i don't think this is healthy

[girlmom]

i took my daughter in for a check up and shots. she just turned 9 months old. she was born at 37 weeks but a healthy 7lbs 14oz. never has had any health problems. well she weighed 15lbs exactly yesterday. but she was at 70% for height. she can crawl, she can stand with support and walk around furniture holding on to it. yes shes a little small but the doctor (who i had never seen before) said she needed to gain some weight and i should... get this.. give her butter and fatty foods so she gains weight. does this sound crazy to anyone other then me?

just for the record all my girls are underweight. my 7 year old weighs 40lbs but is off the charts for height. i just have string beans for daughters. long and skinny but is that really unhealthy?

[DoulaMama]

I think you should ignore the advice that you feel is not right for your family. I was told the same thing- my first son was 17# at a year old and they wanted me to quit breastfeeding, feed him icecream daily and load up the fats. I have zero issue with fat. Fat doesn't make you fat...It's great for our brains and bodies etc, but I'm not going to stress about my sons weight when his father is a string bean and weighs 30#'s less than I do! I just fed him normally, continued to nurse him and guess what? He's 6yo, weighs 38 lbs, and he's average height. I worried for nothing. This is one reason I don't go in for well baby visits. We don't vaccinate though, so I feel no need other than a once yearly visit. Do what you feel is right!

[nuthinbutpink]

That's ridiculous. Feed her a normal diet.

[Daisy Mae]

Maybe try some adding some healthy fatty food like avocados? They mush/puree pretty easily.

[girlmom]

thank ladies i just didn't feel right about giving my 9 month old sticks of butter and cartons of ice cream. they yell about too many over weight children and now they yell when your child is under weight. i can't win.

[Foxy]

I know here (Europe) we are told to add a little fat in the baby food, like milk, butter or oil. Not to gain weight, but more because the fat in the food helps develop the child's brain.

[zanacal]

I would ignore it too, that's obviously how your children are built and you know if she's healthy and growing and eating well enough.

[atomic sagebrush]

NO, it doesn't sound crazy to me at all because children under age 5 and esp. under age 2, NEED fat in their diet so their brains can develop normally. Kids under age 2 are supposed to be drinking either breastmilk or whole cow's milk.

[glory]

I have to agree with AS, that the fats are important. Her height to weight ratio is low and although it is the same for all your kids, you don't want her to loose more weight and then she would be in failure to thrive category. My second son weighed more than your daughter and was labelled FTT.

I don't particularly think you have to worry too much since your other kids are similar, but like another poster said you can get good calories and fats in just to boost her a bit.

Avocado is a good one, olive oil in scrambled eggs, an extra bottle of milk a day. I think as long as she is eating and not refusing feeds then there is less to worry about.

[Flava]

I think you doc is crazy! Because he said to give her butter and fatty food to gain weight. He didn't say give it to her because it's good for brain development. That's a different story.

[girlmom]

i wil def try to add some healthy fats. she's still on formula and pretty much mushy foods. she cut her first tooth last week so im still a little nervous about giving her anything that doesn't disolve easily. doc just said to start pouring butter over everything and give her milkshakes stuff like that.

[glory]

Thats why avaocado is good, it mushes right up easily. If she isn't dairy intolerent, full cream yogurt and cheese are good options too.

What is her curve like on her growth chart? Your a mum of 5, so I am sure I am only telling you something that you already know. But your daughter was born at a really good weight, they would assume that weight would stay in the same percentile, say 50-75 percent. But as it is now, she has dropped off her curve, if it has been a steady decline they will start to worry, if it was a sharp drop soon after birth but then has plateaued then they wouldn't worry so much.

Below is a chart that I found on the internet, it is basically saying that she is about 3 percentile, which can be absolutely fine, like I said my second son become FTT because he went from 75 to under 10 percentile. There was a lot of worry about him (and at the time it was justified) My third son has always been 10 percentile, he was born little and has gained on his 10 percentile all the time, there has never been any worry about his weight.

