Flip side, underweight kids?

[Mommy22alyns]

Has your doctor taken you to task about this? The girls haven't had a checkup in a while, but at any height/weight calculators, Rebecca is in the neighborhood of the 14th percentile weight wise. When she was younger, she was close to but under 50th. I just measured her, and she's 53.75" tall and 60lbs. She'll be 10 next week. She's also a competitive gymnast who works out ~12 hours a week. She has a good appetite and it has increased recently.

[AimeeM]

I have two underweight kiddos.

Nico is almost 4 years old and 28 lbs. He doesn't even make a percentile on the charts :p

Autumn is 11 and finally hit 70 lbs recently. She maintains around the 15th percentile I think.

Marco (the infant at almost 9 months) is "average" size. Lol. Whatever that means :)

 

Both children who are "underweight" are short as well though.

 

Nico is a picky eater, but hits the food groups daily and certainly does eat, lol. Autumn is a great eater and always willing to try anything. Marco just likes bOOks, lol. We have an open kitchen policy and the children can snack as they please as well as having regularly served "in the dining room" meals.

 

My pediatrician mentions it like clockwork, but really, their weight is proportionate to their height. They look good for their height.

 

As I've tried to tell the pediatrician, they will never be 6' tall sumo wrestlers - as an adult I'm 5'1" and 110 (or less, depending on the month, lol) and my husband is 5'4".

[PinkyandtheBrains.]

I have a skinny and short child. The doctor doesn't worry to much since he grows at a steady pace from year to year.

[Word Nerd]

One of mine is around average, and the younger one is near the bottom for weight. However, she's grown consistently along the curve, so the doctor is not concerned. I was never even on the weight charts as a child. Some people are just thin.

[BrookValley.]

My son has always been around the 10-15th percentile for weight (I forget where he falls for height, but it's a bit higher. I want to say around 30th percentile). The charts are a range of normal--someone has to be in the 5th percentile, and it's still normal, for those ranges to be on the chart, you know? He is a skinny kid. Neither me or my husband are super tall, but rather average (I'm 5'6", he's 5'8"). My hsuband and his entire family are SKINNY (my husband weighed 133 lbs when we met; as a child, neither him or his sister were even on the growth charts at all). My mother and my father are SKINNY (and short). I am not so skinny, though not huge (I'm pretty active). We did have a horrible time with one pediatrician who, looking at me, refused to admit that there could be any type of other genetics at play and gave us quite a bit of trouble. Like, veiled threats of what, I'm not exactly sure (CPS?) if we didn't admit there was a problem and go the the local children's hospital to be seen by a specialist. From birth, my son was very healthy, very active, nursed and ate well, and always hit his milestones ahead of schedule (yet at one visit she said we needed to watch out for "mental retardation"--her words, not mine--because he was "too small"). I knew nothing was wrong; I would have been the first person beating a path to that specialist if I thought for one second there was anything wrong! It was a horrible and really emotionally draining experience to deal with this. We did go see the specialist, who was irked at us for wasting her time and wrote said pediatrician a nice little letter that, in a professional manner, told her she was off her rocker for thinking our child was failure to thrive (the pediatrician insisted he needed to be diagnosed as FTT).

 

At five my son is still a skinny kiddo, but no pediatrician since that first one has even mentioned his weight as an issue. He eats alllll day long. I have no idea where he's putting it all! lol.

[Arcadia]

Only when my underweight 5th percentile kid fell off the charts. That was when a lot of bloodwork was done for several months. No issues with the pediatrician once his bloodwork was okay and he maintain steady growth. This kid grows in spurts though and the pediatrician know that after so many years. Only older son is normal weight, the rest of the family are all underweight.

[Crimson Wife]

FWIW, my child who was off-the-charts small turned out to have non-celiac gluten intolerance and experienced a dramatic "catch-up" weight gain after being switched to a GF diet. She had tested negative twice for celiac (2nd time extended panel) and wheat allergies (again 2nd time extended panel). At 2 yrs 11 mos. she wore a size 18 mos. By 3 yrs 3 mos. she was in a 4T. Our general pediatrician says she sees this kind of catch-up gain frequently in kids who are gluten intolerant after they go GF. So for those of you with off-the-charts small kids, I would recommend doing a trial of GF just to see if it makes any difference.

[Soror]

I have little kids as well. I was always small myself so I'm not generally concerned. They are growing, they eat well and are active, without any signs of illness.

 

fwiw we are gf here as well. Ds did grow more once we went gf but is still on the small side.

[TraceyS/FL]

Last January my oldest was told to gain weight by her endocrinologist. She had lost 13 pounds in about 6 weeks (she was sick, then had surgery, but he felt it was too much even with those reasons). She is 5'1" and was down to about 82 pounds.

