My 11 Month Old Daughter It in the 5Th Percentile for Weight I Need Help!

Hi L.,
I think you may have introduced too many foods too quickly. It is usually better to wait at least five days before introducing another food, so a new food every day is too much for a little one. I would try to simplify what you feed her at this point. Try more hypoallergenic foods like rice and pears to start with, then after waiting 1 week, if she handles those well then go to the next food.
She could be sensitive to one or more foods, so to keep track of what you give her keep a food diary. Py attention to how she reacts.
I would also give some probiotics to help her digestive system.
If this does not help, then talk to the doctor about testing her for allergies.
Good luck.

Hi L.,
My younger son is 10 months old and doctor instructed me to feed him baby food three times a day. He eats oatmeal with bananas in the morning, 1 jar of stage 3 food for lunch and 1 jar of stage 3 and 1 jar stage 2 for dinner. He also drinks about 28 oz of formula a day. My older son used to get ear infections every 3 weeks when he was a baby and my pediatrician said as long as he was drinking I shouldn't worry adout dehydration. Hope this helps.

My son who was much smaller than my daughter dropped off the weight chart at about 9 months. He has kept steady at his own little curve and our pediatrician just had us come in every 3 motnhs for a weight check. He is just not a big eater but is completely healthy otherwise. He has had his shares of bad colds, ear infection and all of that which do not help. He just turned 2 and is almost on the weight chart. He has always seemed happy and content so our pediatrician has just encouraged us to give him a higher fat diet and feed him whenever he is hungry.

It sounds like your daughter is eating a lot especially considering all her colds so I would just keep up the good work and enjoy your little girl.

don't worry.. my daughter is 10 now.. and she has always been in the 10th percentile for weight.. it's a good thing. and height she was in the 15th percentile and sometimes only 5%. She is growing fine.. she eats fine.. but not a whole lot. She is nice and thin.. but not sickly looking.. just tiny. She used to eat oatmeal and a fruit for breakfast.. even cut up banana and sometimes yogurt. lunch was a veggie or soup noodles or small pieces of turkey or tuna and a fruit.. and dinner a meat, veggie and fruit.. sometimes a little ice cream or cut up bits of fruit.. cut up grapes.. they love them.. give her a cookie or two a day.. sometimes a small bagel is great. this should be a good. as long as she gains some weight.. don't worry. Try to find out why she is getting sick.. and good luck

I think that you need to maybe think about taking a different road with feeding. I would like to encourage you to buy a book called Super Baby Food by Ruth Yaron. I have used this book for my older 2 children and will start this month with our 4.5 month old. You will find different foods and maybe so ways to introduce protein. I really feel like this will change your situation. This was my bible and I will say that my children have never been sick. I would also like to suggest chiropractic care. By adjusting and making sure she is in alignment her ears will drain. I do not have problems with doctors by no means but I think that there are other roads to investigate that can work alone or in conjunction with modern medicine. I hope this helps and I hope you buy the book!!!!

http://www.superbabyfood.com/

Please buy this book. I also think grinding whole grains is the way to go. Get the book and start reading and re reading it is a ton of information you will do great!!!

Best of luck with this journey that you are on right now!!!

It sounds like she is eating a normal amount especially if she is eating when she is hungry and asks for food, etc, however perhaps you should discuss adding solids with your doctor. You don't mention if you are against meat products or if you have delayed solids for a particular reason...so forgive me if you have other concerns that go beyond what is written here.
By 11 months I had started giving my son overcooked veggies, carrots and broccoli and turnips and butternut squash, etc. And he loved them. I had to really boil everything because he just wouldn't eat them if they were too hard. I also gave him pasta and soft meats and soft lentils. Overcooked pasta was always right with or without sauce, and meats from the crock pot were usually good. My son has a problem with meat, he doesn't seem to like it, so we don't push that too hard, some nights he eats it and some nights he doesn't! I also had good luck with meatballs (I have made meatballs out of every ground meat available) with alot of breadcrumbs added which made them softer.
But the best thing that made my life so easy was that I would make a vegetable soup every week in chicken broth. Lunch would always be ready to just microwave and I always knew what he was eating and even now he will eat anything if it is in soup: meat, veggies, rice, pasta anything. I try to mostly use organic products because I believe they are significantly more nutritious.
you can always start her on soft things and she how she does. If she has 6 or 8 teeth she should be fine. My rule was that if you can break up the food with your fingers, she can break it up between her gums. My son had 16 teeth by 13 months, so we were agressive about food and he liked it.
We were off baby food completely after his first birthday. I was so afraid of transitioning to food, because I work full time and the thought of coming home and cooking a dinner was awful. But I give him leftovers of what we eat plus some cooked veggies that I try to keep in the house and it has actually been great. No toting jars of food to relatives houses on the weekends and a snack is usually easy to find.
It has been much easier than I thought.
Good Luck!!

