100th percentile to 50th percentile...help please

Chantel - posted on 08/06/2009

Thanks. I feel better now. I'll just wait and see how it goes. She just doesn't seem interested in eating right now. She used to be such a good eater and now its a big struggle. Hopefully its just a phase.

Laura - posted on 08/06/2009

I can't tell you how to fatten her up, but maybe I can give you a little reassurance. My daughter is 16 months old. At her 15 month checkup, she was in the 25th percentile in height and the 10th percentile in weight. She currently weighs 19.7 lbs and is 29 1/2 inches tall. She was in the 50th percentile in weight at 6 months, and it has slowly decreased over a year. Our doctor didn't seem concerned at all. She is little, but her height and weight are somewhat proportionate--it would look more abnormal if one were in the 90th percentile and the other were in the 10th...

My daughter eats when she is hungry, which means some days she eats well and some days she doesn't eat so much. I still feed her all 3 meals and snacks occasionally as she needs them. She loves fruit, so she eats it often, at least 2 meals a day. She also likes butterbeans and rice (even though rice is messy). I even shred up deli ham or turkey for meat, and she loves that. I don't know if any of this advice helps, but maybe it will make you feel a little better.

Amie - posted on 08/05/2009

Was just wondering. Did your little one happen to grow taller? Mine do this every time they hit a growth spurt. They get chunky, shoot up and then slowly start putting on weight again until their next growth spurt. Could it be that? Maybe he just saw her after a growth spurt and she hasn't had time for her weight to catch up to her new height yet?

Krista - posted on 08/05/2009

Yeah, it's probably a scale of her own personal weight instead of the national growth chart. I mean, at 15 months, your daughter weighed 0.5 lbs less than my son did at his 18 months. To me, that's a pretty good weight.

Chantel - posted on 08/05/2009

Thanks;) It didn't even occur to me to check online...duh!!lol! I saw the chart on the docs computer and she was down in the 50th but maybe it measures rate of growth somehow and not just lbs? I don't know but I'm definetely less worried so thank you.

Krista - posted on 08/05/2009

I don't know......according to the various growth charts online, she's in the 83rd percentile. And there's usually a slow down in weight when a child starts crawling/walking. My son didn't gain very much from appointment to appointment. If you're worried, see if she'll drink Pediasure, which is loaded with extra vitamins and nutrients.

Chantel - posted on 08/05/2009

Thanks everyone:)

Jodi, she started walking at 11 months and she has always been tall and skinny.

Krista, I don't think its her weight that has the doc worried but the rate of growth. Yes her weight is normal for the average 15 month old but because she has always been above that and didn't gain is why he is concerned. According to my doc she is not in the 83rd percentile but down in the 50th.



Thanks again everyone. I feel better now.

Mel - posted on 08/04/2009

usually after 12 months they dont gain much weight so its really not a big deal. doctors worry about nothing in this sense even the nurses told me this. just add calories to all her food cream, cheese and butter to everything or try giving her pediasure to drink its for 1-10 yr olds you can find it at the pharmacy

Krista - posted on 08/04/2009

Uh....I don't see the problem with this. My son was only 26 lbs at 18 months and my doctor was more than happy with this. If your child, at 15 months was 25.5 lbs, then she's still in the 83rd percentile. Which means she weighs MORE than 83 percent of children. How is that bad?

Jodi - posted on 08/04/2009

No worries Nicole, I just didn't want anyone to panic if they have one that happens to be that small and wonder why they hadn't been told it was dangerous :)

I'm still wondering how I'm going to find a school uniform to fit my daughter, LOL. Maybe she'll have a growth spurt before I have to buy it in six months!

Nicole - posted on 08/04/2009

I should of written "can be dangerous". My son has also been in the 3rd percentile for his whole life and my doctor said that she becomes more concerned when they drop below that. Thx!

Jodi - posted on 08/04/2009

I wouldn't be too concerned. She sounds like she is healthy enough. What age did she start to walk? I found with both my kids that once they started moving around, they burn so much energy that they didn't gain a lot of weight at that time, so it is probably just that she is burning it up. She is well within normal range, so as long as you are happy she is eating well, and she seems well in herself, I wouldn't be too concerned. Go back for that check up in a month, but keep in mind that all babies are different, and this is probably perfectly normal for YOUR daughter. As Nicole said, levelling out :)

Nicole, a child below 3rd percentile is not necessarily dangerous, it is only dangerous if the baby was not even close to that before and suddenly falls below that. My daughter was born below the 3rd percentile, and has flucutated between the very bottom and the 20th all her life. At 4 1/2, she is still at the 3rd percentile at approximately 30lb (14 kg). She is not dangerously underweight, she simply has a high metabolism and is petite and always will be.

Nicole - posted on 08/04/2009

It sounds like your baby is leveling out. Some babies have large growth spurts where all they do is eat and then it is followed by some down time. As long as she is still eating and growing, she is probably fine. Anything below the 3rd percentile is dangerous. I have a 27 month old who weights 24 lbs, and he is as healthy as can be. The percentiles are just a comparison to the rest of the nation and as long as she is not losing a significant amount of weight she will do fine. Good luck!