Eating

[Shari]

I'd like to know what some of the other kids on vents do as far as eating. My little boy is 20 months old and has a button. He wouldn't eat at all at first, and now he's up to 2-3 oz per day of baby food, 4-5 times per week. My doc said that babies on vents usually don't get off their tubes before their vents/ trachs. Anyone care to share?
-Shari

[Ann]

Shari,

My son also has a g-button (who doesn't?). Â*Jack likes to eat baby food, but we do know that he "micro" aspirates thin liquids - in other words we don't suction the food back out, but he tends to have a moderate aspiration problem due to paralyzed vocal chord and his disease. Therefore, we don't really push the food because the consequences of him aspirating are more trouble than the benefit of getting him to eat (i.e. lots of suctioning) Â*I believe when Jack gets older he can decide whether he wants to eat and then we can try foods that he won't aspirate, like regular "big people" food. Â*Also, we don't think Jack will ever get off his vent, so we don't really have anything to work towards in that regard. Â*

Ann

[Jimmysmom]

Hi Shari

No answers, just our experiences so far. Jimmy was trached at 6 months. For quite awhile after the trach and vent Jimmy would not take anything by mouth. He is now in pre-school which has really helped and he will eat 2-3 tsp at lunch with the rest of the kids. Some days he will need to be suctioned a lot and other times not. Before he wasn't just food but he didn't want anything in his mouth. Now he's really in to his fingers as well as chewing on his shirt sleeves so hopefully these new behaviors will help out his eating. My next goal is to teach him to drink from a cup.

Take care and good luck

Anne, mom to Jimmy (3), Infantile Axonal Neuropathy, trach, vent dependent, g-tube