Too Thin to Carry a Baby?

I would think that the underlying cause for what's making someone "too thin" would really be the cause for miscarriage. People deemed too thin can be perfectly healthy and getting enough nutrition. And frankly, whether someone is too thin or not is relative and in the eye of the beholder.

What I would suggest to her, if she asks, is to get genetic counseling although they may have already had that done. It could be secondary infertility caused by any number of problems.

You can be too thin. You can have thyroid issues causing both problems.
It's best not to assume. Adoption is a good answer.

If the third world shows us anything it's that pregnancy is certainly possible even if you're malnourished.

Common miscarriage reasons:
Chromosomal Abnormalities
Uterine Abnormalities and Incompetent Cervixes
Immunologic Disorders
Untreated Illnesses Such as Thyroid Problems (Both Hyper- and Hypo-Thyroidism) and Uncontrolled Diabetes
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)
Bacterial Infections
Lifestyle (Cigarettes, Alcohol, Drugs, Environmental Toxins)

She needs to work with a fertility specialist in order to determine what her issues are and how to overcome them.
In the mean time, don't try to guess what her issues might be.

I'm not a doctor, but babies are born to addicted crack whores who would rather spend their only $20 on drugs rather than food or prenatal vitamins, kwim? As B pointed out babies are born in third world countries where food insecurity is huge. It's always been my understanding that the baby gets first "dibs" on nourishment, vitamins, etc. enutero. And babies are tough.
Hopefully, she is discussing her multiple miscarriages with a good OB.
She could have a health problem you (or she!) doesn't know about.
I hope they're looking into it at this point.

I was 89 pounds with my first. She was born 1 day late, 7'4. I had her in less than 2 hours, and no epidural. She's a very healthy 23 yr old right now.

I didn't know a good friend of mine was bulimic for many years into our friendship. She is soooo extremely eye dropping thin and has had 4 very successful pregnancies.

You say she's a good friend, but don't even know her age. So it's safe to assume you don't know if she has or has had some type of 'problem'. She may be only telling you what she wants you to know about her health.

Nope, not at all. I've known plenty of thin, VERY thin women who had healthy babies, including my aunt who only gained 18 pounds with her full term daughter.
Unless she IS anorexic or otherwise malnourished, weight really has nothing to do with it.

Her OB should be ordering a battery of blood work to determine why she has suffered multiple miscarriages. Believe it or not one of the leading causes of miscarriage is blood clotting disorders.

I myself have a blood clotting disorder. We are very blessed to have two healthy baby girls but we've also suffered multiple miscarriages before and in between our girls.

If her OB has not discussed testing with her after multiple losses she should consider consulting another OB.

Peace and Blessings,
Mom2M&Ms

I dont think a person is too young especially in their late 20's.. you're body naturally will adapt to the changes. However proper nutrition is definately a key when you're that thin... just my opinion.

She might have an endocrine or metabolic problem that affects her fertility as well as her weight. I.e., the two could be linked but not necessarily causal.

I have friends like that.
Size 00 clothing, super skinny, very skinny and naturally... skinny.
They are healthy and have no health issues.
Each of the women I know like that, have had children and more than one.
And no miscarriages and their pregnancies were normal and their children were born, perfectly fine and healthy.

I myself, was barely even 100 pounds when I had my first pregnancy and I was real skinny.
Both my kids were born, at over 8 pounds each. And perfectly healthy.

I can tell you that I was 94 lbs when I got pregnant with my son. I am also short but was between a size 1 & 3 at the time. Many people considered me to be extremely thin but I was healthy just the same. My baby boy was born very healthy and just barely shy of 8 lbs (the one mid-wife swore I'd be lucky if he weighed 6lbs but I think she had issue with small-build people as she was a large woman and ALL the others seemed to think all was fine).

If she is malnourished, that could be a problem but I don't think being thin is the problem.

