16 Month Old Underweight

Sometimes this is a total phase that comes and goes with age. I have 2 daughters of my own, my 4 yr old who was a great eater is now a lot more picky with what she eats. I would suggest involving your daughter in preparation of her food. For example if you go to the store, give her pictures of the food and go around the store and get her to be excited about bringing the food home. Like you hold the plastic bag and she puts the vegetable in it or vice versa. It sounds so silly and people in the store may look at you funny but the more your daughter is involved she is more likely to eat it. In addition, get her involved at home when you cook the food. Have her stir the food or wash the food with you, or have her take it out of the refrigerator and put it on the counter. Give her a little apron and chef's hat and really get her excited about preparation and cooking. If she is more involved in the process, the more she'll be inclined to eat the food she prepared. My daughter's and I go to the local farmer's market and they get to sample fruits and we pick out fruits and vegetables together. Their fave vegetable is brocolli - I think it's because I cut it into smaller pieces and call it baby brocolli. I hope this helps.

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If she's hungry, she'll eat. Both my children were way below average on the growth charts. About a fist sized portion, broken into two meals is all some kids can eat. Liquid vitamins? If you reduce the number of bottles of milk this could encourage solid food ingestion too.

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my son had the same between 8 months and 2 years old - failure to thrive. Eventually, they admitted that he could just have low bone density - meaning that his bones just weighed less. I actually kept him on baby formula as a substitute for regular milk as whenever he got sick - we could get nothing down him and he just lost more weight. Until he liked regular milk - we kept it going probably until 2+ years old.

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Hi T., my name is A.. I have a 6 year old that was a 27 week preemie. Obviously we have had issues with her gaining wieght and such since birth. When Kaitlyn got to the age where she could eat "adult" food her nutritionist always recommended things like yogurts and cheeses. Kids love those things. Another thing that kids love is the ensure drinks. They taste like milkshakes and are loaded with nutrients and calories.Calories are a good thing. They pack on wieght without you having to worry about other things that may do damage.
Even though my daughter is 6 years old, she still has som issues with weight. I am often told, by her pediatrician, not to worry about her wieght. she is almost in the 50th percentile which is fine. Since she is proportionate with her height, and both her parents were short and I was a small child, its genetic that she be petite. I do have to recommend that if you are going by what a WIC representative has told you, take it all very lightly. Always go by what your child's pediatrician says. If the dr is concerned he/she will make the appropriate suggestions for helping your daughter get what she needs.

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hi, i have a VERY healthy 30 lb 5 1/2 yr old. trust that her body knows what size it should be and how much she should eat. people come in all sizes and shapes, if she is healthy then there is no problem. if your pediatrician is giving you are hard time then find a better dr.
also, when you add too many calories to a diet, it forms fat cells not growth. trust her body to know what it needs.

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Hi T.,
Have you tried JP+ Gummies? They contain 17 vine ripened fruits, vegetables, and grain. I started my youngest on them when she was just 13 months old. I would cut the gummies into 1/4's and she would eat them like finger food. This is a great way to do some metabolic training for her palate. My two girls are now 5 and 3 and they are very adventurous eaters. Dr. Bill Sears recommends Juice Plus+ and he talks about shaping young tastes with these. I've also used the JP+ Complete Protein Powder to be sure we get a healthy breakfast (and you can hide healthy things in the smoothie too). It comes in Chocolate and Vanilla. The powder is a non-genetically modified soy protein that contains fruit and vegetable powders, along with a whole host of other great antioxidants.

You can visit: www.JP4GoodHealth.com
to learn more about it. It's also back by over 11 clinical research journals.

Hope this helps!
J.

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Hi! My son is 2 1/2 yrs old and in the 3rd percentile, so I understand your concern. He is such a picky eater. Try this website for high calorie meals: http://www.kidshealth.org/kid/recipes/cf_recipes/about_cf...

He loves the milkshake with cream, whole milk, ice cream, and carnation instant breakfast. He will not drink smoothies or even his milk if I add anything to it. Also, try quesadillas with pureed veggies, horizon organic yogurt in the tube, ice cream cones (he won't eat just ice cream.) I also use cookie cutters to make different shaped cheeses or peanut butter sandwiches.

Good Luck!