First thing I'd do is get her sinuses and ears taken care of. That seems to be the most pressing issue.

Second, as for her size....how big are you and dad? If either or both of you are small, it 'could' be normal for her to be small.

I am 5' tall and my husband is 5'7" tall. I an over weight, but he is only 130 lbs. Our daughter has always been in the 5th percentile or lower. However, if you look at her growth chart, she forms her own 'curve', even though it is below what average is.
She is now 10 1/2 yrs old and weighs 50 lbs and is about 46" tall.... the size of a 5 to 6 yr old.
Her doctor is not concerned because her dad and I are both relatively small people. She is developing fine, is healthy and still growing proportionately.

It sounds like she is eating plenty and that leads me to believe it could be she will just be naturally small. But as I said, it kind of depends on your family size too.

BTW, when my daughter was that age, she would eat and entire bowl of mashed potatoes with gravy and then fruit afterward. She ate like there was no tomorrow and still never gained a lot of weight or grew any faster. She still eats really well and is still very tiny.

Ask your doctor about your baby's size and if it's anything to be concerned with. If it is, he can best tell you how to handle it. But I would definitely get the sinuses and ears taken care of fist thing, as that can cause some major problems down the road.

First off the 5th percentile is NOT underweight. It is the lower half of NORMAL weight babies when measured on a bell curve. Some babies are heavier and some are lighter. Look at her curve on itself does it increase steadily (around 11 months a plateau is common among BF babies). If your daughter was born in a lower percentage then it is not a problem that she remains there, but if her curve is taking a downward slope, when compared to the charts, you should look for the reason behind her weight loss.

Secondly, if your daughter is preferring breastmilk right now then nurse her. Breastmilk is more nutrient & calorie dense than any of the baby foods on the market. Also it has lots of goodies in there to help her fight any infections she has plus the mommy time is comforting for her :D Plus if she's nursing a lot, you don't need to worry about dehydration.

Your daughter does not need the purees etc, but they are something that she may enjoy from time to time. Offer her other high nutrient & good fat foods (avocados, coconut milk etc) in addition to breastmilk, because honestly she can assimilate more nutrition from your breastmilk right now (especially since she's been sick) than from solid food. Once she is 100% healthy again, then start looking into nutrient packed solid foods and finger foods for her to enjoy.

Hey L.,

I think first I would get her to an Ear nose and throat specialist and clear up her health issues so you can focus on getting her to eat again. My daughter suffered terrible ear infections and at a year old we had tubes put in her ears and she was a different baby. When you have sinus issues things taste funny so I am sure that is half of the problem. Will she eat pasta, my kids loved pastina it is small and you can put a little butter, you can even add vegetables into it. I would also try pancakes, french toast, grilled cheese, chicken fingers etc. Just make the pieces very tiny and get her used to the finger foods. She may just want to start feeding herself and if not liking the taste of the baby food anymore. My kids were eating mostly table food by a year because they always wanted what we were eating. So I would give it to them and they loved it. But like I said get her to a specialist and have her ears and sinus checked out it may turn everything around once that is cleared up. Good luck!!

Good for you keeping up the BF that is really the best you can do for her. As far as other foods... my daughter has always been tiny and now at 2 she is still only in the 7th percentile for weight. Around 11 months she was doing a big bowl of cereal atleast once a day, eggs(yolks only till 12 months) I added cheese, ham, veggies. She would also eat some jared babyfood and some of what we were having for dinner. I tried to make sure she had a balanced diet with plenty of good fats and protien.

