Re: Refusing supplements.....

[Guest guest]

what about using a reward. dont hide the supplement. mix it with something to

make it taste better and tell him he can have a cookie or whatever he likes

if he takes it. have the reward right there so he can see it. it works for

us. also, I mix supps in with jam in a sandwich and you cant taste it. good

luck.

karen

ps DMSA/ALA from Kirkmans tastes good.

[Guest guest]

My daughter also refused supplements, and when we tried to " hide " them in her

juice, she actually stopped drinking anything for several days, even water.

It was scary. (She would only drink bathwater) She is still suspicious of any

new food or drink, always wary that we're trying to poison her. We find had

to force the issue. It was very unpleasant for a few days, but quickly became

very easy and we don't worry about making her favorite foods taste nasty. We

were forced to do this when her doctor (2 years ago) prescribed medication

that she HAD to take.

We ground up the pills in a pill grinder, put a thin layer of applesauce in a

teaspoon, then the meds, then another thin layer of applesauce on top. We

then made her open her mouth (a two person job) and put the stuff in. Of

course, the first few times she spit it out, bit our fingers, you name it. I

felt like a monster, but I knew she had to get these meds down. We had a

yummy lollipop as a reward for when she swallowed. We finally put the stuff

in and held her mouth closed so she had to swallow. The lollipop helped,

because otherwise she would sit there with that icky stuff in her mouth for

sometimes half an hour. Each time it became less of a wrestling match. In two

days, she not longer made a fuss and took the stuff readily.

Now we give DMSA, zinc, everything this way and it's no problem at all. We

don't do liquid supplements, but I imagine you could try the same technique.

I find that capsules and pills you can grind to a powder are easiest. Hope

this helps...

[Guest guest]

We had this problem and went to the compounding pharmacist and purchased

methylcellulose 1% in the flavor orange-tangerine (other flavors are

available but we've only used lemon-lime). We use the syringe and it goes

fine. We purchased the flavored Cod liver Oil from Kirkmans...We were jsut

told to add " other fish oils " and these are difficult if out of the gel cap.

Their flavor is hard to mask so we DON " T add these to the others since he

takes them w/o problem now.

We will try to get the " swallowing " going but this works for us for now.

Good luck!

[ ] Refusing supplements.....

Has anyone had experience with a child who totally, completely

refuses to take supplements? His parents have tried all of

the " tricks " . He refuses all food/drinks containing hidden

supplements. This 5yr old little angel will NOT take supplements.

Unfortunately this is preventing them from doing chelation. And if

he won't take supplements, I doubt they could ever get the DMSA/ALA

into him. Are there any alternatives? Thank you.

[Guest guest]

We had this problem at first with ; 's suggestions below

are good ones. Think of it as a behavior that he needs to learn, and

use behavioral techniques such as reinforcement, as she suggests. You

might try successive approximations; give just grape juice

(f'rinstance) through a syringe (no needle obviously, available at

the drugstore) and reward for that; then add one supplement, and keep

working them in until he's used to the whole scene. I would also

recommend a calm, implacable, no-nonsense demeanor and tone of voice

throughout; no wheedling, no frustration, no possibility of appeal to

the other parent, just the solid nonverbal message that this activity

is not optional.

If all else fails, ask your Regional Center to send you a behaviorist

to work with him and with you to get this accomplished.

> what about using a reward. dont hide the supplement. mix it with

something to

> make it taste better and tell him he can have a cookie or whatever

he likes

> if he takes it. have the reward right there so he can see it. it

works for

> us. also, I mix supps in with jam in a sandwich and you cant taste

it. good

> luck.

> karen

> ps DMSA/ALA from Kirkmans tastes good.

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

I have frozen red grape juice and my jack loves it. I have been able

to sneak all supplements w/ exception of bcomplex, but dissolved b6

does work. I fill a bunch of cups w/ the grape juice. I would get

the child use to just the ice at first.

nne

> Has anyone had experience with a child who totally, completely

> refuses to take supplements? His parents have tried all of

> the " tricks " . He refuses all food/drinks containing hidden

> supplements. This 5yr old little angel will NOT take supplements.

> Unfortunately this is preventing them from doing chelation. And if

> he won't take supplements, I doubt they could ever get the DMSA/ALA

> into him. Are there any alternatives? Thank you.

[Guest guest]

I worked with a 17 y.o. w/ autism who refused meds (and was supposed to take

many) so we tried all sorts of things. We finally had luck with putting them in

nut butter on gfcf rice crackers. The thickness of the nut butter combined with

the crunchy texture of the cracker apparently disguised them sufficiently. Of

course one would want to watch carefully so the child didn't choke on the peanut

butter.

S

On Sat, 03 November 2001, marib005@... wrote:

>

> <html><body>

> <tt>

> I have frozen red grape juice and my jack loves it. & nbsp; I have been able

<BR>

> to sneak all supplements w/ exception of bcomplex, but dissolved b6 <BR>

> does work. & nbsp; I fill a bunch of cups w/ the grape juice. & nbsp; I would get

<BR>

> the child use to just the ice at first.<BR>

> <BR>

> <BR>

> nne<BR>

> <BR>

> <BR>

> & gt; Has anyone had experience with a child who totally, completely <BR>

> & gt; refuses to take supplements? & nbsp; His parents have tried all of <BR>

> & gt; the & quot;tricks & quot;. He refuses all food/drinks containing hidden <BR>

> & gt; supplements. This 5yr old little angel will NOT take supplements. <BR>

> & gt; Unfortunately this is preventing them from doing chelation. & nbsp; And if

<BR>

> & gt; he won't take supplements, I doubt they could ever get the DMSA/ALA <BR>

> & gt; into him. & nbsp; Are there any alternatives? & nbsp; Thank you.<BR>

> <BR>

> </tt>

>

>

> <br>

> <tt>

> =======================================================<BR>

>

[Guest guest]

My son refused supplements at times because they made his tummy hurt. Maybe

they need to check dosages or whether the child has enough food in his

system before administering the vities.

R

[Guest guest]

Undoubtedly, its the taste that turns him off. My daughter cannot swallow

pills, so I have to crush up pills or empty out capsules and give them to her in

an oral syringe. What I do is put a little grenadine syrup in the syringe

first, add a little water, and then add the powdered medicine, shake, and just

give it to her. If it still tastes bad, a dilute it more add more grenadine,

etc. I was even able to give her a Swiss Kris pill this way (she hates the

stuff) when she was very constipated.

You can buy oral syringes at any pharmacy, just make sure that the opening is

big enough for the medicine to pass through without clogging up. Some brands

have smaller openings than other. I use a small glass bowl for crushing and

either a large spoon or a pestle to actually crush the pills. Then I use a

small funnel so as not to lose any of the medicine while pouring it into the

syringe. Sometimes you can get these at a pharmacy, if not at a kitchen supply

store. I just keep my finger on the end of the syringe, go carefully, put the

plunger in carefully, shake it up, push the air out, and ready to go! I also

have to put a tissue around the hole before I let my finger off as it always

spurts a little out from the release in pressure.

Just make sure not to give too much at once as they might spit or dribble some

out. Just enough to comfortably swallow. If it tastes ok, it makes it a whole

lot easier.

[ ] Refusing supplements.....

Has anyone had experience with a child who totally, completely

refuses to take supplements? His parents have tried all of

the " tricks " . He refuses all food/drinks containing hidden

supplements. This 5yr old little angel will NOT take supplements.

Unfortunately this is preventing them from doing chelation. And if

he won't take supplements, I doubt they could ever get the DMSA/ALA

into him. Are there any alternatives? Thank you.