High Caolorie Foods

[parmar1]

Hi all..I hope someone can help and give me some ideas
My LO is 15 months and is rather on the small side. She is good with variety but doesnt have a big appetite. The problem is that she is getting up at night for a bottle and although I am working at phasing that out by offering it diluted, I want to increase her calorie intake during the day. Just want to ensure that she has the most amount of calories to hopefully keep her going through the night.
Any ideas - she currently loves custard and bread sticks with cream cheese dips. She eats lots of cheese and I drizzle her pasta with olive oil..

TIA

Ash
x

[mmom]

Cheese and oils are definitely great source.  Anything that is a fat source will be dense with calories.  Avocados, fish oil, nut sources (I don't know if your LO has had any nuts yet), some meats, etc.  I know any full fat dairy products will add fat.  My LO can't have milk, but he gets a lot of coconut products which are naturally fattening.

[deb]

I was going to suggest avocado; the girls LOVE to dip veggies in guacamole; I've also been know to take a container of guacamole, open it, and add some olive oil and/or flaxseed oil. We also mix our own salad dressings with olive and flaxseed oil.  Fish oil, great for brain development, a spoonful every day! Full-fat yogurt, butter (we use butter AND olive oil on pasta together!), flaxseed oil, dark meat instead of white meat chicken and turkey. Coconut oil is yummy, VERY stable for high-heat cooking (won't break down like olive oil, so perfect for frying and nice for popping popcorn!), and loaded with good fats and even immune boosting properties. It's also a great source of lauric acid; the only better natural source is actual breast milk! You can even eat a spoonful of that right off the spoon!

[mmom]

Oh, I forgot about flaxseed! I add that to all of my LO's baked goods.

[nwmm]

I need to read later.  Thanks!

[~*Nicole*~]

This is going to sound really stupid but.....

where do you find flaxseed oil/wheat germ/fish oil/coconut milk ?

These are things I have never, in my whole life, purchased and I would love to start using them to cook and give to DD etc. but I am clueless!

[mmom]

Not stupid at all!! I get fish oil online - I use Carlson's Fish oil and they have a children's supplement, so I purchase theirs.  As for flax, you can find that in the health food section of most grocery stores or in any health food stores around you.  Wheat germ is normally in the same sections.  Coconut milk is where the "mexican" foods are in my store.  We buy Goya's brand and it is where the beans and other mexican products are.

[clazzat]

Cheese sauce is brilliant for extra calories - make it with full-fat milk and it is very fattening!

[mum101]

Definitely avocados, anything with good fat like the olive oil you are using.

I add dry formula to DS's breakfast (weetbix with cows milk), I give cream cheese, and add formula to low fat things like baked beans.  Encouraging them to take smoothies would be good too, you can add full fat milk and high fat yoghurt to bananas and raspberries to make a great meal.  DS eats his with a spoon.  When he really needed to regain weight I'd give him peanut butter to eat off a teaspoon after he'd finished his meal to add calories and (good) fat.  I found a difference in fat in yoghurt varies from .01% to 10 %, so I buy just him the 10% one.

I think when they don't eat much it's more a case of making each mouthful count. 

http://www.pediatrics.emory.edu/divisions/neonatology/dpc/calories.html
This site has lots of ideas, I don't know about adding so much butter and cheese like they say, a bit too much bad fats!  I'd rather use avocado or formula to bulk up meals.

[mmom]

From what I have read, saturated fat (butter and cheese) is not an issue at this age.  That is why Peds all recommend full fat dairy.  My LO doesn't get a lot of it because he can't eat dairy.  But for those that do, they are fine.   The only issue with butter is that if you are using it to flavor foods, you might run into issues with children not liking the flavors of real foods without tons of butter.

[deb]

The fat in butter has cholesterol - good cholesterol - which is actually crucial for brain and nerve development. There has been a LOT of research into fats and oils lately and the growing consensus is that veggie oils are actually much worse for you than the naturally saturated fats like butter, and coconut oil is one of the very best. For one thing, veggie oils tend to go rancid - get oxygenated - more quickly without tasting bad - this is why antioxidants are good for those of us who've consumed too much of that stuff over the years.

The hydrogenated fats and oils, though, you want to TOTALLY avoid - they are BAD BAD BAD!!!!!  Those are the "trans fats" and there is nothing good for a human in there!

[mmom]

Saturated fat is not good for adults period.  Peanut butter (natural PB, not processed) provides "healthy" fat and not artery clogging fat.  If an adult has high cholesterol or heart conditions, one would favor peanut butter to butter any day.

That being said, we are talking about our LO's and they need fat period.  It doesn't matter for them.

[Peek-a-boo]

Good ideas for high calorie foods. 

Which fats are good/bad/better for adults is a really controversial issue with a variety of camps.  If you're worried about what kind of fat you to feed your LO, it would be good to consult your doctor and/or do some research so you feel comfortable with the answer at which you arrive. 

[Mashi]

Hi all..I hope someone can help and give me some ideas
My LO is 15 months and is rather on the small side. She is good with variety but doesnt have a big appetite. The problem is that she is getting up at night for a bottle and although I am working at phasing that out by offering it diluted, I want to increase her calorie intake during the day. Just want to ensure that she has the most amount of calories to hopefully keep her going through the night.
Any ideas - she currently loves custard and bread sticks with cream cheese dips. She eats lots of cheese and I drizzle her pasta with olive oil..
TIA
Ash
x

IMO it is not just adding fats that is important.  Is she getting enough grains and bulk in her diet as well, for instance?   I have recently found this website http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/toddler/feeding_your_toddler.html and found it helpful in reminding me exactly how much or little food DS needs....what servings sizes are, how many calories he needs in the day, and some sample menu plans and things!!

[deb]

We should probably start a separate thread about fats - good, bad, and otherwise - in the Healthy Living section. Lots of info we need to know, but a lot of it's not not really kid-specific.