I hope all goes well for you and your precious baby.

Dear L.,

First of all, you are a wonderful mom who is doing everything right!!! Just so you know where I am coming from, my first daughter fell off the charts basically at a year or was in the "less than 5%" at 16lbs 9 oz. They made me come every 6 months for weight checks after one year old. She also had a horrible summer and winter of ear infections from the time she was 12 months to about 20 months when she got tubes. Between feeling awful from the infections, the antibiotics always took away her appetite. I never seemed to be able to get her to eat enough. I also nursed her until she was 15 months old. She never took to drinking regular milk until she was 2.

Now, all that said, she is now a few months away from turning 4 and continues to be quite petite. The doctors have finally concluded it is genetics that she is so small. We still worry a little but now that she is old enough to tell us what she wants, I know she really just fills up fast and when she really wants to eat, she does. She is very healthy and very bright. Sometimes I still find myself comparing her to her peers but I have to stop myself. She is healthy and just small. At this age she's still only maybe 26 1/2 pounds but happy and very active.

I also want to share with you that I now have a second who started out higher on the charts and started to drop at her 9 month check up. I was actually more concerned since she had always been about 20-30% higher and the doctor asked me where my first was at this point. With that in mind, she felt her genetics are kicking in more now. Just so you know, where my first was hard to get to eat. However, this one will nurse 4-6 times still, 2 jars of food plus some finger foods at almost every meal plus 2-3 snacks everyday. She certainly eats enough!

Just keep doing what you are doing. I might suggest adding Yo Baby yogurt (I started using the one with cereal in it because it is yummy and has 45% of their iron for the day.) I also try cheese with her but basically am trying to get her some fatty healthy foods. I also feed her the meat mixtures by Earth's Best. Oh, and mine will not take anything but juice from a sippy (we have been working on the Nuby cup for a little more than a month and she finally gets a lot out.) I am hoping she will take milk when it is time but I know now, my first did just fine and now drinks it so it all works out. In the meantime, I have always offered her the calcium enriched juice to compensate along with drinkable yogurts when she got older. I think your daughter is fine unless she isn't wetting diapers.

Sorry I went on for so long but I remember how worried and anxious I was and how hard it is when everyone around you has these "big" babies which everyone considers "normal." Your daughter is her own person and you and she will figure it out. Consult your pediatrician if you are worried but I am sure she is fine. She's probably getting just what she needs especially if she's nursing. Okay, I will shut up now...but email me if you feel like chatting! And good luck!

I posted a similar question a while ago and got some great responses! My son also stopped eating well following a pretty bad flu and doesn't eat when he's teething.

We tried a lot, but found that the Gerber "pasta pick-ups" are great! They the meat/veggie combo and can be easily cut in half and chewed. We then started mixing in other baby food to make a "stew".

You may also try some adult foods- especially proteins and carbs. You can do some toast with butter or cream cheese, soft sliced cheeses, shredded chicken, and white flakey fish.

Our guy is a healthy eater and this is his feeding schedule:
5:30 6oz bottle
7:30 4oz bottle
8:30 1/4 oatmeal with babyfood banana and diced apples mixed together
10:00 6oz bottle and nap
noon juice with a toddler size meal
1:30 6oz bottle and nap
3:30 4oz bottle and "snack" (animal crackers, puffs, cheese)
5:00 dinner (chicken with veggie and pasta or bread)
6:30 4oz
8:00 6oz and night-night

Good luck

Hi L.,

My daughter was 8 lbs. 4 oz when she was born but didn't put on weight quickly. She's hovered around 25th percentile for weight ever since. She was exclusively BF until 6 months but had acid reflux, so she couldn't keep everything down. Nonetheless, she seemed content, happy and healthy to me. Her pediatrician suggested supplementing with formula to try and "beef her up." We tried adding 1 bottle of formula each day for a couple of weeks but she just threw that up, too. I just kept breast feeding her on demand, usually every 2 to 3 hours. She's now 18 months old and is still around the 33rd percentile for weight, but she's healthy overall.