 

Now, he is AMAZING in how he gets along with her - so he handled it correctly - labs and monthly weight checks, and she really likes him and talked on her level, all withOUT making it a major deal. When she saw the Ped during that time she FLIPPED and talked to her about needing to go to the eating disorder clinic and all kinds of other stuff. You know, adding to the fact that we were trying to sort out a few things as being possible "drama/attention getters". I was NOT happy - and refused to drive an hour for weekly weight checks. If she had kept losing it would have been one thing, but she already was on the way back up.

 

AND, I trusted the endo's scale way more than I trusted the peds. THey never would use the same one, and it wasn't as heavy duty like the one in the office meant to monitor these things.

 

She gained it back gradually and is now back to about 95-100 pounds. The ped also irked me on something else and so we have been going to urgent care.... I really need to find a new ped. UGH.

 

So as long as their is progression on the curve i'm cool, the doctors are cool, but when they drop - we act!

[butterflymommy]

Almost all of my kids are under the 15th %tile for weight. My son is 6 ft tall and 125-130 lbs. That's really, really thin!

 

I always expect to get a lecture at the dr's office but he just sighs and says, "Some people are luckier than others." (Our pediatrician is quite overweight.)

 

All of my kids are insanely picky eaters. One DD will only eat dry, uncooked oats, shredded cheese, and the occasional chopped fruit or raw veggie. Once in a while she'll eat chicken but usually leaves it on her plate.

 

I'm a picky eater too so I try to sympathize but it gets tedious, and embarrassing, having kids who eat like this.

[Laura Corin]

Calvin has almost always been very skinny. He was a Buddha baby for a couple of months - greedy breastfed baby - but otherwise he has always been long and thin. We did once go to the doctor for some blood tests, just to see if there were any issues. There weren't. We don't worry. He's about 5'10" and 110 pounds, so currently in the 1st centile on the BMI charts. He wears trousers in 28/34.

 

He eats almost everything, but generally would rather read than eat. We limit junk food.

 

Hobbes is also very slim, but not as skinny as Calvin. He's 4'8" and 72 lbs, which puts him in the healthy range at the 11th centile. He's very little so far - 9th centile for height and weight. He hasn't had a puberty growth spurt yet, but his father is only 5'6", so he may not grow very tall.

 

Laura

[Mergath]

My dd has always been underweight, sometimes drastically so. For the first year and a half of her life, she was off the bottom of the charts and was diagnosed with failure to thrive at one point because she was so thin. She ate a ton, just never seemed to put on any weight. She's still a twig, but isn't dangerously underweight anymore. Now that she's grown a couple of inches again, the CDC kid's bmi thing puts her in the fourth percentile. She used to be in the twentieth according to our family doctor, which was the biggest she's ever been by far. I don't know, I feed the kid as much as I can get her to eat, but she must have a high metabolism or something. It's funny because all the literature for her genetic disorder says that she's at a greatly increased risk of obesity. It's not looking that way so far, though.

[Guest inoubliable]

I have one underweight kid. The doctor said he is gaining every year and is healthy. Yes he is off the charts, but I always was as a kid too. He eats plenty of food. He isn't picky either. He will eat pretty much anything. He does tend to nibble though. He'll eat small portions several times a day.

 

This is my oldest. He's like me. Since birth he's been in the 5% percentile for both height and weight. For the last 12 years. No doctor has ever been worried about it. He eats well, healthy, and often. He's not picky, but is vegan so he doesn't eat animal products.

[twoxcell]

I have two ds and they are completely opposite my older is overweight and my younger is underweight. Over all my Dr. is not over concerned with either.

[HS Mom in NC]

Ugh! Don't get me started! (Too late.) I was 5'2" tall and weighted 95 lbs. from the time I was 13 years old until I was 5 months pregnant.That's perfectly normal for some people even if the chart says otherwise. I detest the hyper vigilance society puts on weight. If there's no eating disorder or symptoms of illness involved, I expect mothers to protect their children from being harassed and tell the doctor he can take his weight chart and take a hike. It's oppressive to deal with the constant fussing and society feels free to say remarkably obnoxious things about skinny people just because skinny is socially acceptable.

 

I'm telling you OP and moms of skinny kids, your child needs to not hear about it constantly because it's just as bad as being picked on for being overweight. Do your child a favor and don't go down that road. I never allow my children to be weighed unless it's required for determining the dosage of medication. When they ask why I simply say, "We don't fuss about weight. There are too many people in the world with issues about it already and I won't contribute to it. Unless you need to know their weight to determine a dose of medication, you won't be weighing them." I'm nice but I leave no room for argument. My biological daughters are built just like me and they have been spared the hysteria.

