Toddler Weight Gaining Tips Anyone?

Bethany - posted on 10/08/2011

My daughter did not gain a pound between 2 and 3 and she grew 4 inches. The dr didn't say a word about it and now between 3 and 4 she has gained 8 lbs and still looks just as skinny to me. Don't worry so much about it. All kids are different and grow in different ways. As long as he is eating (encourage protein) he will be fine.

Fawn - posted on 10/08/2011

I'm not sure how much my son weights but he is slender. I think it's because he moves around a lot. I would check with the doctor. Every child is different. If he's acting normally, he probably doesn't need the extra pounds.

Amy - posted on 10/08/2011

Don't worry about it. As long as he is healthy and doesn't look excessively thin I would not worry about it at all. As for pediasure I would stay far away from that garbage, so it's actually good that he doesn't like it. If you've looked carefully at the ingredients you will see what I mean (sugar, oil, artificial flavor = yuck). If your doctor is encouraging weight gain either don't listen or find another doctor. Many premies are behind a little but 28lbs is not bad for a 2.5 yr old.

Ashley - posted on 10/08/2011

my daughter just turned 4 in august and she JUST hit the 30 lb mark (she just made it onto the weight charts last year being below the 5% mark and has always been my little peanut). Doctors complain about her weight but she eats REALLY healthy (all on her own too). she eats fruits and vegies like they are going out of style (meat and potatoes too but they are second on her agenda). I monitor her sugar intake since she is a VERY high spirited little girl. my point is there is nothing wrong with your 2.5 year old being 28lbs at least he is not obese. If you feed your son healthy food there shouldn't be anything wrong. hope this helps ease your mind a little bit.

ASHLEY

Jamie - posted on 10/08/2011

Sometimes a wheat & Gluten intolerance can cause low weight. Might be worth trying to cut out the wheat &/or have him tested for an allergy to it. Could also just be a tall case before he puts on some weight. Good luck!

Teressa - posted on 10/08/2011

You can try to give your son Whole Milk versus 1%, 2%. Also, try higher calorie foods. My grandson is small for his age but he is very lean. I was advised to do the above so that is why I am advising this for you. It is worth a try...

Erin - posted on 10/08/2011

I'm glad someone else explained the percentile bands for you. The 25th percentile is perfectly acceptable. Most doctors don't start worrying until they are below the 10th (which is where Failure to Thrive sometimes becomes an issue).

Don't try and force feed him to gain weight. Just provide him with healthy, whole fat foods and his body will do it's thing. Things like avocado, peanut butter, full fat cheese (or cream cheese) are all healthy options that are high in the good fats.

Brooke - posted on 10/08/2011

My suggestion is not to worry. Our twins are 25.3 and 25.5 pounds at 26 months. They are only in the 15th % for weight and our pediatrician is not even slightly concerned. We just have smaller (and very active) children! I'd check in with your pediatrician but don't worry too much in the meantime.

Heather - posted on 10/08/2011

I wouldn't worry about it unless your doctor seem so be concerned. My almost 3 year old just hit 30 lbs. Unless you feel like his development is being affected or if you know that he's just not eating: sit back and relax. Every child grows at their own pace and considering that he was born early, he's bound to be a little smaller than other kids his age.

Deirdre - posted on 10/08/2011

I agree with most of the mommas on here, unless your doc is worried, I wouldn't stress. My son has Cystic Fibrosis and we park in the calories and he eats whenever whatever he wants and he still only weighs 24 lbs and is 32 inches (about 10-15% for both) tall at almost 2. He has medical reason to eat high fat and calorie foods, but some kids are just small and/or thin no matter what you feed them. 25% is good, as long as it follows HIS growth curve and he's not dropping way down in % or actual weight.

Jodi - posted on 10/08/2011

Oh wow, that doctor should be shot. There are ways to get healthier calories than a happy meal, geez. Go see a nutritionist.

Liz - posted on 10/08/2011

My son is low on the scale too for a 2 year old. His doctor told us just to give him all the calories we can, that eating happy meals wasn't going to hurt him so if he wanted something a little bit on the junk food side just to give it to him.

Your doctor actually encouraged making junk food a habit?

