High Calorie Diet

My daughter was the same way, my pediatrician said I could add olive oil to her food since that is a good fat but that it didn't really matter so long as she was meeting all of her developmental milestones and happy.

I would'nt really worry about it all that much as long as she is eating enough than you know she is not starving. she has a great metabolisim. My son eats everything in site and he is a year and only weighs about 19 lbs and is very healthy.

I would watch the fries and doughnuts - it's going to be SO hard to break that habit, and while they're full of fat, they aren't full of nutrition.

If she eats bakes potatoes (or mashed) you can add soy milk or even some soy powder, and some sour cream (if she likes the taste) to them.

I make "power pancakes" for my son - use any whole wheat pancake recipe, or use a mix of whole wheat and soy flours, add ground flax seed (healthy fat, substitutes for some of the butter, though not all), wheat germ, oatmeal, eggs, and soy milk fortified with soy powder. I throw in blueberries or bananas, whatever I have - if your daughter will eat those, great. If not, leave them out and make the pancakes plain. I make a huge batch, then freeze them between layers of waxed paper, and they defrost great as I need them. I just heat them in the toaster oven, put on some maple syrup and whipped cream, and he's thrilled.

I also make super French toast with whole grain bread - the kind with holes absorbs more of the batter so there's more protein going in there. I use Stop & Shop Nature's Promise Flax and Grain, but you can use anything you like. Make a batter out of eggs and soy milk (or whole milk if you prefer) and then add protein powder like Genisoy (much more protein than rice powder) and let the bread soak, absorbing as much as possible. Again, I cook these up in the pan, layer them between pieces of waxed paper, freeze and serve them up as needed.

Try apples dipped in peanut butter. My son dips carrots in peanut butter - weird, but he likes it! If your little one likes to dip, try any dip with sour cream - spinach, veggie, anything she likes. Dip carrots (if she can chew them up) or green pepper strips, whole grain crackers, anything.

I make chicken nuggets with regular chicken breasts or tenderloins, cut up into nuggets. I dip in egg and then in whole wheat bread crumbs or panko crumbs, or a mix including wheat germ and ground flax seed, even sesame seeds. I dip twice if necessary to cover them. Then I fry them in olive oil or canola oil - those are healthy fats. Sometimes I just brown them in the oil, then finish them in the oven. But if your case, you probably want even more fat.

Instead of fries, try potato pancakes - you can use a mix of white potatoes and sweet potatoes. I keep the skins on the white potatoes - I use russet potatoes. Grate them in the food processor, add some kosher salt (and some onion if you want), add matza meal (found at any grocery store with the kosher foods - I use whole wheat but you can use regular). Drain in a colander to get rid of the excess liquid. Add eggs so they hold together, form patties, and fry in olive oil. I use a 1/4 cup measuring cup, scoop, press down, and invert into the oil. Fry until crispy, turn, repeat. Finish in oven if you want. Serve with applesauce or sour cream for dipping. You can also find mixes inn the kosher food aisle - try mixing one regular and one sweet potato.

My son likes an egg/muffin sandwich. Toast a whole wheat muffin, butter it if you like since she needs the fat. I cook up some turkey bacon, break up a strip and put it on the cut muffin. I pour an egg into the skillet, but don't scramble it, and when it's almost set, I put some cheese into the center, fold the edges toward the center to enclose the cheese and melt it, forming a little round or square "envelope" - flip if necessary, then put it on the muffin and put the top on the muffin. You can also put a slice of cheese on the muffin and just put the plain egg on top. I find that, if I fold the eges of the egg over, sort of like making an omelet, there aren't as many pieces falling out as there would be if I scrambled it. But scrambling can work fine too, especially for the one year old. Watching the sandwich be "built" is fun for the 3 year old though, and he can probably get his mouth around it. As the kids tastes grow, you can add some defrosted frozen spinach to the egg - my son thought it was parsley for years!

In addition to peanut butter, you can try other nut butters like cashew butter. Just breaks up the routine more.

Good luck - hope you get lots of great ideas! Hope this helps you build good eating habits with your kids and helps your little one gain weight.

I also know of a fabulous kids nutritional product - if you're interested, let me know.

