• Home

Home > Medical Reference > Encyclopedia (English)

Toggle: English / Spanish

Feeding disorder of infancy and early childhood

• Overview
• Symptoms
• Treatment
• Prevention

Definition:

A feeding disorder of infancy or early childhood is the failure of a young child to obtain adequate nutrition, which is reflected by weight loss or a failure to gain weight appropriately for development.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

Feeding disorders are diagnosed when the infant or young child appears malnourished and the problem is not caused by a medical condition (such as cleft palate , congenital heart disease , or chronic lung disease ), or a disorder that causes mental retardation .

The cause of these disorders is often unknown, but they can result from a variety of factors such as poverty, dysfunctional child-caregiver interactions, or parental misinformation about appropriate diet to meet the child's needs.

• Review Date: 12/6/2006
• Reviewed By: Ian Marshall, MD, Division of Pediatric Endocrinology, UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is the first of its kind, requiring compliance with 53 standards of quality and accountability, verified by independent audit. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial process . A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics (www.hiethics.com) and subscribes to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (www.hon.ch).

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed physician should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. Copyright 1997-2007 A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.