If your daughter is meeting all of her developmental milestones and had good muscle tone, I wouldn't worry too much about her weight. Just make sure that you are incorporating enough fats into her diet. Babies need it for brain development. Most baby foods (especially vegetables) are low in fat. Try introducing avocado (I mash it with bananas), whole milk yogurt, eggs and cheese to your daughter.

I hope this helps.

A.

A little about me:

I am a married, stay-at-home mom with one daughter and one son. I am currently freelancing from home part-time for a business magazine.

My son stopped gaining weight when he was 15 months old until he was 2 1/2 years old. he only gained 2 pounds that entire time. I love our pediatrician at the time. He said we would keep an eye on the weight for now but as long as blood work came back normal and urine tests came back normal he was not worried. He says someone has to be in the 5th percentile or there would be no 5th percentile!

I am assuming she eats cereal too. She needs to eat some
more. Certainly she will always remains petite. However,
that being said, I would supplement breast milk with
formula (no flames please) offer her finger foods.
How about some yogurt, bananas cut up or smashed in
her cereal. Do not turn it into a battle, just offer
her different foods. Does she like Cheerios. She will
not choke (remember, Cheerios have a hole in the middle).
All the baby food companies make finger type foods.
I would buy them all and see what she likes best. Cheese
is always good too. She might like grazing all day
rather than three meals. If you have a blender or food
processor you can make her some food yourself. Whatever
you eat you can just blend.

Just had this exact conversation about an hour ago with
a friend about her grandson.

Hope I helped a bit. Good luck. Good things come in
small packages!!!!

Oh I feel for you. My son is also tiny, and was always in the 4th or 5th percentile. He too got sick a lot his first year, which was so frustrating, because it always set us back. Same thing, he would only breastfeed when sick, and would refuse solids.

The best advice I can give you is to go with your gut. I know your daughter gets sick, but besides that, does she seem to be healthy? How does she look, in terms of eyes, hair, skin, teeth, nails? I'm asking because I switched pediatricians--my current ped is not focused on the percentile charts. He instead assesses each child--he took one look at my son at our first appointment and said he is healthy and fine--said that these things, hair, teeth, nails, etc., are the first to suffer if the child is not getting his/her nutritional needs met. Also, how is your daughter doing developmentally? If she is on track, I would not worry. Again, if she's lacking anything, this would likely affect her development.

If these things are fine, and your gut is telling you that your daughter is okay, then I would find a holistic pediatrician for a second opinion. That's what I did--I liked him so much (and he discovered my son's heart murmur when my regular ped didn't--plus, she was pressuring me to stop nursing) that I switched right away! I feel like this doctor looks at my son and the overall picture--he doesn't look at the chart and numbers. Even he said that "someone has to be in the 4th percentile!" (And did you know that the charts were developed based on formula fed babies???)

Good luck to you--it will all work out. I don't know where you're located, but my current ped is in Essex Fells, NJ. Let me know if you want his info.

P.S. You're doing great, so try not to make yourself crazy. As others have said, go with your daughter's hunger and thirst cues.

Hi L.,
I'm sorry that your little one has been sick! You don't have to worry about hydration with a baby who is breastfeeding regularly, that is their hydration and they don't need other drinks.
Your daughter knows when she is hungry, so follow her feeding cues. Don't force food on her, and let her eat as much as she wants - we often think that we know best and babies know nothing, but they do know when they are hungry and when they are full, they don't need us to decide that for them.
I would discuss the recurrent illness with her doctor.
However, I don't know that her weight and the illness have anything to do with each other, since you said that she had small weight gain from 6 to 9 months. L., this could simply be your daughter's grwoth pattern. I would be concerned with weight loss or a sudden change in weight pattern, but if she's following the same pattern through each growth check, there is usually nothing wrong. Some babies WILL be in the 5th percentile. 5% of them will! Someone needs to make up that 5% and your daughter is one of those babies, it doesn't necessarily mean that she is unhealthy or needs to be fattened up.
Please be sure to discuss your concerns with your baby's doctor and/or a pediatric nutritionist
Good luck