I only mention because I don't think there is anything wrong with your girl, she is hitting all her developmental milestones fine and I know plenty of kids way under the charts that are the smartest kids around. But if her weight continues to drop, then there may be something going on ie allergy/celiac/reflux/absorption problems and that is probably why your dr wants to see if you can get some weight on her, if she can keep the weight on then there probably won't be an issue.

And I know it sounds loopy to be told to just add butter, go with your instincts add what you feel fine with, but I just want to say I have had the same advice from some pretty special paediatricians.

http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/who/grchrt_girls_24hdcirc-l4w_9210.pdf

[girlmom]

i will try the avacado and see if she likes that. i did try cheese and she just made this awful face and spit it all out. i know about the weight chart and its really weird i have very large babies. its just they don't gain weight once they come out. dd2 was 9lbs. dd4 was 8lbs 6oz and 3 weeks early. but they are both still very tiny. dd1 is finally gaining weight but shes 11 and getting boobs and hips already. yogurt is a good idea and its sweet so im pretty sure she will like that better then an avacado. thanks everyone

[PeonyPrincess]

My babies used to love full fat greek yoghurt with mashed up avocado mixed in. Custard is good too.

Perhaps if they had said 'Make sure you don't give the baby low fat options as they require full fat food for their development at this age' it would not have worried you so much. Unfortunately I think the low fat message is drilled into us so much as adults it is easy to freak out when full fat is mentioned. I much prefer to have full fat options myself (pre-swaying!) and just reduce portion size. They taste much better IMO.

[ELP]

said she needed to gain some weight and i should... get this.. give her butter and fatty foods so she gains weight. does this sound crazy to anyone other then me?


We was told this also with DD2 at about 2 yrs old, but she is short aswell as skinny lol. We were told to add butter to everything! This may have made her gain a few ounces but would more likely just have given her a cholesterol problem wouldn't it?? When her referral to the paedatrician came around and we informed them that both grandma's were 4ft 11" tall and built like sparrows he shook his head and wondered why on earth we had been referred with such an obvious small family history. Now DD4 is the same, tiny lol:)

I'll be following the advice above though on avacado's and healthy fats:agree: But butter on everything just seemed so extreme!

[purplepoet20]

I had the same thing with my DS1 when he was a NB. We had to see a Dr that wasn't the one we picked. He told me that DS1 who was 2wks was underweight. He said to stop nursing and start formula. With DS2 a nurse said he was under weight at 9mths (90th height & 30th for weight) but he refused to eat baby food. All he ate was normal adult veggies cut up and pasta.

After doing my own research with both of them.... The growth charts are an average of all the kids. Including the big and small babies. Older growth chart from before the 1950's (before formula and baby food) were a lot different. Back then babies were nursed and most were not fed food until 9-12mths. Mashing up food was not normal. Feeding were self led and just diced up for the baby to feed its self. Nothing fried, full of extra fat, or just unhealthy.

I have always been concerned about my kids being underweight but I perfer self-led feeding because it teaches them to know when they are full but also they develop good habits. My boys love veggies. Both my boys are above average for height and currently 25th for weight. For good fats and calories I give them avacado (sesame seeds after 2yo), banana, sweet potatoes, egg, whole grain toast, and other nuts and seeds (after 2yo).

.... Don't over stress because your baby will even out in the future but be healthier because you decided to ignore the Dr's advice on the bad fat.

[Aqua]

The doctor did not give you a bad advice. Butter is used for breatsfed babies to give them the extra boost. My family has been doing this for generations. It's a natural thing. My mom hand rolled and made butter at home which we gave my first born since she was 4 mo till she was 1. I gave her once a day starting with small amt like a cent coin. Now, for my lil one mommy is not close by, so I purchase organic butter or hand rolled from central market. For a 9 mo you can give as much as 3/4 tbsp. Keep it out of the fridge for 15-20 mins until it reaches room temp. Smoothen with your fingers and given baby. It's fine and is age old. Even I was given and I am a lean machine :superhero: