Height and Weight Concerns for 3 Yrs and 8 Months Girl

My son is 4 and only weighs 37 some pounds too. (born 7.9, 20 lbs by 9 months and very tall) He has his good and bad days of eating too and they say a child will not starve themselves and will eat when hungry.

Try cutting back on liquids. They could be filling her up and taking the place of food. Just stop the bottle. Period!! At 3, she should be using sippy cups and starting to learn how to drink water out of a regular cup. Doesn't matter if she asks for it, you are the parent so you are the one in control if she gets it. So what if she throws a fit, they'll be short lived.

What is she like on her growth curve? Is it a nice cure without a lot of ups and down? If so, then don't stress it either. As long as she is following a good curve, she is probably fine.

S.

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Regardless whether she is small for her size, and whether she will be small based on her genetics, I second the several people who said to limit the milk to only at meal times (at the table during breakfast/lunch/dinner and not before the meal) and to throw away the bottles. Using a bottle after the baby turns 1 year has been shown to cause problems with the teeth (orthodontic problems). Too much milk can affect the bodies absorption of other nutrients, too, and will definitely lead the child feeling too full to want to eat much. It can (as I saw with my one nephew) cause cavitities if the child is allowed to sip on juice/milk for most of the day.

Give her a cup or sippy cup of water, which she can have all day long access to. If you think it will help, explain to her what you're going to do, and why, and maybe get her to go with you to pick out a couple of sippy cups that she likes and tell her that these are her special sippy cups for water that she can pick out and use all day. You can even go so far as to let her fill it with ice water (my LO loves ice and loves ice water; we're lucky enough to have an ice maker in the freezer).

I'm sure that she will be really, really upset. But after a few days, if you stay strong and just ignore it as much as possible, she'll get over it.

You might check out this short, comprehensive article on the nutritional needs for preschoolers:
http://www.nncc.org/Nutrition/nutrition.pres.html

Good luck!

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If she has always been in a lower percentile and is still in that same percentile, then she is being her normal petite self. Our pedi has said that when they get concerned is when the kids vary from their normal track on the growth charts. My older daughter loved her bottle. She was also three. I told her one day that she could only have water in the bottle. So I would offer her milk in a cup or water in the bottle. After a few days of that, she would sometimes pick the cup and sometimes pick the bottle. Then I told her that we needed to send the bottles to the babies, so the bottle fairy was going to come and pick them up. We put the bottles in a bag and left them out for the fairy. The fairy came and took the bottles and left a toy instead. And that was that for the bottles. My younger daughter is two, and I am going to do the same thing for her next week, then we are going to go shopping for sippy cups. She can already kind of take or leave the bottle, but it becomes a security device. Our two year old doesn't seem to eat a whole lot either, but they have small stomachs and tend to take in their nutrition over days, not hours. If you notice that she eats good some days and seems to eat nothing others, that is probably normal. As long as she continues to grow according to her trends, she is fine.

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first things first, no bottle. that will fill her temporarily. she should drink milk from the cup.
take all the bottles from the house, put in plastic bag, ask your husband to drive them to a non-accessible trash place. that way, YOU cannot give in. so when she asks for the bottle, YOU really don't have them, therefore cannot give in. she will struggle for a while but she will be fine and start drinking the way she's supposed to. you also know her teeth will be awful from the bottle.
second, her weight is fine. my kids are 6 and weigh 40 lbs and are 48 inches tall. our ped. is happy with their weight and height. my twins were the same size as yours when born. they're not petite. and i don't want to force feed. they eat what is on their plates, they just don't eat much. they get a very balanced diet, and sugars are well not in our diet. yes they can have it no i don't fill my house with junk.

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My daughter isn't much bigger. Shes 40 inches and 32 lbs. She has days where she eats alot and then days where she doesn't eat much. My doctor told me she was ok and to just try to get her to eat but don't force her. She loves all kinds of liquids. I have to control the amount of liquids she takes in. Does she like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches?

