Skinny Toddler...so worried :(

[Marnica]

My son is almost 22 months old. He is very little. He still wears size 12 mo pants and 18 mo onsies/shirts. He weighs 23 lbs which is like the 5th (if that) percentile for weight. He is very skinny. He eats what I would say is a moderate amount. He doesn't eat a ton, but it's not like he won't eat anything either. I try and get him to eat as much as I can. I have tried offering him different foods, giving him what I know he likes etc. Whenever he eats he basically will eat 3-4 bites and then be done. I can usually coax a few more bites, but I feel like it's always a struggle. I know toddlers can be picky, but he's really not picky. He eats a variety of things, it's just the AMOUNT he eats and what he eats doesn't seem to put weight on him. He poops a ton as well (2-4 times/day). I know he has some gut issues and we are working with a ND to try and work them out, but I find myself so worried about him all the time . People always comment on how small and skinny he is. It makes me want to cry!!! Does anyone else have this issue? Has it resolved? Will be evetually start putting weight on??

[isabchi]

He still nursing?

[KatWrangler]

What are you feeding him? Can you post a typical day? What is he drinking and how much?

Having 2-4 BM's a day seems like alot. But it also depends on what he is eating.

My 21 month old is about 23 pounds as well.

[Mosaic]

Is your doctor concerned? Where is he on the height curve? And has he stayed on HIS growth curve (as opposed to comparing it to other kids)?

Honestly, I don't see anything here that would make me worry. DD was about 22 pounds at her 2yr appt, and about 31 inches. It was not a concern AT ALL. She was healthy, just smaller than her friends. At her 3 yr appt. (which was actually 3 yrs, 4 months) she was only 28 pounds, still rear-facing in the car, but apparently had caught up to almost 50% on the growth curves... I guess the curves figure most kids grow a LOT in the first couple of years and then even off, whereas DD was more slow and steady.

ETA, it sounds like your son might be tall, which makes him look skinnier even though it's not necessarily unhealthy.

[betsyj]

My son is 21 mos and off the weight chart completely-he weighs only 21 lbs. He is really really small. We were recently referred to a ped endocrinologist who found nothing wrong. The endo wanted us to go see a pediatric gastroenterologist. I refused.

My son is a beautiful boy-his hair and skin are gorgeous, his eyes are bright, and he is walking, talking, laughing and enjoying life. He pees and poops like he should as well. I am not going to subject him to more invasive tests just because he isn't following a chart.

BUT, one thing that does worry me is your son's bowel movements-that seems to be a lot of pooping based on not a lot of food going in. Are his poops very smelly or greasy? If so, I would consider an appt with a specialist to consider he may not be absorbing the nutrients in his food correctly.

[welsh]

No real advice just hugs. I know what a worry it is, especially when people comment.
My DS was/is skinny too. He eats a ton of food though and is very tall. Our ped said that all his calories were going toward his height and there was nothing to worry about.
He poops 1-2 times a day. Usually once.
Does your DS drink milk? A friend of mine has a very slim toddler who seems to fill up on milk and eats very little.

[Marnica]

isabchi - He is still nursing, but not much at all. He does upon waking up and when he goes to sleep at night and it is just for a minute or 2. I don't produce much milk anymore.

KatWrangler - He usually has oatmeal and some kind of fruit (berries or a bannana) at breakfast. He snacks on these puff things he loves, hummus, carrots, crackers, whatever. Lunch could be different things. Sometimes it's some sort of stew, sometimes a cashew or almond butter and jelly sandwich, today I sent turkey meatloaf, veggies and mashed potatoes to daycare. Dinner is more of the same type of stuff, he loves turket or chicken hotdogs, fish nuggets, chicken nuggets. more fruit. 98% of what he eats is organic. He seems to eat more at daycare then at home?? yes I think he poops alot too. sometimes only once, but more often than not it's 3-4 times. Pretty much after he eats.

Mosaic - I don't think the doc is worried, but he hasn't been seen since his 18 mo appt. I honestly don't know what his length is or where he falls on that scale, but he is def NOT tall! I have to look at how tall he was at his 18 mo visit. he was 22 lbs 4 oz on that visit and has barely gained a pound since then. He started out in the 70th %. then was in the 50th for a long time. He was a chubby chubby baby and it seems like since about 14 mon, he has leaned out and the % has dropped from 50th to about 5%, so no I don't think he has stayed on his growth curve at all!!

Welsh - He has a cow milk intolerance, He drinks some goat milk, but isn;t crazy about it, so not a whole lot of it at all.

Betsy j- I wonder if he is absorbing his food too....we really don't go to the pedi except for well baby visits. Most of the time we see an ND. I'm not a big fan of allopathic medicine. DS has allergies/food intolerances and we are curently dealing with those with the ND. I have mentioned the poop thing to him and he says it's not uncommon for kids with allergies to poop alot. I will mention it again at the next appt. Maybe there is some kind of stool test that we can do to see if he is absorbing nutrients???

[~savah~]

How tall is your DS? DD was 23 lbs at 24 months which put her in the 15% for weight. Her ped. is not concerned because she is in the 50% percentile for height, as long as weight and height are close it isn't a cause for concern. My little girl eats similar to your DS, just little bits at a time. I can never tell what she will eat because one day she'll love something and the next she won't touch it. I guess she likes variety, lol. DD also had problems with her gut and as soon as I took her off gluten it seemed to help her weight gain a little. There is so much for us moms to worry about and I don't know why everyone always thinks that our children are here for open commentary.