[Guest inoubliable]

There are ways to track your children's weight/height AND make sure they are comfortable with who they are, you know. Good grief.

[TraceyS/FL]

I totally agree on not making a big deal out of it - and we were only concerned in our case with her drop in such a short time.

 

Trends... it is all about the trends. Kids that hug the low end all their lives, it is their normal. And, I have friends that are still teased about being tall and thin. I don't get it - it is who she is, and she isn't anorexic.

 

Here is her chart that caused the concern.

 

[FaithManor]

All of my children are underweight. DD is the closest to normal. She's 5'4" and weighed in a couple of days ago a 99.5 lbs...She has a size zero wedding dress and it needed to be taken in. I was like this all the way until a very dangerous pregnancy followed by a caput thyroid that went improperly treated for a long period of time until I finally got our stinking HMO to let me see a doctor that would spend more than 30 seconds in the room. Now I'm fighting hard to undo all of that damage and weight gain.

 

All three ds's are low weight for their height, two are just fine. One is scary low. He is 5'9 just about to break 5'10 and weighs 95 lbs. He was diagnosed at 13 with failure to thrive by a GP who couldn't come up with anything better. The endo lists it as "undetermined metabolic disorder". He has a 24" waist and while the other boys look healthy, ds does look gaunt. He's strong, very strong, and tends to be healthy, but the endo says if ds ever became really, really sick with something serious, he would probably die quickly because he can't afford to lose and he loses easily. He had the stomach flu two weeks ago and lost 4 lbs. during the 24 hrs. he was sick. We are now fighting like crazy to help him gain them back. He has to eat 3500 calories per day and I have a list of specific omega fats that he has to have X amount of each day. Currently, because of the weight loss, he's eating $8.00 a day in macademea nuts.

 

I carry copies of a letter from his endo with me because the neighbors keep turning us in to CPS for "starving" him.

 

I worry.no.end.about it.

 

Faith

[sewingmama]

My 6&5 yo still fit in a five point harness. I weigh less then 100 pounds myself and when I mention weight my doctor just laughs and says "You shouldn't be expecting to raise elephants with your body type".

 

My kids are allowed to eat as much as they like....and since that isn't a lot I assume they aren't hungry. I never encourage my kids to eat when they are not hungry....it leads to weight issues.

[Mom-ninja.]

So as long as their is progression on the curve i'm cool, the doctors are cool, but when they drop - we act!

 

 

 

:iagree: As long as your kids are hitting milestones and progressing then don't worry.

 

 

However.......

 

 

Ugh! Don't get me started! (Too late.) I was 5'2" tall and weighted 95 lbs. from the time I was 13 years old until I was 5 months pregnant.That's perfectly normal for some people even if the chart says otherwise. I detest the hyper vigilance society puts on weight. If there's no eating disorder or symptoms of illness involved, I expect mothers to protect their children from being harassed and tell the doctor he can take his weight chart and take a hike. It's oppressive to deal with the constant fussing and society feels free to say remarkably obnoxious things about skinny people just because skinny is socially acceptable.

 

I'm telling you OP and moms of skinny kids, your child needs to not hear about it constantly because it's just as bad as being picked on for being overweight. Do your child a favor and don't go down that road. I never allow my children to be weighed unless it's required for determining the dosage of medication. When they ask why I simply say, "We don't fuss about weight. There are too many people in the world with issues about it already and I won't contribute to it. Unless you need to know their weight to determine a dose of medication, you won't be weighing them." I'm nice but I leave no room for argument. My biological daughters are built just like me and they have been spared the hysteria.

 

 

 

This was my attitude. I'm 5'1 and I weigh 98 lbs currently. This is normal for me. I expect my kids to be small and skinny even though dh is not. My 4 yr weighs 30 lbs and is about 3'5", my 9 yr old is 4'6" and weighs 58 lbs, and my 12 yr old is 4'7" and now weighs 65.

 

The issue arose with my 12 yr old. He dropped weight. I didn't make a big deal about it at first. I've always let my kids eat when hungry and not eat when full. However, over a couple of months we noticed my ds not eating much. He said he wasn't hungry. He got thinner and thinner. He looked unhealthy he was so thin. Other wise he was happy and ran around as usual he just wasn't eating. The GI doc was not happy when she saw him because he had dropped off the chart. We're following her suggestions and right now he's on a med to stimulate appetite and on a calorie supplement powder. He was 52 lbs in Dec and now he is 65 lbs. The doctor is very pleased with his progress. He is now back on the chart.

 

So, watch your dc. Pay attention to their eating habits *and* bathroom habits. If your mommy alarm starts to go off then take them to the doctor.