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Hay T... I know how you feel with the little one ;) My little girl was little forever it seemed like. She just turned 10 last week and is still only 50 lbs. The only thing I can tell you from one mommy to another is dont look at the #'s so much.. If your child is happy and healthy then let them be. They will eat when they are hungary and wont when they are not and if you try to mess with that too much when they are little (by feeding them the fattening foods etc.) you could end up accidently teaching her bad/unhealthy habbits that she has a hard time breaking when she is older. A few pounds under weight is much healthier than an obese child for sure! Good luck :)

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To spice up some of the old childhood favorites and also make sure that they are getting the foods they need I tried Jessica Seinfeld's Deceptively Delicious cookbook. Every time I use a receipt my daughter cleans her plate and asks for more. Check it out.

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If she is walking and moving and in good health don't worry about what the scale is saying. I had a Pediatrician tell me to stop nursing and start giving my baby formula because she was 18 pounds at 20 months. She is now 3 years old and 27 pounds she is a string bean that's just her. Mac n cheese is always a favorite and my girls love go gurts frozen. Healthy snacks are and will always be the best way to go. Each child is different and doctors who make us live up to percentiles and charts are just plain wrong. Enjoy your daughter and try new and old foods that have previously been turned away they say at this age their taste buds change monthly something they didn't like last month might bid well this month you never know. Hope this helps. My regular pediatrician whom I love says being a pediatrician is an artform not something that can be taught from books, sorry for those younger pediatricians who haven't caught on yet.

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my son was 17 pounds at 6 months and stayed that way until he was 18 months. Then he continued to gain weight soooo slowly. Every test they could think of was done with no answers. He was always off the charts in the negative. He was a very picky eater...still is. He is 9 now and very selective about what he eats. On his own he has recognized foods that make his stomach sick and avoids them. He now has a healthy appetite and is still very thin..so not sure what to think about that. I tried the high fat stuff but it never put fat on him.

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My youngest is also there (37 lbs at 8 1/2 years old). If your daughter is developmentally fine, I wouldn't worry. Some kids just come tiny. My pediatrician once suggested butter on everything. My daughter has taken to hotdogs; not the healthiest food in the world, but I do try to make sure her diet is balanced, even if she doesn't eat a lot of everything else. She has a little body and doesn't need that much.

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Try giving her some fruit and fruit jucies. My granddaughter is the same way, but loves her fruit. You can add some peanut butter to the mix, high in protein and most kids like it. Avoid sweets, no candy or stuff like that. Make meal times a game you eat it first and then ask her to take one bit see if that helps.

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Dear T.,

I had two babies that were tested due to slow growth. Both were happy, social, and developmentally right on target. I loved my first pediatrician. When she saw their dad (not a big man) she told me she wasn't really concerned about my son's size - but that we owed it to him to find out if something was wrong. We did weight checks every two weeks and some other testing. We had to change pediatrician's due to an insurance change. This next doctor was a pediatric endocrinologist. She did some more tests on my son and diagnosed him as "delayed growth," saying that he would enter puberty late and continue growing after everyone else stopped. (She was wrong by the way.) Then my third child, a girl, stopped following the growth curve around four months. The doctor told me to breast feed her like normal, then give her two ounces of formula (which I thought was insane!). This didn't work - she didn't want the formula after she nursed (duh!) The doctor told me to wean her. It was a nightmare - she had been taking a bottle at least once a week while I was working - now she wouldn't take the bottle anymore - even with breast milk in it. When she didn't gain weight with formula, I was told to give her Pediasure - this was a worse nightmare! She screamed when I tried to feed her - she was never hungry, and now she was LOSING weight. At six months, the doctor thought she figured out what was wrong and admitted her to the hospital for tests. They ruled out what the doctor thought was wrong. I went in the following week for a follow-up visit, and had all sorts of questions: why is her appetite decreasing, why is she losing weight on the high calorie stuff, how do you know this isn't delayed growth like her brother, etc . . . The doctor had no answers for me - except to say, I don't know. All I can tell you is that you will be crucified if she doesn't start gaining weight." I left the office nearly hysterical, waiting for C.P.S. to come take my baby away. My mother thought it sounded like she was accusing me of Munchausin's by Proxy. One of the traits of Munchausin's is frequent changes of doctors - so now, even though I felt extremely uncomfortable with this doctor, I was afraid to switch. Luckily, we had another insurance change early the next year, and I took advantage of it to change doctors. A year later, at her next physical, I asked the nes doctor about her weight, and she said that while it was at the bottom of the charts, it was consistent, and she wasn't concerned.