As a stay at home dad of three 5yo and twin 3yo's I had the same problem with our twin daughter. she weighed only 20lbs at 2 years and went from the 25th to below the charts. Our pediatrician set us up with a nutritionist who recommended some higher calorie healthier snacks such as cashews, almonds, and peanut butter, but only try one at a time due to allergies. He also kept her on whole milk and had us add suppliments such as flax seed to other snacks and meals as well as calorie boost powder. We also chose to give her more cheeses, yogurt and higher protein products such as chicken. She did only weigh 24 lbs at 3yo but has recently shot up to 28lbs at 3.5yo. My best advice would be to find things that the child likes and stay away from the processed and fried food as these are hollow calories that are easily burned off in a 18 month olds active like. You are not alone and when she is ready she will eat and gain if you are consistent. All babies have varying metabolisms and in todays day and age with childhood obesity out of control try not to obsess over the issue as you are obviously an aware and concerned parent. Take care.
T.

Hi L. - My son was very small for a long time also. He has texture issues with food (getting better tho). We actually consulted with a dietician, One of the reccomendations was Pediasure, it has a very high calorie count. They put him on 5 cans a day as they wanted him to have 1200-1500 calories a day. It worked wonders! He actually started to get chubby fingers. Unfortunately, due to his taste/texture issues, he put the drink down one day and refused to take any more. Another good source is Carnation Instant Breakfast mixes. There is also a powder that can be added to foods for xtra cals., can't remember what it's called but if you consult with a dietician they should be able to tell you. Other than that, get used to reading food labels. Sometimes you can do an online search for things - I also had to find a high iron content bread for my son - Wonder Bread Wheat is great. Good Luck

I am also the mother of peanut/stringbean, but if there has been a drop off in percentile, all of a sudden- there has to be further investigation. Of particular concern would be to rule out causes like Type 1 diabetes (can happen after an infection for some), anemia, thyroid and absorption problems. I would request some tests-especially for serum glucose and insulin, and anemia profile including B12 test. Does she get diarrhea, stomach upsets change in general mood or energy? If they haven't asked these ?'s and run these tests already- I'd definitely consult with a new doctor.

If it then becomes only a question of calories, I agree about the french fries and doughnuts- the pediatrician actually recommends this?? Healthy high calorie options include: homemade cream-based soups, avocadoes, nuts and nut butters, legumes, organic butter-enhanced meals, oatmeal made with rolled oats, with raisins/maple syrup/almonds. Don't go for the fried and sugary empty calories- they can cause more harm than good, especially for the little ones!

I almost forgot- try Ezekiel bread in fridge case/ health food section of grocery store. This bread is awesome, high protein, fiber and calorie, but it is made strictly with whole, sprouted grains and no flour. Same with manna bread.

My daughter is in the 5th percentile. As long as she isnt sick - you should be ok. Keep doing what your doing. I received that high calorie list at one point as well - then a few weeks later we figured out my daughter has a milk allergy. Nice, huh? Needless to say - I didnt do anything on that list, stopped giving her cow milk and gave her soy milk and she gained 3 lbs. (My daughter weighed 18 lbs at 12mos and now at 18 mos she weighs 22 lbs). Sometoimes it just takes a little while for them to catch up to the "norm" of what their weight should be. But I wouldnt give my kid that high calorie stuff unless absolutely necessary because - why start a bad habit?

Avocadoes are high in calories - does she like them? Maybe some guacamole? you can add flaxseed oil to her milk. You can make milkshakes - bananas, milk, flaxseed oil and some cocoa powder. Yogurt and granola (I think Whole foods has some nut free granola). Toast with butter and jam is another one. Just use organic butter and real fruit for the jam and it is far healthier.
HTH!

Have you thought about food allergies? Is she dropping weight because she's not absorbing the nutrition properly? Wheat and dairy allergies can cause this to happen and it seems like she eats alot of both. I only ask because this is what happened with my son when we discovered he was allergic to dairy. Once I took dairy out of his diet he started gaining weight again. He's still (at 15) a bean pole but he's also very active so I don't worry so much.