[Dory]

Both my boys are scrawny guys. My oldest ds has a bmi of 14 and my youngest is at 13.5. My oldest has stayed pretty consistent and the doctor has always told me he's perfectly healthy. I was skinny as a kid too as was my dh and all my siblings. My youngest on the other hand has been growing fast and his weight hasn't been keeping up. The doctor and I spent some time talking about it last month but we haven't done anything beyond that thus far. He's supposed to go back in for another check up next month. I don't really expect them to ever be big guys. Tall yes, but not big. I'm sitting at 5'9" and I hover between the 120 and the 130lbs most the time. If they turn out like most the guys from my side they'll finish out at 6'3ish and somewhere around the 170lbs.

Eating disorders are a common problem within my family too though so I'm pretty careful not to talk about weight much around the kids. We focus on healthy eating and how we are feeling.

[TraceyS/FL]

All of my children are underweight. DD is the closest to normal. She's 5'4" and weighed in a couple of days ago a 99.5 lbs...She has a size zero wedding dress and it needed to be taken in. I was like this all the way until a very dangerous pregnancy followed by a caput thyroid that went improperly treated for a long period of time until I finally got our stinking HMO to let me see a doctor that would spend more than 30 seconds in the room. Now I'm fighting hard to undo all of that damage and weight gain.

 

All three ds's are low weight for their height, two are just fine. One is scary low. He is 5'9 just about to break 5'10 and weighs 95 lbs. He was diagnosed at 13 with failure to thrive by a GP who couldn't come up with anything better. The endo lists it as "undetermined metabolic disorder". He has a 24" waist and while the other boys look healthy, ds does look gaunt. He's strong, very strong, and tends to be healthy, but the endo says if ds ever became really, really sick with something serious, he would probably die quickly because he can't afford to lose and he loses easily. He had the stomach flu two weeks ago and lost 4 lbs. during the 24 hrs. he was sick. We are now fighting like crazy to help him gain them back. He has to eat 3500 calories per day and I have a list of specific omega fats that he has to have X amount of each day. Currently, because of the weight loss, he's eating $8.00 a day in macademea nuts.

 

I carry copies of a letter from his endo with me because the neighbors keep turning us in to CPS for "starving" him.

 

I worry.no.end.about it.

 

Faith

Oh man, I hope he can pack those pounds back on soon. That has to be scary! :grouphug:

 

Hopefully someday they will make strides in determining what exactly is causing him to not be able to gain weight. Someone is in a lab working on it right now, they have to be.

 

 

I had a co-worker whose daughter was my age and had triplets. One of them had a metabolic disorder discovered shortly after birth. His sibling basically kept him alive in the womb, and he was the first known live birth with it. When he passed they allowed a tissue sample to be taken to try to help future kids. It was incredibly hard to be on the outside watching/hearing about, I cannot even imagine how it was to live thru it.

[MyThreeSons]

Almost all of my kids are under the 15th %tile for weight. My son is 6 ft tall and 125-130 lbs. That's really, really thin!

 

My youngest is a shade over 6'4" tall and has never weighed more than 135 pounds. That's really, really, really thin!! I haven't weighed him since his bout with flu then pneumonia a couple of weeks ago. He ate nothing for about five days and very little for the next five days after that.

[SarahW]

Question. How do you deal with it when well-meaning relatives try to push your kid to eat sugar? I have extended family that has health issues from lifelong eating problems, and they are always trying to encourage my kid to drink chocolate milk, eat ice cream, donuts, and other cr@p. "He needs it, he's so skinny!" they say. Yes, I know he's skinny, but he doesn't need cr@p!

 

Interesting point about gluten, Crimson Wife. We've been trying to cut down on wheat in our house the past few months. But since peanut butter sandwiches are one of the only "meals" he eats I've just switched him over to sprouted bread. He's gained a few pounds recently, don't know if the two are related.

 

How do you get a kid to eat more! I buy him cheese sticks, full fat milk, and try to make sure he eats good protein with dinner. But if there's nothing in the house he wants to eat he'll just go hungry. So frustrating.

[Dory]

Question. How do you deal with it when well-meaning relatives try to push your kid to eat sugar? I have extended family that has health issues from lifelong eating problems, and they are always trying to encourage my kid to drink chocolate milk, eat ice cream, donuts, and other cr@p. "He needs it, he's so skinny!" they say. Yes, I know he's skinny, but he doesn't need cr@p!

 

Interesting point about gluten, Crimson Wife. We've been trying to cut down on wheat in our house the past few months. But since peanut butter sandwiches are one of the only "meals" he eats I've just switched him over to sprouted bread. He's gained a few pounds recently, don't know if the two are related.

