Dr concerned about DD weight--making me feel like a horrible mom - Page 2

[mysticmomma]

Wow, your dd's diet looks great!!!! I think she's eating a fine amount.

[StrawberryFields]

Originally Posted by skylarsmom08

as for a run down of the last two days
Today--
Breakfast:
2 waffles w/butter and oatmeal, 2-3oz juice
Lunch:
(I'm out of mac & cheese or I would've offered)
Offered/ATE--veggie patty, peanut butter crackers (ate 1), french toast w/ peanut butter and syrup, potato salad, mini muffins (she ate 4/5), nutrigrain bar, 3 oz juice, handful of cheerios (she gave about half to the dogs)
She's going to go over to grandma's later and I'm packing goldfish crackers and a nutrigrain bar
She'll have mac & cheese for dinner and hopefully some fruit

Breakfast:
1 packet of oatmeal, 1 large banana, 1 cup juice
Lunch/snack:
goldfish crackers (1/4 cup), nutrigrain bar, animal crackers (5), freeze dried strawberries and bananas, couple french fries, few bites of banana
(tried giving her mac & cheese but she wouldn't eat it.
Dinner:
1 packet mac & cheese

I'm a little confused... she only ate the bolded, or she ate everything except the non-bolded during that one lunch? Because it looks to me like she is eating a ton! You say breakfast was a packet of oatmeal, a large banana, and a cup of juice? My nearly 4 year old would not finish that much food at one meal! Seriously, I don't think the quantity and variety is really that bad at all--I would just focus on getting the sugars down and the protein/fat up a little by making small changes to the food she already eats! Oatmeal packets and nutrigrain bars and juice are pretty high in added sugar, could you just do some small tweaking to make them lower in sugar and higher in fat? Maybe get plain instant oatmeal and add just a drizzle of sweetener along with some mashed berries and non-sweetened whipped heavy cream? Or find a muffin recipe you can use in place of nutri-grain bars, half the sugar, switch half the white flour for whole grain and add some berries? Then you can split the muffins and serve them with butter to add some calories and fat.

[kimiij]

I think the amount looks fine but she needs more protein and fats.

Lots of good suggestions so far. I just wanted to add that since the mac and cheese is a nightly thing, it will be a really good opportunity to add in calories there:

Try:

Add pureed avocado to the mac and cheese.
Add pureed egg to the mac and cheese.
Add butter/oil (olive of flax seed) to the mac and cheese

[SimonMom]

What about eggs? I don't think you mentioned if she eats eggs. My 19 month old will eat lots of eggs.

[marisa724]

Good suggestion! My 15m old will eat hard-boiled eggs every day, two or three if you let him. He also likes scrambled (you can add a splash of cream or whole milk) and what we call 'face eggs' - it's two eggs plain, scrambled, cooked in a pan flat like a pancake. We cut out a face like a jackolantern when served. Of course, cook in a pat of real butter!

I agree that it looks like she's eating a good amount of food, so the appetite is there, it just needs to be lower in sugar (juice, nutrigrain bars) and higher in fat and protein. I wonder if you could find a substitute for the cereal bars that are more nutritious too - I know there are Nutripals (designed for toddlers) but they may be high in sugar too. I can imagine that this late in your pregnancy you need to use convenience food more than you might otherwise!

[DianeMarie]

Okay---I saw what you wrote as far as your daugher's daily food intake for yesterday and today. My feeling about the foods she is eating is that you are letting her have too much junk and she is filling herself up on empty carbs, like the Goldfish crackers and Nutrigrain bars and peanut butter crackers and animal crackers and mini muffins and not eating a "balanaced" diet. It appears as if she is eating a whole lot of carbs and nothing else, and filling up on junky, snacky type foods. Also, the juice doesn't help. When feeding her a meal, DO NOT OFFER Goldfish, animal crackers, peanut butter crackers, Cheerios---those are not foods for a meal. And, with a meal, I think that she should drink water, not juice, because that is also filling her up to where she won't eat other stuff except the junk since she isn't hungry. And, I also do not believe that children "won't starve". If you get kids used to eating crap, they will starve themselves so that their parents will give them the junk food just so they eat something. She is still young enough to be able to "mold" healthy eating, but you have to start by cutting out the junk.

If you want to give her juice, I think you should go buy yourself a juicer and make your own juice---no matter how "healthy" the bottles of juice in the stores may seem, they're not. Buy a juicer and put lots of veggies in there---carrots, green stuff, and fruits also----she gets the benefit of not only the juice but a lot of the body of the vegetables and fruits because the pulp comes out too. If she won't eat vegetables and fruit, you can get them into her with homemade juice---and the juice you make at home will be fresh and not have the preservatives and sugar and other junk in it like the store bought stuff. Avocados are great too----lots of fat and calories, but good ones!!

