3 year old 'Too tired' all the time. Anemia?

[CaptainMummy]

Ella used to be a bundle of never emding energy. She was non stop, all over the place.
Recently (for quite a while) she hasn't really been herself, especially in the afternoons/evenings. She always looks a bit pale (We are all very pale skinned though, so I could say the same for myself and the other girls too) and by 2pm ish she seems burned out. She always wants to go in the buggy which is not what she used to do, doesn't want to walk anywhere. She always jumps up on the couch when we are playing (again, she never used to just sit) and anytime I ask her to do anything she says 'I'm just too tired'. She sleeps a solid 11-12hrs at night and doesn't nap.

Her diet is terrible. She doesn't eat meat or veg, so I was thinking maybe it could be anemia? Any advice? She is getting her preschool boosters on Wednesday so I will be bringing it up then just to see what they think before getting a doctors appointment.

 

[Bella1185]

Ah sorry to hear that! It's hard when they are not themselves! If you say her diet is poor and you have a hunch that's the cause then I believe it is indeed the culprit. I am anemic (don't eat meat so that doesn't help) and have struggled with feeling sleepy or sluggish at times. All comes down to vitamins and nutrients - good news - it's only takes a bit to get you up and running again, especially in kids! Does she take a child's vitamin? I sometimes still take prenatals just to keep iron levels up...

Does Ella like smoothies? DD is a super picky eater - but she's SO into making smoothies! She goes to the grocery with me and gets to choose the fruits and yogurt (spinach can actually go in too and they can't even taste it - great source of iron!!) that we put in - then we just add some honey and some (kid friendly veggie based) protein powder, milk and/or ice - and she blends it up herself!! Sometimessss she gets sprinkles on top - because hey, who doesn't love sprinkles?! : It has helped to even out her diet and she is pretty proud of her "choices"

 

[Kaylen]

I second the smoothies! we make one for my daughter (and ourselves too) every morning. We add avocado and spinach along with bananas, berries, yogurt, peanut butter, chia seeds, and whatever we want to sneak in there really. She loves having her smoothie every morning. You can also add a multi vitamin in it or iron if needed.