 

How do you get a kid to eat more! I buy him cheese sticks, full fat milk, and try to make sure he eats good protein with dinner. But if there's nothing in the house he wants to eat he'll just go hungry. So frustrating.

 

We made the switch to heritage grains when my oldest was 3 and it did wonders for him.

[Jilly]

My oldest son is very thin. He is 5 feet 4 inches and 90 pounds. He has always been thin, so neither I nor the pediatrician worry about it. He eats healthy, he is growing, and slowly he puts on weight.

[TraceyS/FL]

 

My youngest is a shade over 6'4" tall and has never weighed more than 135 pounds. That's really, really, really thin!! I haven't weighed him since his bout with flu then pneumonia a couple of weeks ago. He ate nothing for about five days and very little for the next five days after that.

My Dad was like this - when my mom used to go Christmas shopping for him, they would always want to wrap it in separate boxes. The ultra small waisted jeans with the XL shirt. He had broad shoulders and needed it for that!

[Mom-ninja.]

Question. How do you deal with it when well-meaning relatives try to push your kid to eat sugar? I have extended family that has health issues from lifelong eating problems, and they are always trying to encourage my kid to drink chocolate milk, eat ice cream, donuts, and other cr@p. "He needs it, he's so skinny!" they say. Yes, I know he's skinny, but he doesn't need cr@p!

 

Interesting point about gluten, Crimson Wife. We've been trying to cut down on wheat in our house the past few months. But since peanut butter sandwiches are one of the only "meals" he eats I've just switched him over to sprouted bread. He's gained a few pounds recently, don't know if the two are related.

 

How do you get a kid to eat more! I buy him cheese sticks, full fat milk, and try to make sure he eats good protein with dinner. But if there's nothing in the house he wants to eat he'll just go hungry. So frustrating.

 

You need carbs to gain weight. Carbs not fats. Of course, you need fats for healthy growth but fat alone will not make you gain weight. This is why people eat low carb/high fat to lose weight. Carbs put weight on. We were low carb, no sugar until the GI doctor pointed out that ds needs carbs and sugar. It doesn't have to be white refined sugar. But fruit, some honey, real maple syrup, lactose (if tolerated), coconut sugar, and so forth needed to be added to my ds's diet. As for ice cream....we get him Ben & Jerry's. It's sugar but at least there's no other bad stuff in it.

 

My ds would not eat if he didn't like something. He would skip meals when not hungry. That is not allowed anymore. The doctor said it got to a point that ds's stomach had shrunk and he couldn't eat a lot and he wasn't feeling hungry because of this. He was malnourished. It's not that we don't always have plenty of healthy food. The doctor stressed that he had to eat even when not hungry to get his stomach used to having food in it again. So, skipping meals is just not allowed anymore and yes, dh and I have to monitor what he eats during the day. I never expected this problem, but there ya go. I hope it doesn't cause eating problems in the future, but this is what we have to do now.

[Karen in CO]

My little one is 4'3" and 48 lbs. She has been under the bottom of the growth chart for a very long time. Our doctor has always noted that she is making steady progress on her own curve, healthy and making all of her development milestones. She had blood work one time when she was having terrible stomach pains - the technician almost cried because she had to take blood from both her arms to fulfill the lab orders. She is celiac and allergic to dairy, soy and a few other things. We keep a close eye on her and feed her the largest variety of food she can eat in as large of quantities as she will eat. I make sure to tell her that she is perfect for a girl her size. I don't want her to think that there is anything wrong with her weight. Last time she had gluten exposure, she lost 3 pounds in a week. It was horrible and took us months to recover those few pounds.

[HS Mom in NC]

There are ways to track your children's weight/height AND make sure they are comfortable with who they are, you know. Good grief.

 

 

When you've listened to nearly 40 years of crap directed at you, we'll talk. The medical community is a big part of the problem by tracking weight in children who are healthy. The "science" behind the charts is very questionable.

[Guest inoubliable]

 

 

When you've listened to nearly 40 years of crap directed at you, we'll talk. The medical community is a big part of the problem by tracking weight in children who are healthy.

 

Are you kidding me? How about 33 years? Is that long enough?

Wow.

[HS Mom in NC]

The charts are questionable science. Spending time and energy on it is of very questionable value. Watch out if you have girls. They'll be told they'll need c-sections if their husbands (like mine) are 6 feet tall. Extra scans too to make sure the baby isn't being neglected by such as small body. They'll be told not to breastfeed because it's too much caloric burn. reason #37 to have a homebirth with a midwife and go to La Leche League meetings.

 

Lots of do-gooders will find annoying ways to monitor them when they're teens by obsessing about what they're eating and if they're in the bathroom too long after a meal to make sure they don't have an eating disorder. They'll find awkward, round about ways of asking if you have some sort of psychological problem because they noticed how thin you are.