get Pedialite and give her some of that in a bottle. It'll keep her hydrated. Also, you should give her milk products such as yogurt and cheese, by 12 months old my twins were off formula, drinking whole milk (organic, of course) and eating finger foods. If she has teeth, she can chew food. Also, give her pasta, pastina and the like, put a little butter on it and she'll love it. It just sounds like you're not offering enough of a variety. AT this age, her tastebuds are active and she wants more variety. As far as how much fluids she should have in a day, she should have milk, juice and water everyday. put juice with some water in a sippy cup and offer it to her, she'll like the taste of it. She'll be just fine, relax, enjoy and feed her.

It sounds like your daughter is eating plenty. She may just be a petite child. Everyone says that breastmilk has all the nutrition a child needs, and in most cases that's true. However, it's only true if the mother eats right. I have known women who eat almost no veggies, and lots of junk and think that baby is getting healthy breastmilk. It isn't true. I'm not saying you don't eat right because I have no clue, but you should evaluate your own diet just to be sure.

Feed her cereal, she needs more bulk in her diet. She needs to ear less jars of food too. make her cereal 2 times a day, then jars for lunch and dinner. I also think you need to get another doctor, obviously this doctor is not working for you, you have NO obligation to them, and you need to get another one. This is a question for the pediatrician. Good luck.

I wouldn't get too upset about your daughters weight. My daughter is going to be 3 in July and only weighs 25 lbs. She is in the 2% for her age for her weight. She eats good but has a very fast metabalism so she just can't gain the weight. She is healthy and that is all that matters. Some kids are just on the petite side. As long as your daughter is healthy I wouldn't worry about it. Good luck to you.
Jenn

When you look at your family or your hubby's is there a tendency for small, short people? I'm 5'1" and my hubby is 5'7" so I always heard about how my children were in the 5th - 15th percentile for height and weight. They were eatting and drinking well, healthy and happy so finally I looked at the doctor and said something like 'What should I do? Get one of those racks and stretch'em every day?' Now they've grown and they are still short and small compared to other adults. It's genetics.

Don't let the doctors freak you out over stuff. Feed her healthy and well and give her lots of love. You're a good mama.

Dear L.,

One food that is rich in good fats is avocado. If you're concerned about dehydration ask your pediatrician how many wet diapers a day is normal for an 11-month old and start counting her wet diapers! My 3-month old is in the 50th percentile for weight, and even though the pediatrician says she's fine ("But come back in 2 weeks to check her weight, just in case."), I always feel terrible after a visit to the doctor, so I know how worried and concerned you feel.
I have to wonder, though, as the population becomes increasingly overweight, and what's "average" changes, is it really so terrible if most kids are heavier than your daughter? I'm going to ask my pediatrician about how they arrive at "normal" weight for the charts on the next visit.
Finally, if you feel your pediatrician is not helpful enough about this, or if your motherly instincts are telling you something's up, by all means, find a new pediatrician!
Good luck, and take care!

Hi L.,

I understand your worry, but I wonder if the fact that you're having your daughter weighed during or right after ear/sinus infections might be skewing things a little bit? Kids always lose appetite with infections, and sometimes when they're on antibiotics as well. As other have said, I recommend getting a handle on her respiratory issues first. Try consulting with an ENT and also looking at her diet from an allergy perspective -- milk protein sensitivities result in an over-production of mucus, which in turn results in frequent respiratory infections. Try getting her off all dairy. Since you're breastfeeding (yay you!), this means eliminating dairy from your diet as well.

Your daughter's diet sounds fine, though at 11 months, she should have sources of protein aside from milk -- look for the "complete dinner" jars. She should also be able to start eating finger foods -- pieces of banana, steamed carrots or squash, that kind of thing. But

Aside from that, my other piece of advice is to focus more on whether your daughter is gaining weight and growing and less on comparing her to other children. There's a little girl in my neighborhood who is very slim and petite, and her mom has always been concerned. But as all the other moms around have said, there are worse things than being a petite girl.

