• Alyssa Fontaine, RD
• Oct 23, 2025

My 7-Year-Old Won’t Eat and Is Losing Weight

Failure to thrive can occur when your child does not follow their projected growth curve. Usually it starts with a decreased weight and is followed by a low height for age. 

Your child may be undernourished for several reasons. This can appear in your child as a lack of energy, difficulty learning in school or relationship issues.

Why Is My 7 Year Old Not Eating?

There are many causes that may be behind your child not wanting to eat and losing weight as a result.

• Environmental factors (low access to food, poverty, family stress)
• Acute or chronic medical conditions
  • Acute disease: ear infection, flu, common cold
  • Chronic disease: irritable bowel disease, diabetes, cancer
• Psychological issues (depression, anxiety, eating disorder)
• Digestive problems (constipation, diarrhea, reflux, celiac disease)
• Food intolerances (lactose intolerant, gluten intolerance)
• Medication side effects 
• Picky eater
• Sensitivity to textures (sometimes present with autism)

A health care professional (dietitian or doctor) can work with you to figure out the underlying problem and address it appropriately.

Strategies Parents Can Try

1. Have set meal and snack times (offer 3 meals/day and 2-3 snacks daily).
2. Offer a variety of options at each meal and involve them in planning and cooking meals. Examples:

• Have your child pick between 2 veggies
• Offer a protein, carbohydrate and vegetable and let your child chose 2 items

3. Include more energy dense foods (high fat, nutrient dense).

• Avocado
• Unsalted nuts or seeds
• Nut or seed butters
• Full fat dairy products (milk, cheese, yogurt)
• Canola, avocado or olive oil

4. Offer small portions of new foods with their familiar foods.

• Continue to offer new foods cooked in different ways. Often children need to try a new food several times until they start to like it.

5. Stay relaxed during mealtime. Pressuring or bribing your child may make them want to eat less. 
6. Turn off the TV, laptops and phones to allow your child to focus on their hunger and fullness cues and not be distracted.

When to See a Doctor

• If you are worried about your child’s growth
• You notice significant weight loss or loss of appetite
• You are concerned about your child’s general health
• Your child is more fatigued compared to their usual self
• Your child refuses healthy foods for weeks at a time and you are anxious they are not getting enough nutrients
• You are concerned your child may be deficient in specific nutrients

Consider weight loss to be significant if it is more than 5% of your child’s baseline body weight. However, if your child seems happy and healthy, it is normal for their weight to fluctuate (within a range) as they go through periods of stress, sickness or changes in physical activity. Usually your child will eat more when they are growing faster and have less of an appetite when they are not in a growth spurt.

The Bottom Line

It’s important to discover the reason behind your child’s refusal to eat. A child should be gaining weight as they grow and develop. Losing weight can be a warning sign. Speak to a health professional for guidance.