"failure to thrive" in 16 month old ~ help

[rossilu]

hi!  my son was a chubby (98th percentile for height and weight), breastfed baby up until 9 months at which he weighed about 23 pounds.  he is now 16 months old and only weighs 24 pounds (30th percentile for weight).  the dr. was concerned at his 12 month check up but told me to wait till this appt.  well ~ now i am VERY concerned.  he has never been a "big" eater.  we didn't start solids till he was almost 6 months old and he never really took to it (HATED baby food from the start!) so it has been difficult to get him to eat.  i think he eats a fairly wide variety of foods, but he just doesn't eat a-lot of food.  my 2 older boys were also small, but never dropped on their own growth curve, and they were/are good eaters ~ so i need some help.  i am taking him in tomorrow for lab work, and we have an appointment w/ a nutritionist next week, but what can i do now?
today he has had

breastmilk
string cheese
4 ounces orange juice
1/2 small pancake
1/2 veggie sausage patty
a bite of hash browns

breastmilk
1/4 grilled cheese
1/4 banana
1/2 dan active

1 ounce chocolate milk (1st time, he won't ever drink any milk...except mine...so i caved and added a drop of chocolate syrup, he still didn't want it)
10 teddy grahams
a few bites of sweet potatoes

handful of multigrain cheerios
handful of dried apple and strawberry
a few ounces of water
1/2 dan active


for dinner we are having breaded chicken (which he likes but only eats a few bites), mashed potatoes, baked carrots and salad

suggestions?
thanks!

[Jonahs Mom]

Hi,
I don't have any advice for you, but wanted to let you know that my dh was 35 pounds in kindergarten, well below his classmates. He is absolutely normal now, and caught up soon after, but he was like that too.

[Mom2katiebug]

Well, if my DD ate that I would be elated!!!  She's a couple months younger (14MO) but eats like a total bird.  A few days ago it was 30 blueberries, about 12 cheerios and about 3 bites of chicken and about 10 oz. of formula for the entire day.  Another day her entire lunch consisted of 3 mandarin oranges and a few sips of milk (not even an ounce).  Is it just the weight issue that is concerning the doc or are there other things too - like developmental delays?  If it's just weight, I'm not sure that I would worry too terribly much.  I've heard SO many stories about "light weight" babies that are totally normal.  It really is one of the only areas that they can control in their lives right now.  The bloodwork should help you know more but they could just be checking for iron levels, etc.  I have started to give my DD vitamins to supplement what she isn't getting through her food. 

[rossilu]

thanks for the responses!  well, after that last post he didn't eat anything else.  he didn't even want the teddy grahams at dinner time (after he spit everything else out).  it is only a weight issue...there are no other delays.  i think the main concern is that he has dropped on his growth curve (drastically) over the last several months.  if he started as a "light weight" it wouldn't be as much of a problem...know what i mean?  oh well, hopefully we'll get this figured out soon.  thanks again!

[Lana]

Have you tried smoothies with full fat yogurt and milk?  We found that was a great way to get fruit and calories into Ewan when he was younger.  He was always really small too but now he is on the 50%

[binxyboo]

Has your doctor taken genetics into consideration, ie are you and DH "small" ?

[katriona]

ITA with Casey -- on some days I'd be totally happy with what your LO is socking away!

If we have particularly bad food day, like today (there's a sore throat bug going around, and he seems to have it), I mash up an avocado and include it wherever i can -- fortunately he's a big fan. This reassures me somewhat that he's getting EFOs and a goodly amount of calories per oz. that and an egg stirred into something cooked -- it doesn't add much to the bulk, but the calories and protein are good.

Good luck! Try not to worry too much.

Katy