Best wishes,

Mira

L.,

If your daughter is gaining weight and thriving, being in the 5th percentile is not a problem. I would check out why she has ear and sinus problems. Maybe ask your pediatrician to recommend a specialist?

As for what to feed her, someone else recommended the book Super Baby Food and I whole-heartedly agree. It gave me the confidence to make my own baby food and the results were great; A very healthy baby that loves healthy foods and is eager to try new foods.

When you start solids you can start giving her a small amount of water after meals. I gave my son an ounce or so after each meal.

As for how much to feed her, feed her as much as she wants. You never know when a growth spurt is going to strike.

Good luck,
R.

I have a similar situation with my 13 month old daughter who is also very small. Her weight a couple of weeks ago was 16 lbs, 2 oz. She isn't sick and I think she is my best, least picky eater. She is a good height but has tiny hands and feet and I guess she's just going to be petite. Her twin brother is bigger but also on the small side at 18 lbs.

My doctor suggested that I give both of them a supplement from Boost called Kid Essentials in a bottle. I am giving it five days a week while I am working because they don't really take bottles in front of me (still nursing too) and they don't drink that much liquid out of a cup yet. You can give this supplement once your daughter turns one.

Good luck. Hang in there. Remember not to let weight charts and percentiles make you crazy. You know your daughter best and there will be clear signs in her that will indicate if something is truly wrong.

Hey L.,

It's so hard when you worry about how much your child is eating! My daughter had latching issues and although she eats pretty well now, I still worry!!! A few suggestions I can give is try yogurt! it's a good source of calcium,I add some oatmeal to it so it's more filling as well as less messy! Try giving her foods with protein. Avacados are very good for babies,My daughter loves soup! Chicken and stars, veggie beef,My daughter still eats the stage 3 dinners every now and then, I am trying to get her off of them because she is 14 months old but I add other veggies to her dinners as well as fruit if it seems it will mix well. My daughter is a snacker too! She loves the annies bunnie cheese snacks, the puffs, yogurt melts. I give them to her in between her meals as well as after her dinner as a treat! Eggs are good in protein, but just the yolk for now. Hopefully this helps!!! Good Luck1

You've received great advice. I must agree that it does seems like you quickly went from starting solids to introducing everything. I would go back and try re-introducing everything to see if she has any allergies or reactions that could be affecting her immune system. I know it sounds like a huge undertaking but let me explain why I think it's important: My daughter has a recurring eye infection. From the time she was about 15 months through last summer (3 1/2) she'd get this horrible eye infection every 2 to 6 months. I started paying close attention to her diet (and other factors that could influence the situation - shampoos, detergents, etc) and found that whenever she had peas the eye infection would flare up. It's been almost a year without peas and without an eye infection. Weird, I know. But we all have our quirks.

I don't plan to reiterate what others wrote, I just want to comment on what these charts "mean". If, for example, a child is 50th percentile in height, that means that she is taller than 50 out of 100 "typical" kids her age and sex. If she is 80th percentile in weight that means she is heavier than 80 out of 100 kids her age and sex. These statistics are provided by the CDC National Center for Health. With that being said, it's important to condsider that children, even infants, are much more likely to be overweight today than in previous generations. I love the fact that my daugher is in the 20% percentile for weight and 50% for height, even though she was born at 9lbs/5oz. During her first year, I think mostly due to being exclusely breast fed for the first 6 months like your daughter, she slimmed down. So, considering what the charts really mean, 50%/20% seems like a good balance to me.

Remember, 5% isn't off the charts. In fact, it is considered in the healthy range. So concentrate on getting rid of the infections with proper treatment and diet and don't worry so much about the weight (as long as she doesn't drop off the chart). When she's healthy I'm sure the pounds will add on quickly. And, as one post said, there are worse things than being a petite little girl!

Good luck!

HI L.: Is your doctor worried about her weight? If not, I would not worry. My older daughter is almost seven. She is four feet tall and only weighs 41 lbs. She has always been underweight, but the doctor says she is healthy. One thing I did when she was a year old was to crush chewable vitamins in her food every morning. The doc.said that was a good idea. Also you might want to pick up a copy of What to expect the first year or there is one about toddlers. I found both very helpful as a first time mother. Good luck.