With the bottle tell her you gave them to Santa to give to babies who needs them. Tell her Santa knows she isn't a baby anymore and he would like to give her bottles to the babies and he will leave big girl toys for her on Christmas for being such a big girl. I use Santa quit a bit. Good luck.

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Hello! My son is a similar example. He birth weight was about 6 pounds and his weight has always been a concern for us. We saw an endocrinologist and GI when he was about 2-2.5 y.o. His weight was also closely monitored by his pediatrician. My son also LOVES milk, and could live on milk and bread solely rejecting all other foods. The GI's advice was to reduce milk significantly, but at that point I thought it would be impossible.
About a year later (3.6 y.o.) we had to put him on dairy-free and gluten-free diet because of behavior issues. He could not have ANY milk at all. And surprisingly he started eating more and more of other foods. He is now 6 y.o., and his weight and height are in 5-10 percentile. He is smaller than his peers but his pediatrician says that he follows his growth curve and is perfectly fine. And I'm not worried about it anymore.
My advice -- be more aggressive about restricting milk. Maybe don't even have it in the house. Try soy, almond, or rice milk. They are nutritious, but my son didn't take them as much as he would drink cow's milk leaving more space for other foods.

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Milk can make a child feel full and reduce their food intake. Water is what you drink when you are thirsty. Milk is what you drink after a meal to "wash it down".

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My 3, almost 4 year old daughter is exactly the same height and weight. She is a little on the smaller side, but I've never worried about it. Good luck and I hope you get some helpful comments

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Get rid of bottle, if she asks say that she is a big girl and can drink from a cup. You are the parent just because they ask does not mean they get it. Secondly milk will fill up a child so if you want them to eat more give less to drink and tell them they can have more to drink once their food is gone... or what I do is milk at snack time and we do water with meals, water is less filling BUT if you give a lot of it it will still fill them up before they eat. We do not force feed, daughter eats or she doesn't, that does mean that if she does not eat dinner no dessert but that is up to her. Some times she goes I am full, fine, I put the left over meal in the fridge and tell her if she is hungry before snack time/next meal she can eat what is left on her plate. Sometime she does, sometimes she doesn't.

If she is always consistent on the charts, in the same certain percentage range, then that is just the way she is. Is the pediatrician worried, or telling you she needs to grow/gain weight? IF you are really concern talk the pediatrician, maybe try different ways of feeding/drink stated above or what other moms have suggested, and see what happens. Usually kids stay in a certain percentage range when growing, example my daughter is always in the 50% for weight and 95% for height, has never changed +/- 2% in her 4 years.

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my daugher is 4 years and 6 months and weights 31 pounds.. she is 42 inches tall so she looks super skinny..

she is abou 75% for height and 20% for weight.

we feed her a normal diet..both her dad and I were skinny as kids.
(i went to kindergarden at 5 1/2 and weighed 35 pounds..)

some people are bigger soem people are smaller.. dont worry..

I would get rid ofthe bottle..not good for her teeth.. my daughter stopped the bottle at 2.

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My daughter has also always been on the low end of the growth chart. She is 7, yes 7, and weighs 35lbs. She was so low on the chart that the Dr wanted to go and see an Endrocronologist (SP?). These are highly specialized Dr.s and they wouldn't see me until we saw the Gastro Dr and he made the call. Long story short, the Gastro Dr said she was fine as far as height/weight.
When she was your daughter's age I had the biggest stuggles, with her, in order to get her to eat. She is much better now. My biggest problem was milk. She loved milk, she still does. I had to cut her down to one glass of milk a day (usually at breakfast) and that's hard for her because she does not like juice. Milk was filling her up and she wasn't eating meals like she should have been. I have also started giving her Carnation Instant Breakfast (mix it with milk) for breakfast. That put 5lbs on her last year. The Instant breakfasts were awesome because they have more nutrition than an egg, so I know she is getting what she needs. It also was great because mornings of school days were like pulling teeth to get her to eat before she walked out the door. My kids are super active and do not watch a ton of tv. I don't have to take away tv, they just are kids that actually "play" and even if they have the tv on, they are not watching it half the time. They are also active in outside activites. I think that keeps the weight off as well.

