"Underweight"--is this a reason to feed an unhealthy (IMO) diet?

[peaceful_mama]

OK I really absolutely can't get this out of my head, even though I'm a pretty natural-minded person.

When I had my oldest into the WIC office for the last time, a couple months ago, they said he's "underweight."

He always has been on the lower end of the chart, maybe around 25th-ish percentile. He's now down close to 10.

He eats normally. I do not buy donuts or really anything out of the bakery. I do limit the sweets I buy. But I buy full-fat ice cream when I buy it, or make it. (It tastes better. I'm a full believer in totally enjoying something that's not good for you ) He eats full-fat dairy at home and pretty much always has--I've always had somebody under 2 in the house, it's just easier to buy one thing of yogurt and stuff like that. He eats butter on bread or toast, mayo on sandwiches, loves to dip in ranch, all that kind of stuff. And his dad loves fried stuff, unfortunately...at least most of it he makes at home so it's *healthy* fats. I'd say he eats either something fried at home, or the *occasional* mcd's or something every week.

He and his sister are maybe 4 pounds apart in weight, 2 years apart in age. (She is not overweight by any means. Just more like between 25th and 50th probably)

His dad is tall and probably also "underweight" according to charts.

He's not unhealthy-looking, it's not like you can see his ribs or anything. And he has TONS of energy, always going.

Also, I did ask for a copy of his chart. It goes back to age 2 years, 5 months. There's a height and weight every 6 months. Every time he has gained 1 to 1 1/2 pounds and 1 to 1 1/2 inches. This last time, the "underweight" visit, he had grown 1 1/2 inches and gained 1 pound--so I suppose it's possible he hit a height spurt and the weight will catch up?

He's been to the doc once a year for a school checkup the past 2 years, she never said anything.

Is there anything 'wrong' with being a little "underweight" according to some chart? They asked me if I wanted info on higher calorie/fat foods. I said no.
Is this any reason to start feeding any child a diet that will skew their taste buds into preferring "fattier" foods?? or possibly sweeter "higher calorie" foods? Because I could easily see where the child might fall into a less-active lifestyle and then be overweight because of this preference.

[cristeen]

You didn't say how old he is, but 10 percent of the population of that age will be at or below 10th percentile on the charts. That's the way statistics work. That doesn't make him "underweight" at all. If he was off the chart, that would make him underweight, and be something to think about.

But even if he were underwight, I wouldn't be down with feeding him "unhealthy" foods. I would be more concerned with making sure there weren't other issues going on, and just encourage him to eat more (often), while still listening to his body's cues.

[peaceful_mama]

He's 5. And he's pretty tall, which is where the "underweight" thing came from I think, some sort of height-to-weight ratio or something. He might be even just under the 10th but I know he's not as low as 5th.

I do think when he's home he'd benefit from reminders to eat. He's the kind of kid who will get really focused on something like the computer or busy running around outside that he won't stop till he's done. And I think I sometimes just plain out don't think about that I might need to stop and make a quick snack--I am the same type of focused person! (BUT unlike my son, I will then go overeat or eat some nasty fast food thing cause I'm starving or something and this is where my problem comes in, that and I *am* a person who developed a taste for fatty/sweet that I am still outgrowing at over-30, )

[Magelet]

I think definitely not, and most certainly not sugary foods. (I personally don't think that fatty food if it is vitamin packed animal fats is unhealthy, however, its important to feed your son healthy foods).

Stick to what you know is best for your son, and if you feel he needs to put on a little weight and isn't just growing up faster than he fills out (pretty common), then try to get him to eat more food. The WIC folks want to do well, but they don't know your family like you do, and they seem to be provided with sometimes very poor nutritional guidelines/options to recommend. Stick to your instincts on this one.

[KatWrangler]

First, I would of looked at the info they have. Maybe there were foods on there you have forgotten about that would benefit your son. Just because its high calorie doesn't mean its unhealthy.

Second, I wouldn't be alarmed yet. I think you have to look at whether he is on a natural curve. Now if its a huge drop in the charts, then yes I could see that signaling a problem.

FWIW my DD1 is tiny. She will be 4 on Feb 6th and only weighs 26 pounds and is about 37-38 inches tall.

You sound like a great Mom and are well aware of your child.

[LilacMama]

Are you sure their chart had donuts and mcdonalds on it? Maybe it had avocados, almond butter, egg yolks, olive oil, etc.

It sounds like your son is just fine to me!

[Llyra]

I would definitely not increase your offering of sugary foods, or processed starchy stuff. Nor would I start offering packaged "fried" stuff full of additives, or fast food. But I wouldn't limit fats, for a young child. Butter, olive oil, meats and fatty fish, dark-meat poultry, full-fat cheeses and yogurt, eggs, avocados, peanuts and peanut butter, nuts-- these ARE healthy foods. A low-fat diet isn't an appropriate one for a child.

FWIW, though, some kids are just thin. They're healthy, active, normal kids who happen to be thin, and will remain thin. If you offer higher-calorie foods, they'll just eat less of them, and thus still get exactly what they need to stay at their ideal weight. Thin can certainly be healthy.

So I guess I'd say that if you're confident your son is healthy otherwise, I would keep offering him good food choices, including plenty of foods rich in healthy fats, avoid junk foods, and let his appetite guide him.

[Addy's Mom]

My son's in the 75th percentile for height and has always been in the 10th percentile for weight. My family is NOT thin by any means, but my husband's is. My son just takes after my husband. I asked his pedi about it last year, to make sure he was OK (he hit the picky eater toddler stage) and she said "this is the way I like to see them." Those height and weight charts are based on real American kids, and we do tend to skew to the overweight end of things. As long and he's growing and seems healthy, I wouldn't worry about it.