Hi L. -
Both of my daughters had this "problem" and today (one is 8, the other is 4)they are fine. They are still in the bottom percentiles for weight but both are healthy and have great appetites. For my oldest, we went through a battery of tests because my pediatrician thought she wasn't growing (she's in the lowest percentiles for height too). Fortunately we didn't have to do the tests with my other daughter but the weight thing was an issue with her too. What worked for us was to supplement with Pediasure and hi fat/hi protein foods...as much as they would eat. If you are concerned about dehydration, push the fluids as much as possible. When my kids are sick, we use freezie pops, popsicles, ice chips, and spoonfuls of chicken broth. Of course there's also pedialyte too but my kids don't really like it. Watch the urine output. They should be urinating at least once during a 24 hour period. If they are not doing that, then I would call your doctor. Dehydration can be very serious...my son was hospitalized when he was 1 and dehydration was part of the problem. Keep in mind that there is nothing wrong with being in the lower percentiles....it's all just averages and someone has to be on the bottom right? When we were kids, they didn't even have percentiles....children just needed to thrive and it sounds like, even though she has been sick a lot, that she is doing fine. BTW...I remember being very frustrated when my kids were litle and sick alot. The up side to all of this is that they won't get as sick when they go to school. There's always a silver lining right? Good Luck!

D.

L.,

If you and your husband are small your daughter may just be destine to be small. As long as she is gaining weight and thriving, you should not worry.

My daughter will be 11 months next week and she hardly eats baby food anymore. She may have a jar of fruit mixed with oatmeal for breakfast and a jar of veggies with dinner, but for the majority of the day, she eats “real” table foods. She actually prefers to eat "real" foods, which is very helpful since I already have to make something for my 3 1/2 yo anyway. Obviously she can't eat everything he does (she only has 6 teeth, so things like steak are tough to chew and I have not introduced her to seafood yet), but she does just fine mashing small pieces of chicken/turkey, any cooked veggies, pasta, small pieces of bread/crackers, etc. So you may want to try more "real" foods and she how she does. It may not make her put on extra weight, but it may be something she will eat when her ears hurt. Good luck and hope she feels better soon.

Hi L.,

First, if you are worried about her dehydrating, have you tried giving her Pedia-Lyte to replace any electrolytes she may be losing as a result? If she will not drink, they also come in ice pops that she can suck on.

My son, who is now 15, until recently, didn't even make it onto the charts! I did not worry about it, because, even with that a) he was always quite thin but not emaciated, b) he in all other respects has been healthy; and c) he was always steadily gaining weight even if he was not as heavy as others his age. It sounds like even when she is sick your daughter's appetite is decent if she is still eating solid foods and is breast feeding. I did my best to encourage my son to eat, but did not try to force it or make too big a deal out of it, because I did not want to make the problem seem worse. Now, as a growing teenager I get a real kick out of seeing him eat larger quantities of food!

If your daughter generally eats and continues to gain weight, even slowly, if she is reaching the major developmental milestones on time and the doctor is not expressing too much concern, then you may not need to worry about it too much. If it is affecting her development and health, I am friendly with someone in my community who actually administered supplemental tube feedings to her daughter and has gotten positive results. It might be something worth considering. Just a thought.

Good Luck!

J.

try stoneyfield whole milk yogurt. i give my kids the french vanilla flavor mixed with some applesauce or they have Yo Baby that is already with fruit in it. my kids love it and helps them gain weight. my kids have always been underweight and as long as she is gaining something, don't freak out. you can also give her Pediasure a nutrient drink. good luck.

It seems like you are feeding her enough. Maybe some food w/ more protein and carbs would help (like meat, pasta, yogurt.) How about supplementing w/ some formula as well? I, too, am/was a BF'er and know how important it is, but sometimes they just need a bit more especially as they get older. Good luck and check w/ your ped.-they should put your mind at ease that she's not dehydrated.

