Weight Gain Recipes

I am in almost the same boat as you are. I have a 4 1/2 yr old who only weighs in about 30 lbs. She eats everything that you give her and more. Sometimes I wonder where she puts it. The peds have given us a hard time since she was 18 months about her weight. I finally gave in and allowed them to do blood work to make sure that there wasn't a medical reason behind her being so small....nothing. So now I just take what the peds say about her weight with a grain of salt. I know that she is eating and like one of the other moms said, she is continuing on her own little curve on the growth chart, so I am not to worried. Your girls may just be petite. I wouldn't want them to put on extra weight just so the doc would lay off, especially if it was just chubby weight. Know that you are doing everything in their best interest, they are eating and eating healthy, and let nature take it's course for a while. Good luck and congrats on the girls.

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my boyfriend is a personal trainer and says that whey protein is ok for kids and will help with their muscular development and also suggests the whole milk. He makes us protein shakes all the time with frozen fruit. Sometimes he uses the choco protein with peanut butter in milk. Soooo good!

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We did the CIB in 10 oz. whole milk. It had the same sugar values as Enfamil Next Step Formula, so we didn't see a problem with too much sugar. It worked great.

Also, Parenting magazine, I think February issue had a short little article about this. My doctor just let me have the magazine. The only thing we have really implemented is adding dried fruit to cereals, smoothies, etc. Also, rolling fruit in crushed cereal. I didn't believe it, but our son eats the same amount of fruit even though the cereal is added, so it really adds up to extra sugars. We have found almost any cereal works. He also drinks whole milk almost exclusively for the calories, and we offer whole milk yogurt almost everyday for breakfast.

I, too, hesitated to add butter to everything, but with the above changes to his diet, he gained 5 percentage points. He eats fruits and veggies almost exclusively and virtually no meat, so high fat is out for him.

Congratulations on the otherwise healthy girls! For as small as they were, I'm glad they're healthy. You do have to keep in mind that some kids are always going to be small. Our specialist said she was pleased when our son had a 1 to 1 ratio height to weight and bases his health on that more than where he falls on the chart. Unfortunately, the Peds don't feel the same way. But then, our son sees a lot of specialists, so I tend to go with their thoughts. GL

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If they are eating, I wouldn't worry to much about it. I have a daughter the same age who i cant get to eat really at all. If you know they are eating healthy and regularly thats all that really matters. Kylee, my daughter, only eats about 4 foods. I have tried EVERYTHING and have resorted to chocolate covered granola bars, for the benefit of the gronola. THe only other things she eats carrorts, french fries, almonds and junk food. Your girls are eating healthy and regularly. Thats something to be proud of. Doctors are smart, but they dont always know best. You know you kids and how they are doing better than anyone. My little brother was two months premature, and he didnt catch up in weight til he was 11 and he ate everything in sight! Your doing just great and dont let anyne tell you otherwise! SOme kids are just skinny.

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My son was full-term but has always been at the 3rd to 5th percentile. Our ped has been happy as long as he is gaining consistently and staying in that range. A couple of things we have done: Stay on whole milk. Add malted milk and/or Nestle Quik/Ovaltine to the milk. There are some lower sugar versions out there now. Also, we kept juice to a minimum ... to try to keep his appetite up. Cheese and peanutbutter were two other things our ped suggested. PB on apples or celery works for us sometimes. Finally, as long as he is growing, healthy and hitting his other milestones, I've really stopped worrying. When my mom visits she trys to feed him constantly and I just won't do that. He eats when he is hungry. Hang in there.

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