[betsyj]

I wonder if he is absorbing his food too....we really don't go to the pedi except for well baby visits. Most of the time we see an ND. I'm not a big fan of allopathic medicine. DS has allergies/food intolerances and we are curently dealing with those with the ND. I have mentioned the poop thing to him and he says it's not uncommon for kids with allergies to poop alot. I will mention it again at the next appt. Maybe there is some kind of stool test that we can do to see if he is absorbing nutrients???

Well in my opinion I would rule out stuff with a full blood work-up. That is what we did and it actually led to my refusing any additional specialist visits becasue it turned up nothing. So once I knew he wasn't anemic, low on iron or having any hormone issues I could relax and ignore the stupid FTT dianosis we got.

It helped me realize that my son is just small and we will just keep trying to give him a varied diet high in good calories.

[Ruthie's momma]

DD is very slim, too. She always has been. At 2.5 yo, she is 36 inches tall and 25 lbs. Although I have often worried about her weight, I have started to worry less. She nibbles a well-balanced diet throughout the day is very active. Plus, her pediatrician and nurse practitioner have never once expressed any concern (even though I have asked about it multiple times...).

[twinergy]

I haven't read through all the replies sorry if I'm repeating. My DS wasn't eating much at all until I started a new routine. I prepare bites for him to eat then give him a bite every 5 minutes while he is playing until he refuses. Then I give him a break and offer him some more 30-60 minutes later. We still sit down for one meal a day but the rest of the day he grazes. His issue was that he was just too busy playing to eat and this works well for him. He was wearing the same clothes for a year then suddenly had a growth spurt after I started the new feeding routine.

DS has always had only a few poops, it sounds like your DS is pooping more than you think he should for eating so little. Have you talked to your pediatrician about this concern? Maybe somebody in natural medicine would better address this. I went to an acupuncturist for several years and they frequently question poop volume and consistency. One thing that can increase volume is if there is a lot of air suspended in it. This could indicate a food intolerance: if he isn't digesting his food it will ferment releasing excessive gas. If this were the case, your DS could also have excessive bloating and tummy aches that cause him to be uninterested in eating.

[Marnica]

Originally Posted by betsyj

Well in my opinion I would rule out stuff with a full blood work-up. That is what we did and it actually led to my refusing any additional specialist visits becasue it turned up nothing. So once I knew he wasn't anemic, low on iron or having any hormone issues I could relax and ignore the stupid FTT dianosis we got.

It helped me realize that my son is just small and we will just keep trying to give him a varied diet high in good calories.

He had blood tests done at 1 year, although it was a general CBC, iron (he is not anemic), lead and some tests for allergies (that's when we discovered the soy allergy). Nothing of concern came up according to the ped?

[mrscookie]

Maybe he is just one of those lucky people that will always be skinny and not overeat and be obese like such an alarming percentage of the US. If you've ruled out that something else is wrong, I wouldn't stress about it. My brother was off the charts from when he was little and he's still very skinny, but the upside is that he has never had to worry about his weight and has been very healthy all his life.

[rightkindofme]

If you've done testing and he's healthy I would let it go. People come in all shapes and sizes.

[tmwmommy]

I have a skinny toddler too! Mine is way off the charts - 18lbs at almost 18 months!! The dr has never once expressed any concern even though she was not always so thin. It could be that he is just naturally thin. Are you on the small side as well?

[kittywitty]

I also have a small, skinny toddler. But dh and I were both very small until middle school/high school and still aren't big but average/below average. What about in your family?

We've done tests, but dd is healthy and functioning and active, so I figure it's just genetics. My oldest was 30 lbs at less than a year old and very tall-still tall and very skinny. That's from another side of the family. So it was a big change with the kids being so different.

[Fuamami]

The poop is alarming! Is he white? Is there any history of CF in your family?

[Sharlla]

Sounds about like my son. he was in the 90th percentile at birth then after a year dropped down to the 7th percentile where he's stayed. he's now almost 5 and only weighs 35 lbs (he's still rear facing in his carseat LOL) but he's healthy and strong. Those percentile charts are bogus, I wouldn't pay attention.

If you are concerned just try to push calorie rich foods. Maybe a nutrition shake?

[ShadowMoon]

My son is 3 and weighs 29 lbs. He is very thin, but very active. Both his father and I are slim, active adults. He eats whenever he wants and was BF'd until 2ish. He was off the charts for awhile but his doctor was never worried because he's healthy and happy. He poops 1-2x per day on average.

You can always try to offer more fatty, calorie dense foods, (healthy oils, coconut milk-based products, avocados, etc), for an extra boost.

[lmk1]

Do you have any idea of what you or your dh were like at that age? My ds is 23.5 lb at almost 28 months! And he's barely gained anything in the last few months. I've talked to several peds about it and they all said pretty much that after about 9 months or so, kids start following their own genetics so being a chubby baby doesn't mean a chubby toddler. I know I was a skinny kid, not sure how skinny, but dh was hardly on the curve at all and he's also shorter than average. We are now also checking the possibilities of intestinal worms; you may want to look into that...as well. Your ped can do stool testing, and there's a special test for pinworms. You can also take a look at his height growth and if that's not where you'd like to be, you may want to consider testing for celiac. However, several peds have told me that allergy testing before 2 may be very inconclusive.