At 19 and 15, they are both fine now, though my son is on the short side (the endocrinologist calculated that his final height would be 5'10", plus or minus two inches. She was wrong on this count, too - he is only about 5'5".

Here is my thought - doctor's try to find something wrong when they see something that does not fit a pattern they are used to . . . There may not be something wrong - there might just be something different. If your daughter is happy and developing as she should, if she interacts socially and is not withdrawn - I would not worry too much. . . .

That aside - The one food I remember them recommending to me as a good high calorie source of fat and protein is peanut butter. The other thing you can do is split eggs with her - give her the yolks, and take the whites for yourself. Also be sure she is getting at least 24 oz of whole milk every day (unless you're still nursing) - maybe try Pediasure . . . (it was too rich for my 4 month old baby who was used to breast milk, but your 16 month old may like it)

Good luck! I've been there - it's not fun, and it's not easy - but I have come through the other side - it doesn't last forever!
B.

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avocados, whole milk yogurt, whole string cheese

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My almost 15 month old is 18 lbs as well, and so I know what you mean. Everyone is always asking me why she is so small. I like "dainty" or "petite" better. The recommendations I've been given have been, and helped a bit, have been, cut out the milk bottle, or at least cut it down to 16-24 ounces. At first I was like, "but that's all she wants! She'll starve." but as I cut it way down, she did get hungrier (after an afternoon of fussiness!) and ate a good dinner. Also, make sure the milk she does get is WHOLE milk, to help with the fat. I also got stricter with meal times/routines. I always put her in her chair and keep her there while we are eating. If she chooses not to eat, well, she still has to sit in her chair (10 minutes tops). She was eating about 3 bites and then wanting to sit with me or Daddy while we ate, so once we cut out that option, she got bored enough to eat a few more bites. I also like to feed her cheerios or goldfish or a rolled up turkey slice while in her carseat, since she is already strapped down and "stuck" for a bit anyways. My last idea is Pediasure, which my daughter really likes. We get the Vanilla w/Fiber, since she tends to get constipated easily and does NOT like prune juice, and at least she is getting some vitamins. My daughter thinks it is funny to turn down food, so I stopped playing that game. She would shake her head and then laugh, and then act like she wanted another bite, and then turn away and laugh again. It is super cute, but I don't laugh and stop offering it, and a few times she has grabbed at it and ate it, just to get my attention. LOL! She SHOWED me! Anyways, good luck!

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My daughter is five years old and very petite and doesn't eat much either. It drove me crazy when she was little and she wouldn't eat (not to mention finding clothest that fit). What I've found works best for me is to have lots of good choices available so when she is hungry, what she eats isn't empty calories. As you probably know toddlers appetites fluctuate a lot anyway.

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Babies love mommy's milk and love to nurse, if you are still nursing allow her to do it more often. Don't worry too much about her being small unless a specialist says there's something to worry about; children all grow differently and tend to follow genetics - look into if you or your husband were small babies...
good luck! =) A.

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Aside from being little, is she healthy, active and learning? If so, don't worry too much about it. It's been proven that it's nothing medical, so just keep her eating what she wants and make good choices to get healthy stuff into her. Try one of those cookbooks that teach you how to "sneak" stuff into the food you make, like cauliflower and squash. It's a great way to make mac & cheese and other favorites a bit healthier. Also, keep giving her whole milk. My ped. recommended whole milk for my son until he turns 3 and he's not underweight.

Just to make you feel better, my nephew is 3 1/2 and weighs in at 28 pounds (sopping wet with clothes on). He's always been in the 0-5th percentile in weight and no higher than 20th in height. He's a perfectly healthy, SMART, sassy little kid who has no problems holding his own against the bigger kids.

Don't worry about her weight, just make sure she's eating healthy stuff and she'll be fine. I know that's easier said than done, though! Good luck! Oh, and stock up on the Tylenol for teeth/illness. It works wonders for their mood and comfort!

