BabyWhispererForums.com
EAT => Eating For Toddlers => Topic started by: Frostygrrl on January 22, 2015, 11:31:25 am
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Hiya,
My little one is really really small. She is 14mth and 7.8kg and 74cm tall only. Basically the size of a 8-9 mth old. She's not a great eater and only want to eat vege and fruit. Anything else I cook her she loses interest.
Childcare informs me that she eats the same amount as any child around her age. 12-15mth old. So although she is picky I think she eats same quantity. The only thing is she normally on drink about 80ml of full fat milk everyday, with breastfeed in morn and night.
She has a small list of food she would eat: fruits (strawberry, banana, grape), brocolli, eggs, sometimes cheese sticks. Pancakes (freshly made). She will try some meat but most of the time she spits it out. Likes chicken the best.
For Dinner all she ate is: 1 teaspoon of honey soy chicken. 3/4 punnet of 250g strawberry, 2 brocolli pieces and half a cheese stick. 1 teaspoon frittata. Everything I cook for her has extra fat, butter in it and she doesn't really eat much of it.
Not sure what to do.
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My DD2 is pretty petite as well - used to worry us. We used to call her "air plant" like the plants you don't have to feed or water. Even now that's she's hit 9YO and has grown, she's still one of the smallest kids in her grade at school - but she's also one of the healthiest and fittest. She also self-selects away from (red) meat, although she does enjoy seafood and poultry and eggs.
Keep going with the healthy food and the healthy fats, and since you're concerned maybe check with her doctor. Natalie's birth weight was about 50th %ile but since then she's been pretty consistently around the 20th %ile on most of the weight/height/head circumference measurements - but no way is she failing to thrive: the kid is so muscular it's incredible!
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How is she developmentally? Are there any concerns that she is not hitting milestones? I have had 2 DSs that were so small they were never on the charts. My one DS was a stick until he reached 1st grade then packed on the pounds! Neither one had any issues developmentally and while there was some testing (thyroid, etc) no issues were found. Developmental milestones were met so really no worries!!
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My son is really tiny too...he weighs 25lbs (11.3kg) and he'll be 3 in April.
Remember, their tummies are only the size of their fist so what might not look like a lot too you may actually be filling her up. To you take her for regular check ups? I think as long as they are maintaining their growth curve everything is ok. My doctor has never been concerned about my son's weight as he meets his milestones and is generally a happy and healthy guy.
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Yes, I would really focus on developmental things. I don't mean 'er the neighbour's kid was walking at 8 mos and mine isn't', I mean things like interacting with you, temperament (generally happy with herself?), motor skills, communication. Neither of my LOs was big at that age. LO2 was particularly dainty but bright as a button. She's just taken a big stretch at 2.5 yo and is very healthy. Don't just go by measurements.
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Hugs, I'm sorry you're worried. I agree with all the advice above, 'failure to thrive' implies inadequate/no weight gain and significant drop across centiles over a period of time, and often (though not always) goes along with other things eg developmental concerns or medical problems. Her intake sounds good to me, and just being small is not an issue in itself - that's the reason we have centile charts :). Somebody has to be on the lower centiles but they are all within the range of normal. Agree to check with your doctor but try not to let the fact she is petite be a worry to you if all else is well x
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I have a tiny one too - at 25 lbs (11.3 kg) and 35 inches, she will be 3 in April. She was 6 lbs 7 oz at birth and 18 lbs (8.2 kg) at her 1 year check up. Her doctor has never been too concerned with her size as she has continued to grow on the same curve. Doctor also said she's on track since I myself am a petite lady. If you are concerned, have a chat with her doctor.
When she was younger, I used to feed her lots of avocados and would put butter/olive oil on everything. She will not touch cheese but will drink full fat milk and eat full fat yogurt. As she's gotten older, I've learned to relax a bit more and accept that she will always be petite. But her size does not stop her as she is the loudest and most spirited kid I know IRL :).
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As pp says where is she on her charts?
My DS1 was born on the 2nd centile, reflux and feeding issues sent him below the 0.4th centile, and these days he just follows along the 0.4th ::). Someone has to be there ;). He used to be very picky but these days he is just a typical child eater really. He certainly has an appetite, and I have no developmental concerns. He is just small. He weighs 15kg at 6.5 years old ::). He wears age 3 underpants, and age 2 swimming shorts to get a snug fit on his waist. Mainly I buy age 5, so still a fair bit behind iyswim?
