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4 year old not gaining weight. What can be done to increase appetite?
Hello doc,my son is 4 years old ,he is an active kid but his weight is almost same from last 2 years which is 14-15 kgs.he looks very weak although he is active.He is not at all fond of eating,i have to force him to eat his 3 meals.i consulted 2 doctors one of which prescribed me Practin and the other one did not encourage me for it.i started giving him Practin but did not notice any significant change in his eating habit and felt that he is rather sleeping early all these days.i thought may n=be he is exerting so much but now as i read that it causes drowsiness,is it reallly true??so what do u suggest me to give him for increasing his appetite???
Asked On : Fri, 12 Apr 2013
Answers: 1
Views: 36
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Feb 2013
Hi,
Thank you for your query on Healthcare Magic.
Practin contains cyproheptadine which is an antihistamine and its side effect is weight gain due to increased appetite.
At the same time it will cause drowsiness leading to sleepiness which may interfere with child intake of food leading to decreased food intake.
Around this age the gain in weight is not so dramatic and nothing to worry if the child is active, healthy, and playful.
Your child weight of 15 kg is corresponding to 25th percentile in CDC growth charts, so it means the weight is in normal range and nothing to worry.
I advise you to stop Practin and you can give one multivitamin supplement like syrup polybion-L 5ml twice daily for 2 weeks whenever he is having low appetite.
Hope I have answered your query.
Regards.
Thank you for your query on Healthcare Magic.
Practin contains cyproheptadine which is an antihistamine and its side effect is weight gain due to increased appetite.
At the same time it will cause drowsiness leading to sleepiness which may interfere with child intake of food leading to decreased food intake.
Around this age the gain in weight is not so dramatic and nothing to worry if the child is active, healthy, and playful.
Your child weight of 15 kg is corresponding to 25th percentile in CDC growth charts, so it means the weight is in normal range and nothing to worry.
I advise you to stop Practin and you can give one multivitamin supplement like syrup polybion-L 5ml twice daily for 2 weeks whenever he is having low appetite.
Hope I have answered your query.
Regards.
Answered: Tue, 23 Apr 2013
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All the information, content and live chat provided on the site is intended to be for informational purposes only, and not a substitute for professional or medical advice. You should always speak with your doctor before you follow anything that you read on this website. Any health question asked on this site will be visible to the people who browse this site. Hence, the user assumes the responsibility not to divulge any personally identifiable information in the question. Use of this site is subject to our Terms & Conditions
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