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What Causes Poor Appetite And Vomiting While Eating In Child?

Posted on Sat, 4 Jul 2015

Question: Hi - My daughter is 3 years old and weighs 11.6 kgs and is 98 cms tall. The problem is that she has a very poor appetite and is never interested in eating, She vomits often when we force her to eat. A few weeks ago her vomit used to be undigested food from the day before but then I started giving her mugli ghuti 555 and some homeopathy. Now she vomits while eating. She gets a small cough and then she vomits out all her food. The doctor has diagnosed her with Reflux. She has put on about 1.5 kgs over the last year and gained 10 cms height and is other wise a healthy and active child. The doctor has put her on rantac syrup 5 ml for 1 month. The problem is that while on rantac she doesn't throw up but when she is off rantac she throws up frequently (every day or every second day). She only like eating dairy products like cheese, paneer, dahi etc. She hates chewing and mostly her food sits in her cheek while being fed. I hate to forcefeed her but I get very worried when she doesn't eat. She also suffers from bronchitis so has a constantly runny nose and gets chest congestion frequently during winter months. Please tell me how to stop her vomiting and increase her appetite.

Answered by Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
give small feeds; give multivitamins and ondansetran syrup

Detailed Answer:
Hello.
Welcome to HCM.
This is Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta answering your query.

I have gone through your question and understand your concern.
Eating problems are very common with children and should be dealt meticulously. As your child has reflux, doctor has rightly suggested rantac syrup. Continue giving her rantac syrup.
If such a patient comes to me, I would suggest the following-

Avoiding heavy and rich food. Giving small feeds at frequent interval. Giving mostly easily digestible food.
Giving multivitamin syrup for one month and ondansetran syrup if nausea or vomiting occurs.
Giving her what she likes; not feeding forcefully but giving adequate amount of food regularly.

You can consult your doctor for prescription of above.

Hope this was useful.
Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Vinay Bhardwaj

Follow up: Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta (14 hours later)

thanks for your advice. The doctor has suggested a complete bloodwork including allergy panel tests. Is it necessary? What are the side effects of giving rantac and how long can I continue it? Can an enzyme be prescribed to her? Will that make a difference. The problem is that she eats small portions and does not eat frequently (she has 4 small meals in a day). I have given her Ondem in the past (same as ondansetran) when the bouts of vomiting increase to more than twice a day. Will multivitamin suffice in case of her nor getting enough nutrition through food? How much weight gain should happen per year when a child is 3-4 years.

Answered by Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta (6 hours later)

Brief Answer:
follow as advised

Detailed Answer:
Hello.

Allergy test is not necessary but can be done to rule out allergy from any common food or household substance and hence precaution can be taken.
Rantac has generally no side effects if taken in moderate dose. You can continue it for one month and then hold it for few days to see the response. Accordingly you can continue or discontinue further dosage.
Enzymes can be given but can cause irritability in children. Diet modification should be the prior interest. Give small meals frequently as advised.
Multivitamins are a very noble choice in children and are needed too as children generally have irregular feeding habits and these give them proper nutrition.
In general, children gain at about 2-3 kilogram weight per year from 2-10 years of age.

Hope this was useful.
Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Vaishalee Punj

Follow up: Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta (36 hours later)

Hi DR

I went to another doctor and he has prescribed Vitazyme drops 1 ml thrice a day and also Cypon syrup 5 ml at night for 3 weeks along with Rantac. He says that cypon syrup will help with the cold and also act as an appetite stimulant.

What do you feel? Will these meds help?

Answered by Dr. Swarnava Dattagupta (11 hours later)

Brief Answer:
these should be useful

Detailed Answer:
Hello.
Cypon can be used as appetiser. It can be given to the child and looked for positive results.
Whereas enzymes are basically not necessary for children. However, they are not harmful. So it can be given for a few days too.

Regards.

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Vaishalee Punj