I wouldn't think it's related if she eats well and is just naturally thin. My friend is 5'4" and weighed around 97 lbs before getting pregnant. She eats like a horse. She had two babies, 22 months apart, without any trouble. She also got back down to about 100 lbs post baby.

I know a woman who IS anorexic and is an absolute skeleton. She had several miscarriages and then had 4 healthy babies. The last pregnancy was with twins and they were each over 5 lbs. So, my guess would be that thinness may be part to do with the miscarriages, but she still could get pregnant and carry to full term.

Two of my friends weigh under 100 lbs and have had multiple successful pregnancies.
When I worked abroad (East Africa and India), I regularly saw very thin women who were heavily pregnant or had just given birth.
I've lost weight during pregnancies and trust me, the babies got what they needed.
Of course people can be underweight as well as overweight, but if she is menstruating, she has enough body fat to support a pregnancy.

My mother was the thinnest person on earth that I could think of, even after babies. she was pregnant thirteen times I believe, lost three and three died after birth. This was in the fifties and early sixties. So there are, (yes still) six of us alive and well. I myself was premature two months. It is quite possible that this woman might be thin and malnourished, or other factors that make her thin. If she is undergoing any other disorders we don't know. As for being actually thin and that taking the blame I don't think so. Good question though! I would love to hear what someone in the medical field thinks. I just realized my math doesn't look right, my mother had twins who died very soon after birth. And so people don't worry or feel scared, that was in the early sixties so there are still a lot of medical things that came along to help babies survive even difficult births.

It is possible. I am petite but was under 100lbs when I started to try for a baby. I started eating whole milk (something I'd read somewhere) and gained a few pounds. I think it's entirely possible that my body said, "Nope!" til I weighed more and was able to carry a child. Very very thin people do get pregnant, yes. But if she is that tiny, it's something she needs to discuss with her OB/GYN. She may be malnourished as well as just being really thin. (In my case, I was naturally thin and also power walked a mile or more daily chasing trains on my commute.)

She may have other factors, too. If she hasn't seen an RE or had a workup to find out the cause of her miscarriages, she should. There is a condition women can get where they cannot carry a child to term. I forget what it's called, but my friend had 2 healthy babies and then lost three in the second trimester. They finally figured it out, treated her, and she had another daughter. It only happens to women after they've had a child or two.

She really needs to speak to her OB about any concerns. I had a friend who thought I was too thin to carry my 1st pregnancy (I was a size 00 at the time) and constantly brought up that it was not healthy for me or my baby. That caused me A LOT of stress as I worried about it, until I talked to my OB and she assured me I was healthy and there were no issues with my weight.

My sister lost twins due to the size of her frame. She just wasn't big enough to support their weight. Talk about a crushing blow.

I suggest you find a way to find out if she's mentally ill, an eating disorder could be killing her. If you do find out she's not eating healthy or that the doc says she needs to eat more then perhaps you can do some intervention and invite her over to eat and share recipes.

A fetus needs a healthy environment and it may be that she's so depressed she's stopped caring for herself.

Then there's also the possibility she's just thin. There are some that are painfully aware of how thin they are but eat a LOT every day. She may not be able to gain weight.

If she is healthy and thin, then her weight shouldn't matter. I am 5' 2" and 95lbs. I conceived all 3 of my kids the first time I tried. I carried three babies to term.

What does herr dr say? It's probably her thryoid,food/gluten intolerance and the new crazy is Lyme disease causing miscarriages and how every Lyme disease test is always negative. Can't go by CDC have to order private testing through a company called Igenix and a clinical diagnosis. The sad part is she's most likely passing on to fetus who is dying because of Lyme and coinfection bacteria. This happened to me and my kids. They r very sick now and that's how we found out.

I don't think weight has anything to do with it. My husbands cousin is is skin and bones. you can see her ribs when she is in her bathing suit! She was able to get pregnant and had a healthy boy.

Well, if a person is too underweight, she won't ovulate. But I've never heard of a person being healthy enough to ovulate, but too underweight to carry a pregnancy.