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Hi T.,

There are two sides of thought on your child. I have a very petite daughter. She is now 3 and barely weighs in at 22lbs! LOL She's just a petite girl! All of her tests are good, she eats okay...she's just very active, and petite. Some children are just small! Doesn't ALWAYS mean there is something wrong.
My first child was a little chunky. But my second is just a tiny little thing. Just like grown-ups...we all have different body types...that's just how humans are.
For the longest time we were baffled by her size...family giving us advice, docs giving us advice...everything. But even though her weight and height are small, she's growing on her own curve. Small, but still growing.
As long as all of the tests are okay, she's growing on her own curve, developing well both physically, and emotionally, then she's just petite!
But there are somethings you can try to add to her diet. You can add peanut butter to her toast. Make her milkshakes with extra protein (ask your doc about that one), give her milk with ovaltine or quick. You can also try to give her pediasure to make sure she's getting all she needs. There are also vitamins to make sure she's getting everything she needs.
Definitely go over everything with your doc. But after many tests, diet changes, blood work/urinalysis, family history checks..and on, and on...we saw our little grow growing...not on the "normal" chart, but on her own chart...and she's a happy healthy girl! She's 3 but wears a size 2! But we love her no matter what size she is!
Good luck!

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My daughter was and still is petite weighing the same as your daughter at that age the doctors recommended letting her eat lots of ice cream however we didn't go with that advice, you can eat only so much ice cream.We would give her pediasure it is a nutritional supplement drink for children tastes pretty good too. Our intent was to give it to her to make sure she was getting proper nutrition because she wouldn't eat that well. We were really surprised when we noticed after having the pediasure her appetite would increase and she would eat alot more than usual. My only guess is that you feel better when your body is getting what it needs she realized that she felt better when she was fueling her body. another thing is most children at that age prefer drinking rather than eating and get full on fluids. if that is the case limit the liquids and also supplement with the pediasure. I know as a parent it can be worrisome when your child is a picky eater and smaller than average but kids will not starve themselves. she might prefer grazing throughout the day rather than eating larger meals at traditional eating times.good luck.

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I too have a small "underweight" girl. I have found one of the best things to help her gain is raw organic milk. And lucky for you CA is one of the easiest places to get it. Always research where you are getting it from, but I know that in some areas of CA you can actually buy it from the fridge section in your grocery store or health food store. Also another great thing that works great for keeping some weight on our kids (we have three "scrawny" kids) is Extra Virgin coconut oil. We always add it to there warm dishes (as it is solid and needs something warm to "melt" it). Both the raw milk and the coconut oil are extrememly healthy fats. Don't worry at all about this causing any problems.

We have seen naturopathy nutritionists and have done lots of research so I felt confident when we started using these things with our children (5, 2 and 1). My daughter (2) is also extremely picky so being able to hide these good fats in the foods she will eat made it alot easier.

I hope this will help! Good luck to you, and if your pediatrician isn't concerned and she is following a growth curve (even if it's like 3rd percent) she should be fine. But always check with the ped. to make sure she isn't "failing to thrive" (dropping of her growth curve). We've had some experience with this so we worked real hard to keep weight on our youngest. Have fun and if you try these things you can enjoy them too without worrying about the fat content (e.v. coconut oil is super yummy to cook and fry with! and it's super healthy). Again, GOOD LUCK!

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My daughter is about the same age as yours. She was born 3 months early, and is still small for her age less then 19 lbs. Our Neonatologist suggested high fat foods, such as sweet potatoes, bananas, adding butter, cream or gravy to her foods. It has helped. We also give her snacks 2 or 3 times daily. Also necters instead of juices will give better calorie intake and vitamins as well. Just keep trying. Good luck.

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When my son went through the same thing when he was about a year until he was 3 1/2. What saved us was pediasure, about 3 cans a day and any food that was served I would add butter, cheese sauce, or anything fattening. A good idea is to check with the doc to see if the pediasure is covered by insurance cause it does get expensive. Having a schedule of snacks and meal times also greatly helped my son increase his appetite.

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Here are some ideas off the top of my head for hi-calorie foods/additives: Yo-baby yogurt, greek yogurt (Trader Joe's), add Carnation instant breakfast to her milk, adding a nut meal to food(TJ's), add a T. or two of heavy whipping cream, added butter when cooking. Avocado is high in cal/fat. By adding a small "milkshake" with a few of the above additives twice per day, you should see an improvement. Sometimes we do worry too much as mothers, however I do believe being pro-active with certain things are good. You could track her weight gain on a bi-monthly basis, and if she is moving up gradually, then things are good. A baby of this age should be slowly but steadily gaining.

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Hello T.,

Have you considered Acupuncture and/or Pediatric Tuina (therapeutic massage from China)?... Appetite can be improved by stimulating those Acupuncture points on your baby. If you need assistance, you can call or visit a local Acupuncturist who specializes in Pediatric Tuina. If you need a referral please let me know. O.