Hi. Does she maybe have an underlying allergy to something. My 16 month was very skinny around 5% for his weight then around 1 yr we found out he had dairy and soy allergies and celiac disease. Celiac does a lot of damage to the digestive system so you can't properly absord food. Sometimes celiac's only symptom thats noticeable is poor weight gain. you should check out the website celiac.org and see if anything else pertains to your daughter.

wow. both of my girl were tiny things when they were that age. they never sit still! they burn everything off in a heartbeat, not to mention theyre picky! My 2 1/2 year old is only about 25/26 lbs! my pedi. has never even mentioned that I should fatten my kids up. it surprising to me. i would think its just her body style, and as long as shes eating balanced meals, healthy snacks and of course the normal junk stuff for kids that age, she would be ok...but then again...im not an MD so... good luck!

HI L.!
My daughter was/is very small. She is 6 1/2 and only weighs 35lbs. She has always been around the 5% for height and never on the chart for weight. My pedi also gave us some high calorie recipes. Some she liked some she didn't. She eats quite a lot and certainly has a sweet tooth. (After she eats a healthy dinner or lunch I'll let her have a high calorie dessert). My pedi also sent us to an endocrinologist because at 21 months she only weighed 18lbs! Some testes were done, and all came back normal. She is just tiny. I was and still am relatively tiny compared to others so it runs in the family. As long as your daughter is developing normally and there seem to be no other issues I think you should relax. Being small is not the worst thing in the world and it'll be nice for her when she is older and doesn't have to watch her weight. I would just make sure that she does eat healthy foods because I know people in my family are always trying to give my daughter high calorie (non-healthy) foods to "fatten" her up. The most important thing is her health, if she's healthy then she will be fine.

Krissey

Hi...I had the same problem with my 19 month old son. He now weighs in at 21 lbs.(putting him in the 5% and 50% for height). They were originally concerned because he dropped from 50% to 0% at one point. He had to go through all these blood tests. The pediatrician recommended the same thing, but we're concerned about high cholesterol that runs in the family. So, we got a second opinion. This pediatrician said that if our son was healthly we don't have anything to worry about. So, I would get a second opinion before loading her up with lots of junk!

Hi L.,
My 3 1/2 yr. old son is pretty thin too (he weighs only 25 lbs!), and I worry ALL the time, but he's healthy and active and usually a pretty good eater, which is what I try to remember when I look at him and start comparing him to his peers (i know, bad idea, sometimes just can't help it!) I can only encourage you to stick to feeding your daughter healthy food and try not to start a bad habit of feeding her fattening junk food (with the way obesity is taking over schools, it's too easy for any child to become obese and start a life-long battle with that!). Please stay away from the doughnuts and fried foods! Think good fats (avocado, olive oil, etc) and complex carbs (potato, pasta, multi-grains). As long as she is healthy and active, you have nothing to worry about!

Hi L.,
My son is a string bean as well - and did drop a bit in his weight percentage at 18 months. Luckily he is a great milk drinker - so the whole milk kept him going. I started adding cheese and peanutbutter to bagels, crackers, basically anything. Trader Joe's has some great frozen meals that are healthy yet high in calories and protein. Since he is picky, I like to use frozen foods at times because I can just take out a small amount at a time without a ton of waste.
Since your daughter is tall you know that she is growing and getting what she needs.Try not to stress about the food - you can't force them to eat and you don't want to make food a battleground. As my Pediatrician said, "all you can do is present the food - they decide how much they eat". Good luck - you aren't alone!!
:)
J.

My son was put on medication that lowered his appetite. Last year during the summer, for lunch at camp he got fruit, carnation instant breakfast milk (for the extra calories) and a Special K high protein bar (not the diet bars).
He was able to keep his weight even.
Also after a healthy dinner, we let him have as much dessert as he would like, that is also usually high in calories (ice cream, etc.). However, I hope that we are not setting him up for bad food habits for the future (eating lots at night, but with his meds that is when he is hungriest)
Good luck.

ask your pediatrician for a referral to a pediatric GI specialist for a failure to thrive evaluation. That is what they are experts in and would have more healthy ideas than fried food. They will also assess your daughter to make sure that there is not a medical reason for her poor weight gain that requires treatment. It is better not to wait if you think that she is a good eater. There are some at children's hospital in Boston.

