Hi. So I have a 6 year old son and he has weighed between 38-40 pounds for the last 2 years. I have taken him to his well check ups with his ped. but she doesn't seem concerned yet (last appt. was back in March for his yearly well check) because he hasn't dropped off the charts. He has stayed around the 25%. But since school started, I think he has lost some weight. He is very active and plays very hard. We do not do any sports for financial reasons but we do go outside and play daily. He has always been on the smaller side. He was 6 pounds 6 ounces at birth (38 weeks). I tried everything to bf him including hiring a lactation consultant, feeding him every hour, plus using an electric pump inbetween, and when that didn't work I had to use a supplementer system while bfing him. He had droped to 5 pounds 12 ounces and stayed that way for 3 weeks after birth. I had to stop because I was not producing any milk and so I formula fed him. He is now (and has always been) a very picky eater. He refuses to eat any pasta, cheese, bread and any type of veggie. He lives on chicken, beans, fruits, rice, ground turkey (He will eat things like soup, chili, chicken and rice type dinners), yogurt, milk, cereals, loves almost all fruits, ect... I have tried pediasure to get him to gain weight and I have also tried to make him peanut butter banana shakes at home. He refuses avacado too which I know is great, but he just hates them. What else can I do to get him to gain weight? I'm getting worried about failure to thrive issues. He is the smallest in his class and I might just be worrying for nothing and he could just be a skinny kid (I was very tiny growing up). I might make an appt. with his ped about this but I wanted to see if anyone else has gone through this at all and if anything worked to put some weight on?
Thanks!
My dd only.weighed 31 lbs in Kindergarten! The one thing that seems to work is whey protein smoothies...I use a scoop (1/4 cup) whey unflavored and unsweetened, benefiber to get a little fiber in, sugar, milk in the blender. Then I add a ice and blend well till it's a milkshake, then at the end I add 2-3 oreo cookies....It's like a DQ blizzard and very hearty. If my dd will eat it, anyone will.
Is he getting taller? If so, I would not worry.
This site had some great suggestions. I would also try and sneak things in for extra calories. Avocado in the smoothies, Pediasure in the smoothies. Use whole milk. Offer snacks throughout the day. Offer healthy desserts after meals, etc.
http://www.wikihow.com/Increase-Weight-in-Children
My friends daughter is not gaining weight either. She almost 5.They went to a nutritionist who recommended carnation instant breakfast. She recommended other things too, this is just the one I remember.
Ask the pediatrician point blank why they are not concerned. Lots of kids are super thin and still healthy.
I think you are worrying and may not have reason to be so upset about it. If the doc isn't concerned and he's been having regular check ups then I think he's probably okay.
I have a friend who had 7 children. One of which was much slimmer than the rest. The mom called her the refugee child and always said she looked like she was being starved. The reality of it was the the rest of her children were larger, not obese or anything, just bigger. This girl was extremely very normal size.
It sounds like he eats a variety of things, which is good. The veggies could be beefed up a bit, so you might try hiding them in other things. Look at the Deceptively Delicious and similar cookbooks. Kids also like to dip veggies in other things - so if you can make raw veggie sticks he can dip in dressing or hummus, that makes it kind of fun.
Does he have sensory issues? Some kids have a big thing with taste, others with texture. I think it takes something like 20 times of trying a food to make it a taste they'll stick with. My son had a lot of this and sounds very similar to your child - except he didn't eat as much as yours does.
I would say "no" to the Carnation Instant breakfast and that sort of thing, anything with preservatives or additives. The pediasure has SOME stuff he needs, but not nearly all of it. He may also have an absorption problem - that is, he's taking in the food, but not actually absorbing it. Cellular nutrition gets the nutrients into the cells within 20 minute with a high absorption level, upwards of 90% (compared to, say, vitamin pills which are absorbed 15-30%) - so it's a lot of bang for your buck. I work in the field and we've seen tremendous changes in kids, both in terms of building muscle (more important than weight) and in terms of brain development (really important). That also helps reduce the sensory issues. There are a lot of ways to creatively sneak this in too. We can give it to preemies through feeding tubes, to third world countries where kids are getting practically nothing the rest of the day, and to kids everywhere. The failure to thrive kids turn around in a month to 3 months without fail.
I think the healthy brain development and bone strength are more important than weight per se, but if he hasn't gained any weight at all in a few years, you might want to look into this and learn more about it. Absorption, epigenetics, and pediatric nutrition are all heavily researched and there are still a number of physicians who aren't really up to date because nutrition just isn't at the top of the list in medical schools.
My son really turned around with this and also had better study skills, increased immunity, and fewer injuries from sports and outdoor activities.
I understand your concern but if your pediatrician isn't worried and he's eating a variety of foods, I wouldn't be concerned. I was extremely skinny growing up, still am as an adult and my kids are also skinny.
Please don't keep making a big deal about food, it could result in him developing serious eating/food issues. He sounds fine to me!
Good luck!!
My son is 6 yo and the same weight as yours. Super skinny. He just keeps sprouting in height and doesn't get a chance to fill out. If your son is continuing to grow in height, then I wouldn't worry. I have started offering my son hearty snacks more often - sandwiches, nuts and dried fruits, higher fat yogurt, even eggs. I think it's great that your son loves beans - what a healthy food (mine loves snacking on chickpeas). Nuts are good for you and high in calories - so try experimenting with walnuts, cashews, pistachios, pecans. They are really yummy with dried fruits and even some chocolate chips. My son really responds to the fact that certain foods make him super strong (nuts, vegetables, beans, etc.). So I focus on that rather than weight issues.
Ped not worried, so I would not. He is active and healthy. Seems to eat a
decent diet. Just keep offering high calorie foods, if it makes you feel better. Butter on veggies etc. Not all kids are big.
I think you are over thinking this. As the mom of a very picky eater, your child has an amazing variety of foods in his diet. Boys are often interested in playing. If this concerns you, you could give him the full cat variety of these foods, but if he is stayin steady on the growth chart, I think this is just how he is built. It had nothing to do with how he was fed when he was a baby.
Hi, C.:
It sounds like you are blaming yourself because he is underweight!
Have you seen how many children are overweight these days.
Be glad he is underweight right now.
Focus on something other than his weight.
Good luck.
D.