 

Older people will feel the need to pressure them publicly into eating more. Don't make any friends with Italian immigrant mothers-they'll feel compelled to shame you into eating more than the grown men at the table.

 

Younger people will casually say things like, "You're so skinny, it makes me sick."all the time like it's a compliment or something. And, believe it or not people that barely know them will ask things like, "You're so small, does sex always hurt because if it?" Yep. I was 15 and in a ps dance class and I was asked that in front of two dozen other girls. I've had a few people in my late teens suggest the same thing in less direct way. People say stuff like that OUT LOUD in public.

 

The last thing healthy skinny kids need is the medical community and relatives making an unnecessary fuss over it. If they're not sick, there's nothing wrong with being skinny. Stop bugging them. It's enough of a hassle already.

[Karen in CO]

I just charted ds again (haven't done it in awhile). He's up to the 50% in height, but has dropped off the chart again for weight. It's really hard to find 27*36 pants!

 

 

My ds wore that size. :) Wrangler cowboy cut slim fit jeans work well, come in a few colors, and come in the tall-and-skinny 27x36.

[Guest inoubliable]

The charts are questionable science.

 

 

LOL.

 

Have a nice day. :)

[Jennifer3141]

 

Are you kidding me? How about 33 years? Is that long enough?

Wow.

 

 

No. It is not. Come back to the thread in 4 years, please.

[Crimson Wife]

You need carbs to gain weight. Carbs not fats. Of course, you need fats for healthy growth but fat alone will not make you gain weight. This is why people eat low carb/high fat to lose weight. Carbs put weight on.

 

 

A GF diet does not have to be low-carb. My child who is GF gets lots of carbs in her diet- GF grains, starchy veggies, fruit, etc. She just does not eat wheat, barley, rye, or any of the other gluten-containing grains.

[sgo95]

My little one is 4'3" and 48 lbs. She has been under the bottom of the growth chart for a very long time. Our doctor has always noted that she is making steady progress on her own curve, healthy and making all of her development milestones. She had blood work one time when she was having terrible stomach pains - the technician almost cried because she had to take blood from both her arms to fulfill the lab orders. She is celiac and allergic to dairy, soy and a few other things. We keep a close eye on her and feed her the largest variety of food she can eat in as large of quantities as she will eat. I make sure to tell her that she is perfect for a girl her size. I don't want her to think that there is anything wrong with her weight. Last time she had gluten exposure, she lost 3 pounds in a week. It was horrible and took us months to recover those few pounds.

 

ETA: Oops, the 3 year old posted this.

 

BTW, my oldest has always been <10% in both height and weight (my second oldest is two years younger but actually the same height and 8 pounds heavier). No allergies so far and a good appetite, but just very slim and petite.

[newbieoftwo]

My DS is my lanky boy. He is tall, 44", and 40lbs. His first doctor questioned me about every meal he had! We went to every test she could think of looking for a "solution" to his height and low weight :glare: . I wanted to scream at that lady that my son was fine!! But I was only 20 and I'm sure she thought I was too young to parent anyway :glare: . I was so happy when we switched to our current doctor. She took one look at me (5ft and 100lbs) and his father (6'1" and 160lbs) and congratulated my son on his good genes :lol: . He progresses every year, but his height is shooting up faster than his weight. I think he went through three pant sizes this winter!! I'm sure one day it will all even out.

[jewellsmommy]

Dd has spent most of her life around 50th percentile for height but only 5th to 10th in weight. Now (almost 11yo) her weight is just starting to close the gap. Our Pediatrician has never been overly concerned. She just had us encourage grazing (small frequent meals and snacks). Dd has naturally been one to desire protein/fats over carbs.

[Joyofsixreboot]

Yes. I breed 'em tall and skinny (why do I not express those genes?). After the first couple kids it became obvious to the doc it's just their pattern. They have large appetites but are of the fidgety variety and do sports so it gets burned off. I will say my two " normal " weight kids look positively chubby in comparison.

[Pamela H in Texas]

My littlests are, but....they are also short so it isn't quite as bad as it seems.

 

Monkey is 22 pounds at 21months; but she's petite.

T-lo is about 32 pounds now at almost 5.

Swimmer is about 36 pounds at almost 6. He is actually skinnier, but more solid, than T-lo.

When the boys got here 23 months ago(!), they were 21 and 24 pounds. In the first seven months, T-lo gained a year's worth and Swimmer two years worth. T-lo also had another growth spurt when he decided to start eating and stop puking (behavioral).

 

Tumbler isn't overweight, but she is fairly small. Okay, I went to do the child bmi thing just to see. She's at the 14.1 bmi and 22nd percentile for 7yo girls. Not underweight, just not big :)

[Mom-ninja.]