My 2nd child is perfectly average.
Try not to worry too much :-*. Some kids are smaller than average. How big are you and DH? That often kids the first clue as to why a baby is more petite.
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Agree with all pps regarding charts, centile lines, development.
One other thing I notice though
3/4 punnet of 250g strawberry
three quarters of a punnet of strawberries? so roughly 180g of strawberries? I'm going to guess (based on the pack DS finished off this week) this is about 10 strawberries (although depends on size of course), in one sitting, for dinner. That's a LOT of strawberries for a little girl.
Fruit is great of course, and you feel she is small and has a limited diet so you want her to eat as much as possible, I understand, and strawberries are healthy, but this is a huge portion. Even if it was "3 or 4 strawberries" from a punnet it would be quite a big portion for a toddler. A toddler portion size is about the size of their fist, often this is a quarter of a fruit but with strawberries I'd say probably 1 fruit. I always let my DS have more than his 'quota' of 2 portions of fruit per day too (for toddler it's 2 of fruit, 2 of veg), he would have blown a fuse if I'd given him quarter of a banana rather than the whole thing...but we did also have a short time when I put my foot down on fruit. It only took 2 to 3 days, the first was the worst, lots of frustrated crying in my arms when I wouldn't let him have more fruit than I had served, I explained he'd had enough fruit and if he was hungry he could have something else.
Might be worth thinking about. If she's full of strawberries she may not be hungry enough for chicken or fritata or any of the other lovely food you make.
A great tip I had from BWers when mine wouldn't eat protein - offer it at breakfast. I was nervous to change his breakfast in any way as it was so habitual, same muesli balls every day. But I tried the tip, cooked an omelet for breakfast and he ate the LOT without so much as a 'where's my muesli'. He'd been refusing omelet at lunch and dinner for months (but had eaten egg from 6 months so I knew it wasn't a true dislike more of a not want), from then on I served egg every morning and the rest of the day I could relax about protein intake, still served a small portion of meat and fish to expose him but not be so worried if he didn't eat them. I would try it. With protein, with veggies, with new foods. It isn't about forcing the new foods onto them but catching them when they are more willing to take it (and not so full of fruit).
Oh and mine is not on the 4th centile, more like 25th to 50th but still petite. He is 4yo his clothes are 2-3 years. At 2 yo he fit in 3-6 month trousers to wear as shorts.
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Has she been medically diagnosed as "failure to thrive" because if so then I'd be looking at the advice of health care professionals, which I'm sure she would be under the care of.
If she is just petite, I'd look at family members & there are probably petite family who she is like & as PP said there has to be children at 0.4 on the centiles, I have one who is at 99.9 & it was easy to worry that he ate too much... the thing is if she is walking or close to walking (although I have a petite niece who didn't walk until 17mo & at 9yo just topped her class at school & is by far the shortest child in her school year) & made it into an elite diving squad, her petite frame works well for diving, she has always been tiny, but it has never impacted her development (as even walking at 17mo is within normal range)
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Thanks all for the reply. She's fallen off the chart a lil bit when she started childcare and seems to struggle to catch up. She's slow with all her physical development but still within the range. Rolled at 6 mth. Crawled at 12 mth, stand at 14 mth... And likely to walk in the next mth or so. I'm guessing she might stay within that percentile. Will they ever catch up?
Omg liz, she 3 % now and I can't even imagine what 0.4 will be like.
I give her savoury first. And once she finish with savoury she gets dessert. Fruit and yoghurt. She often will eat like two tablespoon of savoury then cracks it or toss all her food on the floor.
Thanks for the advice liz. I've been giving her 1 to 1.5 egg for breakky 4 days a week for a mth. Now she won't eat that. Will need another protein source for the morn. I did a blood test to see if she has balance nutriance in her diet and let you know how I go.
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Omg liz, she 3 % now and I can't even imagine what 0.4 will be like.
Ahhhh, I got used to it a long time ago. Like I said, someone has to be the small one! None of my children are big - DS1 is 0.4th, DD 25th, and my new DS2 is the 2nd. I guess it is true that you do worry more down at the bottom because I never really give DD a second thought. I never weigh her etc, but I do keep half an eye on DS1 even though he is 6.
TBH I think everything sounds just fine - they are allowed to drift a bit on the centiles - and don't always catch it up the way you would like - it takes time. Falling over 2 centiles is what is concerning.
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My DS1 was off the charts small until about 1st grade. Now he is in the 86th percentile for weight!