[bandgeek]

He sounds fine to me and it sounds like he already has plenty of fat in his diet. My DS is on the lower end too (75% for height, 25% for weight) and I'm more concerned with overall calorie intake. It's tough to get this kid to eat! But when he does eat, it's a lot of vegetarian foods (things like meat replacements...very low-fat), veggies (no dip...he won't eat it), soymilk w/ovaltine (cow's milk constipates him), ect. Calories are what you grow and gain on. Fat is just fat. Yeah, you need a normal amount, but extra doesn't really help. I'm not even convinced it helps the truly underweight kids. They need more calories in general, not just calories from fatty foods.

[rhiOrion]

Let me give you my own story as anecdotal evidence against feeding unhealthy foods just because your kid is "underweight."

In the 8th grade I hit my adult height of 5-5. I weighed 81 pounds. I was SKINNY. REALLY skinny.

The Dr put so much emphasis on it, even asking my mom to talk to him alone, where he asked if I was anorexic. I was most certainly not.

I started drinking Ensure for breakfast. Okay, some here may say that's crap food, but I can at least see the point of that. It's better than some of what I used to eat for breakfast.

But I also started STUFFING MY FACE all the time. I got made fun of some for being so skinny, so I made a point to make sure that everyone saw me eat at lunch. That they saw me eat a LOT. My typical lunch in the 9th grade: A white bread and processed american cheese sandwich with mayo, a piece of school pizza, whatever sides came with the pizza (usually fries, etc...), a big glass of sweet tea, and THREE undercooked Otis Spunkmeyer cookies. Plus I'd be eating snacks throughout the day.

I never learned to like healthier foods because I didn't see any reason to. And nobody else ever commented on how bad for me it all was, because I was so skinny.

I was like this on up until sometime in college. Suddenly my metabolism shifted, and I started gaining weight. My pre pregnancy weight was still well within the range of normal (133 pounds), but it has been a steady increase. And because I didn't know how to eat more healthy foods I had no idea what to DO when I started gaining weight. So I started drinking diet drinks and eating 100 calorie packs, etc.

I think that if someone had taken the time to teach me about eating more calories and fat in a HEALTHY way, that I would be a healthier person. I'm trying to learn now, but it's a really hard habit to break.

So, to sum up, giving him more fat and calories in a nutrient dense way seems like a good plan. But if they suggest just getting calories into him any way you can...that seems like a bad plan.

[peaceful_mama]

I should've specified that I turned down their info because another mom told me she got their info (her dd was, and likely still is, "underweight" by thier charts)
It was a lot of unhealthy recommendations, like margarine. No way on this planet am I going to purchase, prepare, and serve a food containing fats that are *known* to cause heart disease.

Simply because some chart says my child is "underweight"

And many here have a valid point that these charts are based on what most kids his age weigh. I just did a 3 second Google search. I could not find statistics for 5 year olds, but I did find stats for age 6-11. According to what I read, 19% of kids in this range were overweight, and another 15% were very close to it.

I *have* somewhere seen a stat or two for younger kids, their rates are a little lower.

It's reasonable to think though that if about 20% of kids on the chart (at least) are overweight, or close to it....then a kid could be pretty "normal" and fall fairly low on the chart.

(I'm thinking here we look at 100 children his age, they're counting what all of them weigh and where he falls in this group...)

To the poster who never learned to eat healthy: This is *exactly* why I don't want to feed my child *whatever* just because some chart says he is underweight. I am not by any means feeding him a lowfat diet or anything like that. When I said "IMO unhealthy" I was referring to promoting feeding things like margarine. ugh.

After reading Ellyn Satter (which i read before this visit) I did start offering more items at mealtimes (her typical menus include a protein, two "starchy" items--one of them almost always a bread, and fruit, sometimes but not always a dessert.) I did notice that the kids tend to eat more in general that way. I'm fine with that. I hadn't done "double starches" out of concern for them preferring to eat only starch. Hasn't happened. (And even if they eat one meal consisting of noodles and bread--it's ONE MEAL.)
I don't have a problem with stuff like putting whole grain bread and butter on the table, making sure I offer peanut butter with the apples, etc.
I *do* have a problem with margarine, overfeeding of "treats" just because they're usually high-calorie and kids will eat them, stuff like that.

And well, the ppl at the WIC office lost a bit of credibility with me way back when ds was 2 and they cautioned me against feeding him more than 11 ounces of juice a day---and wrote this on the back of a pamphlet that gave a much more sensible guideline of 4-6 ounces!

(so then why does this bother me?! I guess in the end I can ask the doc when we are in if I want to. I was more wondering if this was a reason to schedule an appointment specifically to talk with the doc about this--and I'd say the overwhelming majority of ppl here have agreed with what I think *most* of the time, which is 'no')

you all have also really put it into a perspective I didn't think about before with those charts being based on American kids and our rates of obesity...it does sort of skew the charts for a kid like mine, doesn't it?

[Kailey's mom]

The key word I picked up on is that he is active. That explains it IMO. I was a skinny kid; didn't matter what I ate, I was just skinny. I was very active, climbing trees', outside a lot. Maybe introduce guacamole (sp) or avacado if he'll eat it. Coconut milk you can hide in other things, esp smoothies. Maybe encourage some "fatty" smoothies while he's playing? but seriously, if you as the parent are not worried, don't let the dang "chart" scare you. There had to be a child at the bottom of the chart, as well as the top kwim