I agree with the other poster....get rid of the bottles. She is way too old to be having a bottle, it really is not good for her. Yes, you need to throw them out, just like you would if you were breaking a child from the pacifier. My oldest loved her bottle. I took it away at 1. The entire morning she would not drink a thing. Kept asking for her ba. I was really worried. I remember calling my husband at work and telling him that I was going to go to the store and buy her a bottle (we threw them out) if she didn't drink anything when she woke up. After she woke up from her nap, she was so thirsty, she downed 2 sippy cups in minutes. We never looked back. Stick to your guns...it's hard but it will be okay.

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I agree with what other moms have said about the milk. Try not even bringing it to the table until after dinner. That's what we do at our house. Other than that, I wouldn't worry too much about the weight thing.
My daughter has always been super skinny. She's five now and right at 40 inches, but just hover over 30 lbs. So, see? Your daughter's not so bad. <g>
But we've run ever test imaginable and the doctors decided she's just a skinny kid.
In terms of getting her to eat, try to involve her in cooking process. My daughter always eats best when she's helped me cook. I let her peel garlic or shred lettuce. Run the salad spinner or toss the salad. Sprinkle cheese on top of things. That sort of thing. My son is 2.5 and he does all those things too. Also, bring her with you to the grocery store and let her pick out the veggies for that week. All those things will make her feel invested in eating.

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My daughter will turn 5 in a few weeks. She is 36 pounds and about 40 inches tall. I just think she is a small child. Overall she is a good eater. She is active. She is healthy. I limit snacks and sweet treats as she has a tendency two want those over more healthy food - new trend for her. My husband recently expressed concern so I told him I would mention it to the ped at her wellness visit next month. I guess I have no real advice, just want to let you know I've got one on the low end of the chart who, I think, is doing fine.

first, throw away the bottles. 3 is way too old to be on a bottle. If she asks for one tell her now , she can have a straw but she's not a baby anymore and only babies drink out of bottles.
Milk is good for them especially if it's whole milk. Whole milk has more fat in it so that's what she needs to drink.
as for size she may always be small, my oldest was a big girl, over 8lbs at birth, but now at 8.5 yrs she's only 49 inches tall and 50lbs , which is small for her age, 20%. My son is a big boy, only 5lbs lighter and a few inches shorter than his sister but 3 yrs younger.
She will likely hit a growth spurt soon , but she might just be a petite girl.
Give her milk then tell her that if she drinks it all she has to finish her dinner or eat a certain portion before she can get some more milk.

It is possible to drink to much milk. It fills them up and they don't want food. Ask your doctor how much milk he recommends.
You can also make an appointment to talk about your concerns. doesn't have to wait until 4 yr check up.

I am an old fashion kind of girl. Bottles for me were never an issue. However, by 2 -2 1/2 they were gone. Had 4 children in four years so
there were always bottles around. However at almost 4 years old is
insane to have a bottle. Get rid of them once and for all now. If she
keeps drinking milk from a bottle, she will never eat. Do it now!

Cut back on the milk intake (haven't read through all the responses, but I think a few people said this already). Take away the bottles - make an event of it - just take them away. Just because your child asks for something, doesn't mean you have to give it to them. If she asked to play with sharp knives, you wouldn't give into that, right? Be strong & stick with it. good luck.

More than likely she is a small built person , has she always followed the same curve for height and weight or has she signifcantly dropped? If she has followed the same curve then this is just how she is. My daughter is also very lean and long , she is now 4 1/2 and weighs 36lb and is 42 inches tall. She also eats very little and picks at food , and seems to make so many excuses as to why she can't eat this or that.

