Insufficient feeding

As a general rule, a baby who does not eat what he has to eat is irritable and will manifest his discomfort: sleeping poorly, crying, moaning. If this situation lasts over time, that is when it will affect weight and height.

When the diet is not adequate, there are deficiencies of vitamins A, B, C and D, iron and proteins.

Clinical manifestations

An undernourished baby will have any of the following symptoms:

• Weightloss
• Constipation
• Dry Skin
• Weak and dull hair
• Excessive crying
• Irritability
• Insomnia

In our setting, the most frequent manifestation of poor nutrition is "weight stagnation"; that is, the Pediatrician, in the routine weight and height controls, observes that the child is not developing well and that the growth is not adequate.

The problem may be in the eating pattern or errors in food preparation:

• Preparation of diluted or highly concentrated bottles. In the first case, the baby will take in fewer calories than he needs and in the second, he may become dehydrated.
• Spacing the feeding of the bottle a lot or preparing a smaller quantity than the child needs.
• Very small nipple holes, the child gets tired of eating.
• Do not breastfeed on demand.
• Do not introduce complementary feeding and only give milk.
• The child has suffered from an illness in the weeks prior to gaining weight (gastroenteritis, bronchitis) that has made it difficult to eat and there has been a decrease in weight.
• Bad mother-child relationship and rejection of food by the baby.
• Abuse by parents.
• Economic problems.

In children who do not gain weight, it is necessary to investigate if there is an associated disease that is the cause:

• Digestive problems: celiac disease, parasites, malabsorption, gastroesophageal reflux, inflammatory bowel disease
• Neurological problems: poor swallowing.
• Allergies: the most frequent in infants in cow's milk protein allergy.
• Hormonal or metabolic problems
• heart trouble
• Infections
• cancer

Treatment

In each case the Pediatrician must carry out an exhaustive analysis of the personal situation of the child and his environment, as well as a meticulous examination of the baby.

Nutrients in the child's diet should be increased and vitamin deficiencies, if any, should be corrected through supplements. Parents' education is essential, they must be given feeding guidelines and closely monitored as a child.