Is it uncommon for children her age to develop an eating disorder?
I am very concerned. I don’t want to bring this up to the doctors because I feel that they will think I am crazy suggesting the possibility of an eating disorder at such a young age. Please give me some advice. Eating disorders certainly do occur in children as young as your daughter, and even in younger children. However, depending on growth patterns and growth spurts, children may eat less sometimes and more at other times or, for example, go on “food jags” where they’ll only want one or two specific types of foods for weeks at a time. I would wonder if your daughter is losing weight or if she is no longer growing according to what’s expected on her height and weight growth charts. You should ask your doctor to determine this using her past height and weight measurements Children are highly sensitive to the parent-child feeding relationship. You could be influencing her eating habits in ways in which you are not aware. Visit specialist Ellyn Satter’s website at www.ellynsatter.com. S
