Sleeping too much/poor appetite

[FLmom]

DS is 13, and I know teenagers are supposed to sleep a lot, but I haven't heard of any of his friends that sleep this much. We came home from my inlaws around 5 yesterday, and by 6 he was in bed. He's still sleeping at 9:30 this morning, and I'm sure I will have to drag him out of bed as usual. Yesterday wasn't a hectic day that would have worn him out. He got up around 8:30, opened baskets, went to church, then to my inlaws.

 

Last weekend he was grounded from electronics, so he basically slept all weekend.

 

He also doesn't have an appetite. This has been for months, and mostly seems due to his OCD (won't eat things prepared at home) But an example would be that he ate one ring pop from his basket before church. After church we stopped at 7-11 for milk. He got one of their donuts, but took one or two bites and said it was gross. Then he had one or two drumsticks from KFC for his Easter dinner (because he wouldn't eat what my mother in law prepared. I would say that's tough, and for him not to eat, but they worry about him not eating and had the leftover KFC available for him). That was all he ate for the day. He is never hungry. He's not overly skinny. He's about 5'6" and weighs about 120.

 

I'm about to request some additional blood work (just posted about that one under a different topic). I was wondering if this behavior is typical, or if it should point me in a certain direction that I'm missing?

[qannie47]

How is his mood? Is he off his baseline behavior? No eating can certainly make you lethargic. With the limited eating going on for awhile, I could see where he has lost his appetite. We have all experienced this while dieting...Hopefully you just have a viscous circle going one...Is there any food that he loves? Perhaps you could indulge him and let him eat plenty of it just to jump start his appetite.

 

Yes, this can also be typical...teenagers are notorious for wanting to sleep all day. However, you as his mom know your son, so go with your gut...

[3bmom]

I understand how hard it is with the OCD to get them to eat right and then you get stuck in a vicious cycle. The food he is eating will exacerbate the OCD and round and round you go. My DS wouldn't eat any healthy food because he wanted to stop growing taller. The poor quality of food is toxic creating more Glutamate in the brain, more gut issues, more methylation roadblocks, supporting infections and wreaking havoc with OCD. He lost 30lbs in 2 months.

 

At 13 he can read books on health. Here we let the OCD work to our favor until stabilized. This is a fine tight rope to walk. Our Dr. won't treat you if you don't follow diet but he also addresses infections. When we went Non GMO and Paleo his immune numbers dropped drastically and behavior improved. GMO food is ladened with untested levels of pesticide which are neurotoxins. GMO's are in most fast food and processed food. They also create an addiction cycle hence the difficulty getting off. GMO's also disrupt serotonin for more anxiety and disrupted sleep cycle.

 

Check for infections too. Sounds like a double whammy. When infections were addressed he became so much more rational and then understood importance of diet.

[Rachel]

When my son has an infection or virus going on, these symptoms all show up. I would get some blood work ran. My son will not have a fever with strep and we are dealing with that again. Good luck and hope you get some answers soon.

[sf_mom]

I would test his zinc to copper ratios. Please read attached article. Self limiting diets can be a byproduct of these imbalances and also often related to anorexia symptoms. Our twins did not have anorexia but did have limited diets like your son. Sugar cravings can indicate yeast/fungus.

 

Too much copper will cause the following.

 

"Copper toxicity reduces the ability to cope normally with stress and the inability to respond adequately can provoke many fearful emotions, including anxiety and panic. In many cases, the body over-reacts to nearly any stress rather than under-reacting. This constantly puts the body into a full fight or flight defensive reaction which normally includes the emotions of anger and fear. This is why chronic stress and adrenal fatigue are often associated with anxiety, panic, phobias and compulsions.

Hypoglycemia and blood sugar swings due to adrenal fatigue are a well known cause of many mental and physical symptoms such as depression, irritability, mood swings, poor concentration, poor memory, dizziness, fatigue and sleepiness."

Our DD responded immediately (3 days) to higher levels of zinc of 120 m.g. per day. Always supplement zinc to copper ratios at 8 to 1 zinc/copper, for example 80 m.g. zinc and 8 m.g. of copper. These are very high levels of supplementation and should be tracked regularly by Spectracell to ensure ratios are maintained appropriately.

 

http://www.tvernonlac.com/copper-toxicity.html

 

The best test for these deficiencies is SpectraCell which looks at inner white blood cell utilization of vitamin/minerals and not serum levels.

 

http://www.spectracell.com/patients/patient-micronutrient-testing/

Edited April 21, 2014 by sf_mom

[3bmom]

Thanks SF_mom. I think this is one of our issues too. Who orders your tests? What kind of Dr?

[FLmom]

Sf mom, did you give copper along with the zinc?

[sf_mom]

Yes at 8 to 1 ratio. Zinc to Copper.

 

Since he is so sick, I would always ramp up on any dose. Once the zinc/copper ratios level out the body starts to detoxify. If he has a metals problem, the dumping of metals may cause a yeast issue. Watch for white/black tongue or itchiness when supplementing with zinc/copper.

[FLmom]

Qannie,

 

His mood is poor. Always has been (for several years anyway). Very explosive.

[sf_mom]

I think you can request test kit directly from SpectraCell and have your Pediatrician or similar sign off on requests. It is approximately $275 and then we file with insurance for reimbursement. Our LLMD runs the tests for us (has kits in his lab) but all our Dr.'s now use them to track vitamin and mineral levels.