Hi L.,

My son was born at 3-lbs 14OZ. He is now 11 months old and is still on 30 calorie formula. We make the formula with increased calories by using Enfamil ready to use mixed with Enfamil powder then mixed with DuoCal powder. The Duocal is a powder that you add to either liquid or solids to increase calories. You should ask your doctor about it. My son now weighs 18-lbs 3OZ. They are now thinking of taking him off formula and putting him on Pediasure. I think another calorie increase powder is Beneprotein. It does almost the same thing as the Ducocal.

I hope this helps and good luck!!

K.

Hi L.
I just suggested this web site to another mom and it has a section of recipes in it for kids with cystic fibrosis who need a higher calorie diet and it probably has some good recipes in it that you could use for your daughter. It is www.kidshealth.org

My 8 year old was like this when he was that age. He ate well all the time, but one visit, just fell off the growth curve. He continued to grow, both in weight and height, but just under the the curve. When I asked about pediasure, my pediatrician, who was also a nutritionist, said that I should put cream in his milk instead. I would do about 1/8-1/4 of the cup cream, and the rest milk. It was cheaper then pediasure and had what he needed: fat, calcium, calories.

Avocadoes and black olives are also high in fats. I had a little girl in day care once who was underweight and her mother would add oil to her peanut butter as well. I thought that was going over the top, but peanut butter is another good high fat food.

Don't worry about this too much. As long as she continues to put on weight and grows, you don't have much to worry about.

Seriously - I could have written the SAME QUESTION (and I have the same name!)!!!! My little peanutpie is 2 and she's going to see a Endocrinologist at the end of Sept. b/c she's only a whopping 18 lbs. I am interested to hear about your "supermilk" - are you just adding powered milk? I have tried the ENSURE, etc. she just doesn't LOVE it, I've tried the powered milk on EVERYTHING . . . I don't know I just think she's going to be small (I'm NOT a giant either). GOOD LUCK with your little one!!! LM

I feel for you. I doesn't make you feel good when your doctor is concerned about weight - when your child drops in percentiles - even if you know in your gut that they are fine. We have had similar concerns raised with our boys (though due, I think, to picky eating stage). One snack that I found was great to put on weight is what we call honey milk balls. We make them with IM Healthy brand soynut butter because we are dealing with nut allergies, but they could be made with peanut butter if that more suits your family. They are good because they travel well, are easy to throw in the bag, are healthy and I find my sons will eat them at random times which helps to add weight to them. They are:

Honey Milk Balls -
1C old fashioned oats
1 packet of dry milk powder (the package says it is sufficient to make 1 quart of milk) (or 1C if you have a box instead of packets)
1/2 C honey
1/2 C soynut butter

Place oats in food processor. Grind finely. Add the dry milk powder, the honey and the soynut butter, process until it is all mixed together and begins to ball up like dough. Roll into small balls (they are rich so make them small). I keep the main stash in the refrigerator and tote some around in my diaper bag and/or lunch pail as snacks.

Hi L.,
My daughter had a large hole in her heart at birth. That along with a double hernia repair at 3 months put her in (the upper ;-) 2% for weight and classified with failure to thrive. We were given pediasure and policose. They were added to everything we made. Her favorite was pancakes made with them in silver dollar size. I would substitute pediasure for anything that called for milk and policose was added to everything since it is a high calorie powder. She continued to be very thin until she had open heart surgery at 5. Now she is a healthy 16 year old.

Is there anything medical that would be causing the lack of weight gain? Were you or her father very thin at that age? Did she double her weight at 6 mo and triple at a year. My daughter barely made those milestones. Is she still developing normally, hitting all the marks? Your pediatrician can refer her for testing due to failure to thrive to make sure she is. Also see is there is a nutritionist in the practice or contact your local WIC office and talk to their nutritionist for food recommendations.