The charts are questionable science. Spending time and energy on it is of very questionable value. Watch out if you have girls. They'll be told they'll need c-sections if their husbands (like mine) are 6 feet tall. Extra scans too to make sure the baby isn't being neglected by such as small body. They'll be told not to breastfeed because it's too much caloric burn. reason #37 to have a homebirth with a midwife and go to La Leche League meetings.

 

Lots of do-gooders will find annoying ways to monitor them when they're teens by obsessing about what they're eating and if they're in the bathroom too long after a meal to make sure they don't have an eating disorder. They'll find awkward, round about ways of asking if you have some sort of psychological problem because they noticed how thin you are.

 

Older people will feel the need to pressure them publicly into eating more. Don't make any friends with Italian immigrant mothers-they'll feel compelled to shame you into eating more than the grown men at the table.

 

Younger people will casually say things like, "You're so skinny, it makes me sick."all the time like it's a compliment or something. And, believe it or not people that barely know them will ask things like, "You're so small, does sex always hurt because if it?" Yep. I was 15 and in a ps dance class and I was asked that in front of two dozen other girls. I've had a few people in my late teens suggest the same thing in less direct way. People say stuff like that OUT LOUD in public.

 

The last thing healthy skinny kids need is the medical community and relatives making an unnecessary fuss over it. If they're not sick, there's nothing wrong with being skinny. Stop bugging them. It's enough of a hassle already.

 

 

Goodness! Why the hostility?

 

I don't see anyone here disagreeing with you that thin, in the absence of a health issue, is normal for many people. No one here has said, "If your child is on the low end of the chart or not on the chart, yet are healthy in every other way, then hurry and take them to the doctor!"

 

Not one here posted anything of the sort.

 

In fact, just about everyone has stated that they have very thin dc and they are fine and healthy. Some have posted about negative experiences with doctors. Some have posted about positive experiences with doctors. Some have posted that yes, there is indeed a health issue with their small/thin dc.

 

You are not the only thin person here. You are not the only one who grew up listening to negative comments. Many of us have. I have. I still hear comments all the time. All.the.time. I have 3 kids and I weigh less than 100 lbs. Yeah, I get lots of mean and rude comments.

 

My sister is the same size as I am. She was accused of shooting up with my grandma's insulin shots to lose weight. She and I had no *idea* that taking insulin would even make one lose weight let alone that she was actually doing it. The doctor yelled at her and wanted her sent to a mental clinic for eating disorder.

 

So, I know all about the negative carp one has to deal with being thin.

 

And yet there are times when there is a health problem and weight can be a big flag.

 

When I developed celiac I lost 5 lbs. That's it. For most people that wouldn't even be noticeable. Yet, it was a big flag that something was wrong when looked at in addition to other symptoms. Yeah, the comments of, "Oh my, you've lost weight. It doesn't look good. You look horrible," were not pleasant to hear and ticked me off. However, it ticked me off more so because people assumed I was purposely losing weight.

 

My ds weighed 60 lbs (age 12) and was fine......until he lost 8 lbs and that's when dh and I decided something was wrong. And yes we actually told him he wasn't healthy in regards to his weight loss. Yes, we told him that he was too thin and at risk of not growing and developing normally because he was too thin. Why did we say that? Because it was true. He cried. I cried. I knew how he felt and I know how much it sucks. Yet, it needed to be said.

 

The fact is that when you are thin and at the bottom of one's "healthy" weight range that you are at more risk when you become ill. Your body doesn't have reserves to fall back on. So, I am perfectly healthy weighing 95-98 lbs (depending on whether I'm PMS'ing or not :lol: ) however, I easily get hit hard when I get sick. If I have a gluten exposure I instantly fall to around 92 lbs and it takes awhile to gain the weight back.

When I came down with rota virus I fell below 90 lbs and ended up in the hospital. The nurses were talking about how they had never seen an adult admitted for rota virus before. That's because most adults don't fall dangerously below sustainable fat and water reserve levels.

 

All anyone has said in this thread is that yes many of us are very thin and have very thin children, and as such we know to be vigilant about health whether it be watching closely when the flu or a cold comes about or looking for larger potential problems.

 

I have no body image issues at all even though I've heard negativity about my size all my life. There is nothing wrong with talking to kids about what a healthy weight range is and about being healthy and letting them know when something is not healthy. My ds losing 8 lbs is a perfect example of when discussing weight is the right thing to do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A GF diet does not have to be low-carb. My child who is GF gets lots of carbs in her diet- GF grains, starchy veggies, fruit, etc. She just does not eat wheat, barley, rye, or any of the other gluten-containing grains.