I am assuming she has no problem with dairy if she eats mac and cheese, but American cheese slices (which is what I am assuming you are referring to) is junk. Hard cheese is good. If you're going to give her cheese, make sure it is the good stuff. As far as the mac and cheese, instead of giving her pre-packaged stuff, make it yourself, with whole milk, butter, cheddar cheese......you can use whole-wheat pasta, but I think if it were me, I'd use regular pasta.

It is obvious that when she wake sup she is hungry, because she is eating 2 waffles and you give her a NutriGrain bar "if she's still hungry". BEFORE she eats the waffles, see if she'll eat full fat yogurt while she's hungry. (And, you say you've been feeding her----put the yogurt there and give her a spoon and let her feed herself. I know they make bowls with suction cups on the bottom so she wouldn't be able to throw it across the room.) By throwing food across the room, she is getting you to "panic" over what she is eating and she is eating crap because she knows you'll give her anything just to eat something.

Since it seems like she eats the most at breakfast, will she eat eggs? How about bacon? How about homemade pancakes---this way you can make them with whole milk and butter, instead of a pre-packaged waffle. You can also get a waffle press and make the waffles yourself and do the same thing as the pancakes. How about peanut butter on toast? Peanut butter is loaded with calories, fat AND protein.

Does she eat any meat, for the protein? Perhaps you could try some chicken----if you made mac and cheese from scratch, you could also throw chicken in there. How about something like a tuna casserole? Something like that is full of fat and calories!! And it is tasty!!

My thinking here is that she isn't eating because she isn't hungry----she is filling up on carb and juice all day. During the day, so not give her the juice----only water. Also---how about doing smaller meals more frequently, rather than 3 big meals? That could adjust her metabolism a little bit better, and you'd be able to give her things like a piece of fruit or cut up veggies instead of the same old carbs all the time. I wanted to ask this---why did she eat freeze fried strawberries instead of fresh berries for breakfast?

It certainly seems like she is eating the most and the best at breakfast ( and that is probably because she has gone all night without drinking the juice!!), so I'd concentrate on getting good food into her at that point in the day. She does eat quite well for breakfast, from a "volume" standpoint, and she is eating decent stuff----it's just the rest of the day that looks like she doesn't want to eat.

Instead of going crazy and piling heavy cream, butter and other calorie-laden stuff into/onto her food, try to make a *gradual* change that can sustain her long term---the thing you DON'T want to do is jump-start an obesity thing with her. Get high calorie and fat things in her, but in GOOD ways!!

I also thought about the sleeping issue, and how you thinking that by her sleeping so much, it is good---but it could be bad and the way the her body is compensating for not enough nutrients and calories/fat/energy.

You're not a bad mama......but for all of us to be more well informed about the food choices me make and pass on to our families is never a bad thing!!

[lil_earthmomma]

Just wait until your new milk comes in after baby is born, your toddler is going to chub right up!

(Ask me how I know! )

[skylarsmom08]

thanks for all the posts ladies!
I've really been monitoring her diet since our apt. (looking at the WHO chart for breastfed babies made me feel A LOT better about her weight)
I've been tracking her cals and she eats about 700-800 cals a day in addition to the cals she gets from 4-5 nursings. So she's eating an appropriate amount, she just splits the majority of it up into breakfast and dinner.
I bought some bowls that suction to her tray and a bunch of little spoons and she'll now eat yogurt again (if she has a spoon to play with, she'll let me feed her I now give her the yogurt at lunch along with cut up fruit and that seems to be working to get her to eat lunch. (I'm going to try mixing the yogurt and oatmeal tomorrow and see if she'll eat it)
She still gets the juice--gets about 3-4 oz after breakfast and 3-4 oz after dinner. So, it's not filling her up, she's getting extra calories and it gives her 2 servings of vegetables. I KNOW it's high in sugar, but to me, they are acceptable sugars.
I'm still working on adding protein to her diet. I just got little cheese shapes so I'm going to try to get her to eat those as a snack. She doesn't eat eggs or any other meats so that's going to be our biggest obstacle. (i'm working on introducing beans and peanut butter, but I swear she's the pickiest eater on the planet)
Are there any protein supplements that are liquid (like a vitamin)? I've tried smoothies and milkshakes and she won't drink them

[skylarsmom08]

lil_earthmomma--This is what I keep hearing, so I'm just trying to buckle down until then.
She's starting to want to nurse more now (I call them nips more than nursings since they're really short little stops) so I'm hoping once there's more milk, she'll pick up the nursing a little...it would help me not be so concerned about protein and fat consumption.