Kimberly - posted on 10/08/2011

My daughter was also a preemie. She just turned 2 and is 18 lbs. I say if you think he's eating enough and active and developmentally where he should be dont stress. For my daughter i have started to give her some of the carnation instant breakfast drin for some added calories and it flavors her milk for her. She loves it, and her dr. Recommended it. I would see your dr. Thoughts before getting too concerned. Remember mot preemies take a little while to catch up...

Stacy - posted on 10/08/2011

My daughter is 2.5 and was 6 weeks early. They made me force feed her at birth to 4 months and now she is overweight. New ped says that force feeding is actually a bad thing. She is 40 inches and about 55 pounds. If he is healthy otherwise let him be.

Ntombi - posted on 10/08/2011

If he is healthy and able to do the things other kids his age are doing then you needn't worry about the weight. It will come soon enough. As long as he is eating a balanced diet soon enough his body will start storing some of those nutrients. May also be that he is a very active child. If your paed is not worried, then you can relax. My child was the same and now slowly he is putting on weight and getting taller. I would still like for him to have more flesh on those bones but he is healthy and happy and that is what is important. I also don't tell him that he is skinny coz I think it more my hangup than his and he doesn't need to be thinking about his body that way.

Candace - posted on 10/08/2011

Have you tried Carnation Breakfast Essentials? It comes in chocolate and french vanilla. My son loves the French vanilla, jsut add it to milk or in our case soy milk. If you son has an allergy to milk don't buy the ready to drink liquid, instead buy the powder.

Barbara - posted on 10/08/2011

Dont worry! If he's healthy and active he'll catch up a little when he goes to school and has to slow down.
I'm raising twins right now and they are 3 yrs old and weigh 27lbs. I'm just having a hard time keeping up with them. My single birth daughter was the very same.
They'll eat when they get hungry though!

Nomsa - posted on 10/08/2011

my son is 21 months and weighs 9 kg and my 3 months son weighs 8 kg. each child grows up differently and we should not stress, my friend told me, no child is on a suicide mission, so they will never starve themselves.

Angel - posted on 10/08/2011

My son, now 5, only weighes 40 pounds. His doctor told me as long as he's eating, and eating the right, healthy foods, eventually he'll gain weight. As long as your little one is eating, I wouldn't worry. But you can always talk to the doctor to alleviate any worries. Good luck!

M-b - posted on 10/08/2011

Dont join THAT rat race....I have 4 kids and each is different. IT sounds like your son is perfectly fine, if your doctor would be concerned, he would share it with you and address what could be changed. Since that doesnt seem to be happening, I wouldnt worry. I would skip the pediasure and stick to healthy foods. Enjoy your time with him and relax- too many kids are too heavy nowadays and get too much junk. It makes me sad when family brags how their kid/grandkid wears size 8 or 10 when they're only 6/7 years old and when I see the kids they are so heavy they hurt :( and its no other "sickness" then eating wrong and/or too much :( give him the best foods, as fresh as possible, let him help in the kitchen, try new recipes and enjoy having him around :)

Amy - posted on 10/08/2011

My son wasonly 2 weeks early and at 2 yrs 8 months he is only 28 lbs with clothes and shoes on. Our pedi is not concerned. As long as your son is eating well I would relax and let im gain weight at his own pace. Maybe he will just have a fast metabolism and be thin when he grows up.

Lori - posted on 10/08/2011

I agree you should not compare your child to another. Everyone has a different body build. With that said though, my son is the same size. He is 2.5 and is 38 inches and weighs 28-29 lbs. He is very slender, but always has been since he took antibiotics when he turned 1. My doctor was concerned about his weight, but was not scary concerned. She told me to feed him higher fat foods, still trying to keep it healthy. She suggested sweet potatoes, carrots, cheese with higher fat content like baby bell. He was under that weight this year as he was sick, and I found feeding smaller but more often meals helped a lot. When he was sick he weighed only 24 lbs at that height. That was the only time she was scared about his weight. But he would not eat as he was sick with ear infections, and he never eats when he has them. I got him back up to 28 lbs like I said feeding more often. He would have foods with higher fat or calories like I listed above. Plus I still give him homogenized milk to give more fat. One thing my doctor did was tested his blood, and she discovered he was iron deficient. Not sure there is any correlation between weight and the iron, and the pharmacy said it would affect his immune system so that was why he was getting sick. Maybe you should have your son tested to see if there is an underlying issue you are not aware of. As soon as he started taking the supplements, he seems more solid, and doesn't get sick as often. Good luck, hope all works out. But remember you should still never compare 2 different people, they are that...different.

Nadine - posted on 10/07/2011

I swear it's these types of boards that make up paranoid.

Michelle - posted on 10/07/2011

Unless the dr. is concerned about his weight don't worry about it my son was and still is what we call scrawny he is tall for his age and extremely thin. His metabolism is supper fast and so uses up all extra fat to sustain his energy levels. We used to think he would still be in a car seat when he graduated high school however he is now 10 and starting to catch up to his peers for weight our dr. said as long as he is eating and is healthy don't worry about his weight. Remember that 25% means 25 other kids out of 100 are the same weight as your son.

Megan - posted on 10/07/2011

My son is low on the scale too for a 2 year old. His doctor told us just to give him all the calories we can, that eating happy meals wasn't going to hurt him so if he wanted something a little bit on the junk food side just to give it to him. So for the past month we've just been letting him eat whatever he wants all day in addition to meals and he's still not fattening up...lol some kids just burn the food faster.

Lexann - posted on 10/07/2011

My son was exactly the same. (And he loves raw veggies! They're good for him, but they don't put on the pounds like he needs.) My son was always between the 25th & 30th percentile, but his daddy is really skinny, too, and always has been. But when he was little the doctors had me scared, and I tried to fatten him up. (Not that it really worked, he just burned it off, he's so active.) But you can try naturally high (healthy) fat foods like avacado, whole milk & cheese, and edememe (the dry roasted kind at trader joes is delicious). If he's over 2, and has no food allergies, you can try nut butters: peanut butter (obviously), or soy nut butter (my friend's son who's allergic to peanuts loves it) or nuttella. It would add a little extra protein & higher caloric count to his diet. Good luck, and don't worry. He's probably just built slimmer, especially if you & your hubby are too.

JAMEE - posted on 10/07/2011

i would worry about it. Kids today are just so big. Both my girls are really small when compared to others their age. But their pediatrician says that probably a good thing. My 2 yr old is 36in and 24lbs and her 6yr old sis is 43in and 34lbs. So I wouldn't worry He'll be fine.

Sarah - posted on 10/07/2011

I'd say as long as the doctor isn't concerned, there shouldn't be anything to worry about. On the other hand, my son's doctor WAS concerned about his weight. He just turned 2 & weighs only about 23.6lbs (3rd percentile) and he's 35 inches tall (75th percentile.) When you base his weight on his height, apparently he's underweight. I doubt my son will even be 28lbs by age 2.5. I wouldn't worry. All kids are built differently.

Alexandra - posted on 10/07/2011

i put breaskfast essentials in the milk. It gives a little more proteins if you want to give it, but don't be worried. He will pick up eating later on. And don't ever stop giving him veggies and fruits, that is so rare these days to have a child that likes them!

Jodi - posted on 10/07/2011

Percentiles are there for a reason. Someone's kid has to be the 25th percentile. What that means is that 25% of babies are smaller than that. So basically, your son is perfectly normal. My daughter has always been around the 20th percentile (except when she was a bub, she was born 3rd percentile and stayed around that for the early months). She is skinnier and smaller than a lot of kids her age. She is now 6 and is STILL smaller. It's normal. Not all kids can be the same size. There is average, and then there are those that are a little either side of average. All of them are normal.



I wouldn't worry about forcing him to gain weight. Just make sure he eats healthy nutritious food and he will be fine.