L.,

Congratulations on breastfeeding her! THat is so awesome and wonderful for her! Whatever she is NOT getting from food, she is getting from you. Make sure you are doing all you need to for vitamins, so you don't get run down also. So cool! If she wants to go exclusive when she's sick - DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT. The more you stress, the more she will notice and it will affect your milk production.

Same here. Essentially my son nosedived from 75th to below 3rd.

What is her attitude/temperament/etc.? Is she happy a lot of the time? Or is she cranky?

You're doing great with the veggies/fruit - have you thought of meat at all or are youholding off until she is 1?

One fruit you can add that most kids LOVE: Avocado. My son adores it and asks for it by his name (think: first syllable really drawn out). It is higher in fat than most fruits and it has a buttery consistency that melts on the tongue (I guess, I don't eat it myself, but that was described to me). It is I think 5 g per serving (you'd have to look up servings, but she can eat as much as she likes :) My son has eaten up to a whole avocado at times, though we usually limit him to 1/2 at a meal, so his body gets the benefit of fat and vitamins at the same meal.

Don't let the doctor scare you - unless her curve is going down totally. My son's curve didn't go down, it just 'plateaued' - got really flat for a bit. Pediatrician was doing the equivalent of going off the deep end, but I guess she has to with everyone bc you don't KNOW until you see how the curve pans out.

Another thing you can do: when you make your food at home, prepare it with olive oil. I wouldn't go so far as french fries as far as drenching, but if you had toast with margarine, you'd put a good Tablespoon on for yourself so it's not so dry (go figure, dehydrate the toast then add butter to make it softer :)

Keep up the good work with the breastfeeding - it is doing her a world of good.

Don't worry about a sippy for water - try a cup. Even if she gets just a sip, that's great. And if you're not starting fruit juices yet, don't. Plain water is all she will need, especially on hot days. Your milk will be in high demand there too!

Good luck, don't hesitate to send me a message if you need more ideas or support.
M.

L., I tried to read through the other responses so I don't repeat what someone else said. At her age, it's pretty normal to slow down a little on weight gain because she's becoming more mobile. I would recommend introducing table foods that she can finger feed to herself. By 8 months, both my kids were eating dinner with us and we just chopped it up small for them. (Even without teeth, they ate table food just fine). Both my kids enjoyed eating so much more!

The #1 cause of ear infections and upper respiratory problems in infants and toddlers is a dairy allergy. Other causes include allergies to pets and environmental allergies. I didn't believe it, but when I took my kids off dairy per the ENT's advice, the improvement was increbile (I'm the proud mom of 20 ear infections between my 2 kids in less than 2 years - 3 sets of tubes and an adenoidectomy down, one to go).

My doctor was concerned when my son left his path at the 85th-95th% (23 pounds at 9 months) and hovered below 25th% and then at the 5th% from 12-24 months. She didn't need me to convince her to be concerned and look for a cause, and in fact, she was proactive with our search, thus ending it much sooner than a lot of parents with sick kids. My son has celiac disease. He weighed 25.5 pounds just 7 weeks ago when we took him off gluten, and was 33.5 inches tall. Today he is 28 pounds and 35.5 inches tall. So there really WAS something wrong with him. He's back up near the 50th% already! So if you think there's something wrong, don't just worry - talk to your doctor about your concerns.

i think they have a gatorade for babies for hydration. i have a book called train up a child. healthmasters.com you might want to look them up and get your baby on this diet. it will help with ear infections etc. also the foods are whole foods can you can email the office or call with questions to ask for help. i trust them.

see if she will try finger type foods...like the cereal bites or fruit bites and cracker/cookie things...that may help some...our doctor always stated she would not starve herslef...and we tryed the finger things and it worked...the weight came on slow but it did come on... our daughter also started with the sinus and ear issues after starting foods and we kept a record of what she ate each day and how she reacted...skin tone...moods things like that...we ended up finding out she had food allergies which was actually some of the ear issues...and not wanting to eat..the wanting breast milk more is her comfort area..she gets to be close to you while nursing and she feels better that way...this might be a good place to start...hope it works for you...rosie