childs weight

[ethanryan]

hi all i have just come back from the health visitor with my son. while i was there i got weighed. hw weighed in at 24 lb 1. he is 2 years and 3 months. the health visitor that was on was not my usual one it was a cover one who was not very easy to talk to because of a language barrier.
she said that he was under weight for his age and needs to be seen again in 4 weeks to see what his weight is doing then. he dont seem under weight, he eats like a horse, he wears aged 2-3 clothes and seems very fit and healthy. is he underweight?
she made me feel like i was doing something wrong with him or that he wasnt eating enough. can there be reasons why a toddler is underweight if he is eating the right amounts.

[elginred]

Do you have a weight chart that they use and you take home in his notes? If so, have a look and see where he has been previously. Has he actually lost weight since he was last weighed?

[ethanryan]

he was weighed 9 weeks ago and was 14 2 so hasnt lost much but at the same time he hasnt put any on,do u think it could be that he is just a very active child and burns all the food off

[ethanryan]

sorry i meant 24 2

[annie0000]

You need to look at his centile chart and see if he is roughly folowing the same line and whether this is on proportion to his height - kids vary a lot in size and build - you will also need to look at yourself and his Dad which will give you an indication of his likely build.

[ethanryan]

thanks, his chart shows he is slightly under but i didnt think it was enough for them to worry about. his dad is a big build and i am normally average- well i will be when i get all this unwanted fat back off. these hv just make you feel like you are doing something wrong all the time. he seems healthy enough, eats like a horse and runs about like any other toddler

[annie0000]

Has he been ill? Was he wearing heavier clothes the last time?

[ethanryan]

i cant remember what he was wearing but he was well. they are saying that he should have put a little bit on in 9 weeks. he does look very skinny but i have always put it down to just been a little dot as i was tiny when i was a toddler

[mumof3angels]

Hi
I was just looking at the graphs they give you in the back of the red child health book. On there it looks like the 'average' weight (ie on the 50th centile) should be 13kgs for a 2yr and 3 mnth boy. Your little boy weighs in at 10.93 kgs so looks to be underweight. But is he shorter or taller than average-was his height measured at the same time as his weight. My boys were really tall for their age and so therefore their weight(on the graph) put them on the 98th centile making them look overwight. But their height was also on the 98th centile so they were in proportion. I wouldn't worry at all about it. You know that he's eating well and fit and healthy. The HV you saw is obviously just doing her job as she doesn't know you or your son. When you take him back will it be your regular HV? Has your son had his weight plotted on a graph regularly- if so has he always been lighter than average?
My boys evened themselves out and are now 'normal' height and weight. Please don't worry although obviously you will. x

[annie0000]

Sorry - posts keep crossing - as long as he has a healthy appetite and plenty of energy, then I wouldn't worry - make sure that he always has full fat milk and dairy products and high calorie snacks to maximise the intake without him needing to eat more volume. whilst he needs a healthy diet, it needs to be high calorie as well - try adding in a couple of extras e.g an extra packet of raisins or a pancake and jam or some peanut butter. Use butter as his spread rather than a low fat spread - there are loads of ways to just add a few more calories here and there.

[madamspud169]

You need to look at both you & the father also when seeing if your child is underweight or not. If you are both on the lighter / skinnier side then your child will be too so if you're both over average then so will your child.

My son is coming up 5 yrs old and is still in 3 - 4 yr old clothes but as the father & I are both slight the drs aren't worried because genetically he will be under percentile. It's his health visitor who panics & worries me needlessly (they don't seem to understand that some kids will always be lighter and that an average is exactly that an average not an "exact").

Also once children reach their toddler yrs they generally lose some weight when they become more active than before, it takes a while for the increased appetite to kick in. When it does your child will put on weight as before.

Health visitors are experts in making you feel like your doing something wrong or that your baby is ill when in fact there's really nothing to worry about. Many parents on their second or more child ignore what the health visitor even says now and save themselves lots of needless heartache & worry.
I know I've never been a happier parent or a more successful one now that I just ignore my health visitor.

[redcrx]

ER
unless your son has suddenly lost a lot of weight and is on a high centile for height and low one for weight then dont panic.
HVs will usually only worry if a child is more than 2 centile bands different.
Dont forget that children ahve sudden growth spurts where they will spring up and get skinny
I dont even go to see a HV unless for the milestone checks as i can tell if my boy has lost weight suddenly.
Hes 3 and age 2-3 trousers are perfect in length but fall down as hes got a small waist but 3 HVs have seen him recently (because ive had him when baby has seen them) and not one has passed comment.

[Lil O'lady]

School developmental tests at age 15 - health visitor told my daughter 'you're too tall for your age and too heavy'. She was devastated. 11-yr-old brother said straight away 'but if you are taller you should be heavier to be in proportion'....trust me, she was always skinny, and you have never seen ranks close up as much as the day I went hunting for that health visitor. Many are excellent but it only takes one bad 'un.

[tigwig]

health visitors are very good at making you feel inadequate I have found. My daughter and my niece have previously been underweight according to the centile charts even though they both ate fine. You know your son best not a HV if you aren't concerned then don't let someone else make you feel that way. My sister's HV even referred her to a psychologist over it and practically accused her of not feeding her enough! Don't worry.

[B00]

I wouldn't worry too much about it- my teen daughter has always been thin and underweight no matter what food I shovelled down her. I honestly think it's a case of 'some kids are thin, some aren't'.

i do remember one particular doctor, when she was about 5/6 telling her she was very thin and asking her "do you not eat all your meals young lady?" to which she, to my shame, promptly replied "I dont like mum's food"- I could have pummelled her right there and then :-(

She's now nearly 20, and has suffered no ill effects from still being extremely skinny.