Nicola - posted on 10/07/2011

My son will be 3 in December and ge weighs 30lbs with pjs on. So unless He is not eating or drinking I would not be highly worried. These are guidelines and I'm sure they not ment to worry us but they do. My son has only just started to fit his 2-3 yr jeans in height wise. Hopes this helps relieve some worries. Just think of yourself we all weigh different and put weight on/lose at different rates. No-one is the same. It is more than likely due to them running around all the time and burning the food of during the activites he does

Jenni - posted on 10/07/2011

Your over concerned and mostly likely because you are listening to too many sources of information! My daughter is the same age and weighs the same! We were harass by our maternal health nurse about her weight to the point their wanted to cut her tongue cos of a slighty tongue tie! When we were in doubt we saw our local GP who put me at ease and said as long as she is putting on weight don't worry about it. Your GP (one you have complete faith in) should be your only source of information and bugga the rest!! I know people make you feel inadequate and you know you shouldn't compare yet we all do lol just know your child is happy and putting on weight at his pace, and as long as he doen't loss weight all is fine! Since my child was born she ate heaps yet didn't put on much weight and still doesn't, she has a high metabalisim

Teresa - posted on 10/07/2011

My 3.5 year old son weighed 31 pounds at his 3 year check up. His cousin... who is 11 months older than him... weighs at least a pound or two less. There's nothing wrong w/ either of them. ;)

As long as he is healthy, active, and still growing (no matter how slowly).... he is most likely perfectly fine and I wouldn't worry at all.

Oh, my son is also in the 25% for weight and height, so I can only imagine where my nephew falls (my son is now about an inch taller than him).... ;)

JuLeah - posted on 10/07/2011

Skip pedisure, it is mostly sugar and none too good for him. Make sure any vit you give him doesn't have sugar, or corn syurp .... sometimes the things in kids vits shock me as they are really so very bad for kids



Make sure he eats whole foods, not processed crap, right? No dyes, trans fats .... give his body what it needs to grow and it will



Give his body processed junk it has to filter out and energy will go into that more then into growing

Louise - posted on 10/07/2011

If the doctor says not to worry then that is your answer. Just make sure he is eatting full fat dairy foods until he is 5 as he will burn a lot of energy at his age running around. Carbohydrates are also important as they will provide him with energy and if he is only eatting fruit and veg he is using everything in his body to function. Try and encourage him to eat some nice bread, or eat pasta meals foods that are rich in carbs to help him run around all day and have a little left in his tiny body to gain a healthy amount of weight.

Skyler - posted on 10/07/2011

Thanks for the advice ladies; me and his dad are pretty thin people so that could probably have alot to do with it. idk i was just getting concerned since he has only gained a pound of 2 in the last 6 months ; the doctor says hes fine and to not worry about it but i tend to over worry about everything ; he loves fruits and vegitables thats usually most of what he will eat; and hes always running around he wont ever sit so ya i guess i am probably just being overly worried about something thats not a big deal lol. what can i say hes my first child.

Karen - posted on 10/07/2011

i think you're just being over concerned. as long as he's eating healthy and has not health issues or isn't losing weight then maybe he's just going to be a skinny boy. my son is 2 (born on time weighing in at 7lb 13ozs) and he only weighs 24 lbs (was in the 13% for weight at his 18mth check up) and is about the same height as your son. he's only gained 2 lbs since he was 6 months old but it's because he's sooooo active. he eats like crazy but he just doesn't stop moving to gain much weight. his dr isn't concerned with the weight and neither am i. pediasure is great if your child doesn't have a healthy diet (ie refuses to eat fruits/veggies, etc) but if they're eating fine it will often fill them up and they may not be hungry for the food so it's probaby not really anything that will help him gain weight anyways. i say just let him be as long as he's healthy and happy

Minnie - posted on 10/07/2011

I have two girls, both born full term, who have been in the tenth percentile or less since six months. They didn't hit 28lb until...well, my second is turning three next week and that's what she weighs, at 38 inches.



Is your son meeting milestones? Is he gaining weight, even if it's reaaaally slowly? Is he active and happy?



Children don't have to be the average weight. There are thin adults, can't there be thin children?

Michelle - posted on 10/07/2011

Is your doctor worried about his weight? I wouldn't compare him to other children. Every child is different and the fact he was 10 weeks early could be a factor in him being smaller. As long as he is gaing weight regularly it doesn't matter, he may just be a small person.
Are you and his father small? It could also be genetics.