[Yulia_R]

I honestly very concerned about her diet. It sounds like she mostly eats not healthy food (crackers, mac & cheese, lots of sugars). I don't see much proteins in her diet. Also someone gave advice about soymilk; I think soymilk is really bad for you. If you do a quick googling why unfermented soy is bad, you will find a lot of info. Especially soymilk: highly processed and usually full of sugar. I would NEVER gave soy milk to my kids, my dh got his thyroid messed up by soy milk. Rice milk: recent studies showed that it increases chances of cancer http://www.speciation.net/Public/New...3/15/3519.html
.

If it were my child, I would make sure to introduce her healthy food. RAW milk from a local organic dairy (cow or goat), raw milk cheese (Organic Valley makes great Raw Mild Chedar, can be found in Whole Foods). Home cooked meats (for example, boiled chicken or home made backed meat balls with ground bison and ground veggies. I usually use 1 lb of ground bison and I grind 2 zucchinis, 1/2 onion, 1-2 cloves of garlic, a handful of baby carrots, 2-3 eggs, 1/2 cup of barley or oat flakes. Bake: 400 F for about 40-45 minutes). Sprouted refrigerated multi-grain bread and sprouted refrigerated hemp bread/bagels (both can be found in Whole Foods) with raw butter and butter and cheese are great. I'd also make her popsicles. I play with the recipe, but just to give you an idea, it usually goes something like that: 1 banana, 1 apple or pear, plenty of dry organic coconut flakes, Artisana raw coconut butter (has both coconut flesh and oil in it, can be found in Whole Foods), raw nuts: cashews, almonds, pecans, walnuts, raw cow milk and sometimes raw butter. Blend it all till it's all nice and smooth and freeze in popsicles.
Also some organic grains (quinoa, buckwheat, brown rice, etc) cooked in home made chicken broth are very tasty and nutritious. Just to give you few ideas.

And of course, offering veggies is always nice. Avocado is great too.
Hope this helps.

[Ruthla]

I was between pediatricians before DD2 was born, so DD1 didn't get any weight checks right before her sister was born. I know she got skinny when I was pg, and I know she filled out by the time DD2 was 2 weeks old. I suspect that, had she gone in for her "15m well baby visit", (my girls are 16.5m apart) we'd have gone through the same thing you're going through now (except that DD1 was a lot shorter!)

Keep on offering her healthy foods and encourage her to eat it, but don't worry too much. She'll likely gain weight when the new baby is here and you're full of rich milk.

[intunement]

Some tricks

We have to use lots of tricks to get a good amount of food into my son, who also started walking early, and often doesn't eat much during the day. We try to give him lots of high quality fats, such as avocado, coconut milk, ground flax seeds, and olive oil. If we find a food he'll eat, we try to sneak some calories into it by adding some of those things mentioned above. It really does help, but we work hard to get every bite into him. We'll make some pasta for him, and drizzle it with olive oil, Parmesan, and flax meal. We also find that he'll be more willing to eat something if it is what we are eating. We definitely keep nursing - it's one of my best ways to ensure his health.

[ms.shell]

a good tip i got from somewhere is "hiding" baby food meat purees in stuff. for example, if you make her mac and cheese from scratch, you could try to stir in a jar of chicken baby food.

another thing is, if you make a good bone broth (chicken stock), then you can cook noodles or rice or vegs or whatever in the broth instead of water.

when my older ds went through a mac and cheese phase during toddlerhood, i refused to make it plain. i would always stir in some veggie, whether it was a package of frozen broccoli or mixed veggies, or a can of organic tomatoes...our favorite was frozen mustard greens. I would just put the noodles and frozen veggies in the water at the same time and cook a few extra minutes.

if i were you, i would definitely stop buying and offering the nutri grain bars. maybe you could make her some peanut butter cookies instead.
i also like the suggestion upthread to stir in powdered formula with her oatmeal or mac and cheese or anything you can put it in. or she might like to drink pediasure...i would try that or formula before i used carnation instant breakfast. jmo

[Amandamanda]

Originally Posted by buttercups.nest

My LLL leader says to look at the World Health Organization growth charts...they're for breastfed babies.

yeah this.

my dd is 18 months old and only 18 or so lbs and actually her pedi has never even really thought it was an issue. she has always gained weight so he isnt concerned.

their diets sound pretty similar too..

has she ever lost weight or is she just slow to gain?

[thefreckledmama]

My youngest is 20 months and barely 21 lbs soaking wet. She always has and continues to hit all her developmental milestones on time or before. Is rarely sick, and is very active and happy.

Doctors rely MUCH too heavily on growth charts. They're mearly a guide, and as long as a child is perfectly healthy and "normal" in ever other area, shouldn't be used as a scale of health in a child.