You say your daughter still has a bottle , is that just for when she has milk or all day long? If it's just once/day then I would ride that out for now , but if several times then you need to start cutting it out , maybe have a chart for her where if she drops 1 use of the bottle in the day for a week then she get's a star and then a prize....something that is a novelty and that she really likes , for example some sparkly hair bands or something.

my twins are 3 yrs old the biggest 1 is 31inches and aboutt 30lbs they dont eat as much as i would like but theydo eat more in school when they are around other kids but @ night instead of milk i give pediasure, nutrament or ensure so that they are still getting what they missed when they refused dinner.

Hi Bdya
The general rule of thumb is 10 lbs & 10 inches / year of age therefore using that rule she sounds to be right on target. How is she doing when the MD measures her, same percentile on the growth chart? That is another indicator.
God bless you

My son just turned 3 and he is 38.5 inches and 27 pounds. I am so stressed about him not gaining any weight, that sometimes all I think about is what to make him that he'll eat. When I look at him all I see is skin and bones (ribs protruding). It makes me feel like I failed in keeping him well nourished. In general he's healthy and just doesn't want to eat. That means no vegetables, no fruit, no milk. He'd be fine with bread and juice all day which I'm doing my best to limit. When I give him dinner I just mix the veggies, meat and potato, rice or pasta together. For calcium I give him a probiotic yogurt shake (kefir), yogurt w/ fruit or mac & cheese. I also give him nordic fish oil and a multi-vitamin every day. I gave him the bottle at night because he was getting calcium and calories. I just took the bottle away in May, because I said enough is enough, he was getting way too old and I was worried about his teeth. It took a few days of him begging and crying (my heart broke) but it passed. If I waited longer it would have gotten harder. To this day he will not drink milk from any other container, and he used to love his milk. I replaced the bottle with water & juice 50/50 in a sippy cup. I'm slowly working towards water only. Good luck, I know first hand how difficult it is, so you're not alone. God Bless. Bernie

My first question would be...what does her doctor say? I would make sure she is healthy and there aren't any other issues going on (i.e. gastrointestinal, throat, ears etc). If all is well then I would take the bottle away cold turkey. It usually does get more difficult the older the child. If you stick with it, it will probably only take a week. My other question is does she snack a lot? If so cut down on snacks to midmorning and midafternoon, without milk but water. I would only give her milk for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Good luck

My 3 year old isn't much bigger then your daughter. He is 39 in and 30 lbs. He is just built like me he was born at 6 lbs which was much smaller then my oldest. If she has always been on the low side I wouldn't worry. The time to look into things is if she falls off her growth curve.

i have the same issues with my son who will be turning four next week. When he was born he was 7lbs 5ozs but then his growth slowed down. we actaully had to go in for weight checks since he wasnt gaining weight. He is happy, healthy and very energitic. He loves milk also so we try to limit his intake since milk can make him feel full. It is hard when he is crying for milk but we just offer him something dif. if its in between breakfast lunch or dinner. Per his Ped. he still drinks whole milk because of the extra fat. With my son if he eats breakfast he doesnt want lunch then will eat a little dinner. if he doesnt want much breakfast he eats lunch and might skip dinner. I dont force him to eat i dont want it to be an issue. So if he wants a snack i try to make sure its something healthy...fruits, whole grains, something that has value to it. Also we have started to use the carnation instant breakfast which has some protein, calcium and other things. Also he takes vitamins. I am on the smaller side of things so with him he just takes after me and the doctors say he is healty just going to be on the smaller side. As far as the bottle i would just take it away cold turkey its going to hard but she is to old for bottles. honestly as long as she is happy and healthy let it be.......so what if she happens to be on the smaller end of the chart....cont to offer her healthy choices for snacks and food dont force and she will come around. hope this helps

S.