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If she is playing, happy, & staying within her growth chart, don't worry about it. Someday, you'll probly be worrying she eats too much. Parents will always worry about their kids. From a mother of 3 who has been there (6, 8, & 11). Good luck.

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Hi Terri,

My daughter is also a very light child who I struggle with when it comes to feeding her. She did have acid reflux and that was part of the problem. She has outgrown the reflux but she still is not a big eater. She is 21 months and weighs 22 lbs. My ped. was never worried about her weight. And now I don't get too concerned. Your daughter will probably go through phases where she will eat heartily. I take advantage of those moments. Soymilk is one thing I use to help keep some weight on. Also, I was the same way as a child and could never put on weight until I was in my 30's. That could be her body type. Good Luck!

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With my son I didn't think outside the box too much when it came to food. He ate and loved everything that came in a jar but after he got on table foods, it all changed. He was then and now, a picky eater but thankfully he loves milk, V-8 and some other very healthy snacks and drinks so it helps. He was in the 5th percentile for weight and height until he was 5 years old.(he's 12 now)
I've offered pretty much everything to my daughter by now. She's almost 17 months old. She loves avocado (full of natural fat), bananas, quartered olives (I hate them but she loves them), cut up tomatoes.
I've also noticed with my daughter that she turns her head to basically everything I try to feed her until I make her taste it. (put a little on my finger and shove it in her squirming mouth or get some on her lip) 98% of the time after she tastes whatever it is, she'll accept it without fuss and a "mmmm". (until the next time) I don't have to do that as often with finger foods.
I never miss an opportunity to introduce something new to her (even if I myself don't like it). My daughter is in the 50th percentile for weight and height.

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There is a new book called "Deceptively Delicious". Basically your hiding veggies in the food by puree. So you can sneek some good thing in. Also people that want to bulk up take protein. I would see if you can find a drink, or shake that you can make.

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My daughter had a similar problem in her case this is just how she is built. However, she isn't a picky eater but a moody one. At 18 mos. most kids are still turned off by the color or texture of foods. They often are asserting their will and control over their body. At 18 mos children tend to be focused on learning and mastering new skills. Take full advantage of the foods she will eat by sneaking in vegatables. You can add pureed foods in nearly anything. Jessica Seinfeld has a book with just this focus.

But to fatten a child I've had good luck with smoothies. I put frozen strawberries, yogurt and juice in a blender. This combo is very basic and designed to avoid banannas since I am alergic. You can play with the flavors by adding other fruits and changing the yogurt or juice flavor. Pureed vegies can be hidden in too. Soy can be used to add protein.

Good luck figuring out what works for your daughter!

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Both of my girls were in the 5 percentile- Avacado was wonderful for them (you have to introduce it a few times before they really start eating it. I also had to put a little salt on it for them).

Also, fruit smoothies (cup of orange juice, frozen fruit medely from trader joes, 1/2 a banana, 1/2 of Silken Tofu (or you can use protein powder or yogurt instead) and a tablespoon of flaxseed oil. My kids love it and think it's like ice cream. It's got good stuff in it.

Good luck! J.

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have you tried feeding her mashed potatoes with every meal? does she eat any vegetables? my doctor said that if my first son (5, 6 in March 2008) didn't want to eat regular dinners that feeding him his favorite meal (PB&J) would be okay. he finally grew out of those and eats a lot better!! he has always eaten vegetables so that helped with nutrition for the most part.

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You didn't say how old your daughter is, which is important to how relative the 18 pounds is. My daughter was 18 pounds until she was about 18 months old, but she eats like a horse. My oldest son has always been between 10th and 25th percentile for weight. The doctor has told us that our kids just have very fast metabolisms. The other thing I can tell you is that they say it takes 17 exposures to a food for a baby to really know if they like it or not, so don't give up offering food. I would try to offer fattening versions of some foods but not too crazy because too much saturated fat is still bad for hearts. I would try cheese, peanut butter, nuts (if there are no allergies in your family) and smoothies. Fruit smoothies with yogurt can have a lot of calories but still be healthy. If your daughter isn't developmentally delayed (she is hitting all of her milestones) I wouldn't worry about it. As a mom of three ridiculously skinny kids, I spent my time worrying about it too, and realized it is what it is. Lucky them to not have to struggle with weight!

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