 

 

Right. I don't remember saying that a gf diet is low carb. My family is gf and we ate tons of carbs. I later decided to make us low carb and eat a more paleo focused diet. That's when I realized that my kids need carbs.

[Lisbeth]

Only when my underweight 5th percentile kid fell off the charts. That was when a lot of bloodwork was done for several months. No issues with the pediatrician once his bloodwork was okay and he maintain steady growth. This kid grows in spurts though and the pediatrician know that after so many years. Only older son is normal weight, the rest of the family are all underweight.

 

 

This happened to us, too. She was always tiny, but fell off of her steady growth chart. Bone study, everything was done.

 

Nothing was wrong. She is upping the protein intake and starting to get back on track. She has multiple food allergies and is on top of it a very picky eater. It is a challenge.

[dirty ethel rackham]

My oldest, 10 lbs 11 oz at birth and 20 lbs at 5 months, grew up to be a very skinny, underweight kid. But, he has always been a healthy, non-picky eater. He doesn't eat a lot at one sitting (at least less than you would expect for a teen boy - just reasonable servings,) but grazes as long as food is available. He is now 5'11" and almost 130 lbs (now that he had a weight training class in college.) My other two are also very thin (and on the low end of BMI), but they are a little more solidly built. We did have an issue for my middle son who had sensory issues and was, thus, a very picky eater. He was very underweight for a while, but, once he expanded his list of acceptable foods (through therapy), he started to add on a healthy amount of weight. I was always "underweight" from toddlerhood on until after my first child was born. My husband was always really skinny too.

[Crimson Wife]

 

Right. I don't remember saying that a gf diet is low carb. My family is gf and we ate tons of carbs. I later decided to make us low carb and eat a more paleo focused diet. That's when I realized that my kids need carbs.

 

 

Gotcha. I guess I'm a bit sensitive because I've heard a lot of ignorant people going on and on about how dangerous GF diets supposedly are for kids because they need carbs in their diet. I agree that growing children typically need carbs, and wanted to correct any misinterpretation that GF automatically = LC.

[Mom-ninja.]

 

Gotcha. I guess I'm a bit sensitive because I've heard a lot of ignorant people going on and on about how dangerous GF diets supposedly are for kids because they need carbs in their diet. I agree that growing children typically need carbs, and wanted to correct any misinterpretation that GF automatically = LC.

 

Yeah, I've had people tell me I'm depriving my youngest of essential nutrients because I don't allow any gluten in the house. He is the only one of my kids who doesn't need to avoid gluten. I guess some people feel that wheat (cause that's what most people associate gluten with) is necessary for health kind of how some people think one has to consume dairy to be healthy.

 

The only thing I need to pay attention to is to make sure we all get enough fiber. For me no problem but my two older kids don't eat enough fruit and veggies daily to get enough. I've started added fiber to baked goods and added brown rice back into our diet.

[J-rap]

Weird -- I posted here last night, but I don't see it now... I must not have hit the final "Post."

 

My #5 was low birth rate and off the charts (low) by about 6 months. She never had baby fat, and was diagnosed as Failure to Thrive (for lack of any other explanation). She was just skinny as a rail, all the time. Her arms were so skinny (and therefore weak) that she couldn't open our back door (which sticks) til she was almost 7 years old! She was always happy and seemed to eat a lot. They wanted to hospitalize her with a feeding tube at about age 2, but we got a second opinion at Mayo Clinic, and they ran every test they could think of and determined that she was fine. As long as she was progressing on her own chart (which they made for me), they weren't worried.

 

She had a big diaper pin holding up her pants til she was about 10 years old! (And because she was homeschooled, she didn't care. :))

 

She is now a senior in high school, 5'5" and weighs 100 pounds! She is very healthy and happy. :)

[Mommy22alyns]

Sorry, I didn't think this thread would get contentious. I was a pretty small kid and only shot up in height around 15. And I was still very thin. She could just have my early genes.

[Denisemomof4]

This was a serious concern of mine for years and years. My daughter's weight was in the 20th percentile, her height in the 95th. She ate and ate and never gained and you could see all her bones.

 

She is about to start her period and she has gained 25 pounds since October! She's still slim, but a normal slim now!

 

As a mom who spent a TON of time worrying, I'd say to just hold off until puberty and wait to see what happens. She's eating well and in competitive sports like my dd was. The docs kept telling me it was normal.

 

At her worst, she was 5'2 and weighed 72 lbs. Now she's 5'6.5 and weighs 100 lbs! She looks good!

[stripe]

Has your doctor taken you to task about this?

I would say the doctor has been firmly encouraging that I continue to keep offering food, but not mean. However, the weight and BMI percentile went up, so there was some small success in the past year.