I just had a conversation with his ped, and he said that sometimes the cause can be a gluten intolerance, if not even a full celiac allergy. We’re going to try and go gluten-free for the month, and see if it makes any of those changes better. Then we’ll go for blood testing . I wanted to throw another idea your way in case things haven’t been getting better. Interesting! Sorry to hear you are dealing too. I should try that for j, especially since I have a sensitivity. I am incapable of remembering to give j miralax or benefiber each day, so it continues to be a struggle, I am of no help😔
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