[SandyMom]

My niece was 19 lbs at 16 mos and my sil was stressed out all the time and feeling like bad mom no matter how much we tried talking her out of it. ( it's not your fault!!!!) One thing they found helpful was kiddie florish drops. I'm not sure what all is in them but it did seem to help her appetite.
You've gotten some great suggestions.
I agree that it looks like your dd could benefit from some protein and also from some healthy fats - omega 3's particularly. Sooooo important for growing brains!!!!
Coconut oil is a good fat that many kids like - we put it on popcorn - delicious!
Another thing I do is make a batch of chicken stock:
Put a whole chicken in a big stock pot with a chopped onion, garlic, celery, parsley, sea salt, whatever else you want. Cover with water and simmer all day on medium heat.

Then you can remove the chicken and use it for whatever you want - chicken soup, enchiladas, burritos, tacos, caseroles etc...
Also, LO will sit and eat chunks of chicken dipped in ketchup. Or gravy if I have it.
Also you'll have 4-5 quarts of super nutritious chicken broth that you can use in lots of things!
Cook rice in it instead of water.
Add some to the mac cheese when you're stirring it together.
I even put it in spaghetti sauce! It adds healthy protein and fat and lots of flavor as well.
Also, if you keep it in the fridge the fat will form on top and you can use that
to cook with as well - like when you're sauteing something.
What about those Applegate pure beef hot dogs? Those were another thing we found my niece would eat. They're nitrate free and taste really good.

I would try not to worry so much about weight and focus more on replacing the processed foods with healthier whole foods. Especially protein!

Good luck.

[organicmidwestmama]

Originally Posted by skylarsmom08

thanks for the food tips.
RE: the juice--i'm usually against juice, but resorted to that since she won't eat during the day. 8 oz is the usual (a couple oz after breakfast with the majority during the afternoon). The reason I chose this juice is because it has vegetables and other healthy foods (wheat grass, barley grass, blue green algae, garlic, artichoke and the list goes on). I figured if she's not eating at least she was getting SOME nutrients.
Also, I try giving her mac & cheese for lunch and she won't eat it, she'll only eat it at night. I just tried giving her waffles for lunch (which she ate 2 of at breakfast) and she wouldn't touch them

as for a run down of the last two days
Today--
Breakfast:
2 waffles w/butter and oatmeal, 2-3oz juice
Lunch:
(I'm out of mac & cheese or I would've offered)
Offered/ATE--veggie patty, peanut butter crackers (ate 1), french toast w/ peanut butter and syrup, potato salad, mini muffins (she ate 4/5), nutrigrain bar, 3 oz juice, handful of cheerios (she gave about half to the dogs)
She's going to go over to grandma's later and I'm packing goldfish crackers and a nutrigrain bar
She'll have mac & cheese for dinner and hopefully some fruit

Breakfast:
1 packet of oatmeal, 1 large banana, 1 cup juice
Lunch/snack:
goldfish crackers (1/4 cup), nutrigrain bar, animal crackers (5), freeze dried strawberries and bananas, couple french fries, few bites of banana
(tried giving her mac & cheese but she wouldn't eat it.
Dinner:
1 packet mac & cheese

please do not be offended by what i am saying but basically your kids is living on carbs/refined/processed grains- oatmeal and mac and cheese froma package, highly processed cereal, waffles i am assuming come from a box, ect. she eats almost no fats or proteinwhich isnot good for a baby/toddler, or really anyonein my opinion. children under 2 in particular NEED lots of good fat and protein (not trans fats of course but fat that comes from unrefined oils like virgin olive oil, coconut oil or coconut milk, organic meat, fatty fish like salmon, whole milk or yogurt or kefir, cultured organic butter ect.

i realize she is picky but you have a large part to do with her pickyness. if children are offered lots of refined and processed starchy/carby foods it becomes like an addiction for some. i was a juice addicted kid, my mom assumed that making freshly squeezed carrot juice was good for me. i ended up with a mouth full of cavities. the american academy of pediatrics recomends less then 4oz of juice a day for all kids.

i think you seriously need to do some reading, talk to a nutritionist, and learn about whole foods and how they can help your baby be well nourished.

[AmmiK]

It has been like a month... Does this mama have an update? I would love to find out if she has altered her DD's diet for the better?

[arb]

I just found this thread and had the same thought! And I was about to recommend, for the second time tonight, books by nutritionist Ellyn Satter. A bit of what she says seems out of date to me but her *philosophy* of feeding children is spot-on. I loved her book "Child of Mine."

I also found this great website recently: http://itsnotaboutnutrition.squarespace.com/