Good luck.
D. C

Hi L.,

Sounds like my daughter - though I called her my lollipop :)My 4.5 year old daughter was failure to thrive (FTT) from about 6 months to 2 years when we finally discovered she had an anatomical problem in her intestines that required surgery. That aside, I'd like to echo a few of the suggestions below:

* avocados and bananas are high calorie and healthy. Coconut milk and peanut butter are as well and offer other healthy nutrients.
* Add butter or oil to anything that it makes sense to (oatmeal, pasta, etc)
* There are calorie enhancers that can be added to foods. That's a quicky solution.
* Pediasure and carnation instant breakfast are also good substitutes for milk for drinks during the day. They are high calorie and high vitamin. Pediasure is meant to substitute for a meal. Beware of a resulting sweet tooth. My daughter still asks for "sweet milk" :)

Absolutely see if you can get a referral to a pediatric GI specialist. They have far more experience and expertise in FTT issues than peds. If there is an underlying problem, high calorie foods will only be a band aide and you may find other issues down the line. Google FTT and you will find resources.

Good luck!!

~Liza
Full-time working, single mom of 4.5 year old girl.

Hi L.: I have not been through this myself, but wanted to respond to you because I think you are really right to not want to feed your child junk food. Just because she needs calories, does not mean the pedi should be advising french fries and donuts. I think your daughter can eat a wholesome and nutritious high calorie diet. It may be worth consulting a nutritionist if you feel you need better advice.
Good Luck!

After I read your post I went back and checked my daughter's baby book to see what her weight was at 18 months. She weighed 19.8 lbs at her 18 month checkup. My doctor was unconcerned since she was beyond where the average 18 month old is developmentally- she spoke clearly and articulately and was above average for her gross motor and fine motor skills. All my doctor said was that I should be thankful she was small since I have to carry her around all the time! He was completely unconcerned and we didn't worry.
She is now 3.5 years old and weighs almost 28 pounds. She's bright and very active and has always eaten very healthy food- in fact she prefers broccoli to chocolate- weird kid!
We think she is just going to be a petite person and we don't worry.

If you are concerned about the weight- I can't imagine the high calorie foods would hurt her. But you might want to get a second opinion. If she's just a tiny girl- and you start bulking her up it might set her up for weight issues later.
Good luck, And I hope our story helps!
-S.

I was a very tiny child, well below average. I am still underweight and I am only 5'2" (and pregnant), in the country I come from I would be considered normal for my age, but not in the US (the rest of the world has different standards, but US always comes up with their own for everything). I can't believe a doctor would give advice on feeding your child junk food. I would rather my child be healthy and underweight, than feed her junk that is completely nutritionally void and will cause bigger health problems. One of the things I would suggest that helped me when I was a child is involving her in calm activities that don't involve burning a lot of calories - reading (when she is old enough to read on her own), puzzles (age appropriate of course), drawing.

Feed her only whole milk products and preferably organic (without antibiotics and hormones), if you have a Trader Joe's nearby, they have a great selection. This includes, cheeses, yogurts, butter, and sour cream all made with whole milk. When I go to visit to my country I always gain weight there (even though gaining is rare for me) because all the food is real and has natural fats, unlike most store bought processed foods in the US, and they eat a lot of potatoes there (not fried) with everything because it is the cheapest food. You got a lot of other great advice here too...

My daughter had a similar problem, but she was not a good eater. I came up with my own crazy recipes for her since she would really only drink. No one was concerned about her lack of growth or weight gain, but I was, and the doctor did say to add calories to what she was eating. So, I added cream to everything. I also used a lot of butter. My DD's was more of an eating problem, but you can add a lot of calories if your daughter actually eats. Oil, cream, and butter are great for adding calories. My daughter finally started eating a month ago and is up to 25 lbs at 28 months. Just hang in there. My feeling is high calorie "junk food" is OK if it's gets you where you need to be. Good luck.

i hear ya!! my son dropped off his curve (not even on the charts anymore for weight)at about 18 mths...he is sooo active. the things i've tried ....avacado is a big hit!, whole milk yogurt, adding ground flaxseed to oatmeal (my son no longer eats that:( ) eggs (scrambled w/ whole fat cheese), i add carnation instant breakfast to his milk someimes (he's not a huge fan of any flavored milk, but its' worth a try).
we have our weight check next month....good luck to you!
L.