Helping Toddler to Gain Weight

I am not saying the doc is wrong... but, here is my personal experience (and my sisters too)
We both have had underweight children and completely average weight children (I might add we live in 2 different states and see completely different doctors).
The Drs said their weight was completely related to their DNA (aka how their relatives were as children)
My son was a decent eater (not great not bad, a little picky)but getting him to avg weight took him 12 years. My sisters boy still isnt in the avg percentile (he is 8), but he will catch up eventually. Dont worry too much as long as your child is eating and behaves like a healthy child. Averages are just that, some are bigger some are smaller and some are in the middle... we are not all made the same and that is OK!!

Hi, S.. I agree with Meghan. My son is 18 months old and weighs 21 lbs - slightly above the 3rd percentile. And he is tall (75th) so he does look "skinny". But he is an active little boy - on and off are his two speeds just like Meghan's son. My pediatrian has said nothing about being underweight. And I even asked about his size! He is just so active that he churns and burns. Look at your son and his energy level. Is he active and energetic? Is he developing on a traditional scale? Large motor, fine motor, verbal, social, etc? If he is growing and learning and doing everything that little boys do then I would try not to worry about the weight. Give him plenty of healthy choices of foods to eat and he will eat what he needs to grow and thrive. Babies are amazingly healthy with food. They eat until they are full and not like us who eat b/c we are bored, you know! Just offer him lots of healthy snacks during the day to keep filling his tank. Pediasure is fine but they really should get their nutrition from solid foods if you can. If you are still concerned I may suggest seeing a different pediatrician.

My first advise is to not worry about it too much. I have a 29month old that is only 23lbs and a specialist (endochronoligis--they specialize in growth issues) says that he's fine. It really is an issue of. Is he healthy, does he look abnormally small, is he tired all the time, ect. But, if he is an active, healthy little boy then chances are he is like my son. Two speeds on and off. He eats fine, but runs all the calories off. Personally I would listen to the ped., but acknowledge the fact that the doc isn't with him all day long and only sees him at check ups and sick visits. Teddy isn't even on the scale, but the specialist (that the ped. had us go to because he was concerned) said it was fine. It is normal for active toddlers to run off calories. Also, the speicalist said that it is better that he is thin then too big. That is much harder to grow out of. The specialist said that if it is still an issue when Teddy goes through puberty then we should check back, but not to worry. Another interesting thing is the scale that the endochronogist used at his office to show the growth percentile was slightly different then the peds. office. It said Teddy was in the 25th percentile even though he is so small. So, don't fret, don't try to feed him...He'll eat when he is hungry! If he's anything like my son he wants a 'nack' all the time. I usually give him gold fish or crackers sometimes a cookie (but those are only when I feel like baking and with a two year old and a five month old it isn't often! Anyway, now that I have compleatly rambled...I hope this encourages you. let me know how it goes. And, if you need to ask anymore questions about what the specialist said just let me know. Oh, yeah, pedisure is also a great "weight gainer"!

Hi S.,
I am a mother to a 4 year old daughter who has been underweight since birth. She weighed 5 pounds and 14 ounces at birth and was 4 days passed my due date. Every time I take her to a DR for this or that they look at her weight and ask how premature she was...OK she was NOT premature. My husband is 5' 2" tall and 115 pounds soaking wet. Yes I am on the bigger side, but I am only 5'4" tall myself. I just took my daughter for a 6 month check-up two weeks ago and she has fianlly gained to the point she is just above the 50 percentile. She is 38 pounds and 39 inches at 4 years 8 months and 27 days old. her Pedi said I coudl breathe now even though he was the one who staye don me about her weight. My daughter has always ate healthy foods. I started her on veggies instead of fruits when we began eating baby foods and to theis day she still loves all fruits and veggies (Raw or Cooked). You are this child's mother....use your instinct like I did. I agree with the other responses that say it is in the DNA and quite frankly, I am glad my daughter took that part (weight) from her daddy's side of the family. She is active and I knwo she is healthy...so to me that is all that counts. Maybe check your family's weights if possible when they were born and got from there. I weighed 6 pounds 14 ounces at birth and my husband weighed 6 pounds and 2 ounces at birth...I kinda see a pattern here. Good look in whatever you decide, but children will eat when they are hungry and I wouldn't make them eat if they don't want to, because that could lead to over eating as they get older.

I am a 44 year old First Time Mother of a Very Active and Healthy 4 year old.

I would try not to worry too much, although they use these percentiles they aren't perfect my niece has always been in the low percentiles she is now 6 and tall and skinny she is just very petite she eats a healthy balanced diet still drinks whole milk ect plus vitamins. There is nothing wrong with her she is just petite sometimes dr's can worry you to death when there is really no problem, if your son was a little too big they would be worring you the other way. I think you can best guage if your son is healthy or not is he active and not lethargic and sleepy all the time does he eat good foods for you? He may be smaller now but catch up at puberty or he may always just be smaller it's not a bad thing we are not all 50 % ers ya know?

S., I would not worry. I have an 19 month old as well. She is very active and eats great. No junk food just good home cooked food. She is on the 1 percentile for weight. 43 percentile for height and 65 percentile for head circumfrence. My Peditrician says as long as she is eating good and has no complaints, not to worry. Some kids are small and have growth spurts later. Some are just small and petite. Also as long as he is hitting his milestones on time he is fine. I would not let our Peditrician concern you too much. Good luck and keep enjoying your toddler.

K.

I agree - don't give unhealthy things just to help him put on weight. And, in my opinion, if he is meeting all his developmental milestones appropriately, then who's to say he needs to gain weight? I'm a little biased though - my 20 month old daughter is 22 lbs. But my dr. has never suggested she needs to gain more weight, because she is very healthy and is ahead of her age group in most developmental milestones.
Anyway, some healthy high fat foods are avacados, peanut butter, cheese, and whole milk yogurt. The avacado you can mash up and put on crackers or raw vegetables, or if he will eat it whole, then by all means feed him chunks of it :)
Hope this helps!

I agree, Pediasure or the other brands. My son has been in the 0% since he was 8 months old. He had many tests done and went to the GI and Nutritionist and they all agreed that the extra calories from the pediasure should help. He is now 3 and I give him the carnation instant breakfast once a day for the extra calories. You can make it fun too, by making milkshakes, or smoothies with yogurt. Good luck. BTW my 3 year old is only 26lbs and very healthy, just little:)

I think some of these have already been mentioned, but definitely avacado. We make our own guacamole and even fed this to our baby when she was younger. She loved it! Smoothies are another source of putting or hiding good fats in as well.

Cheese, cheese and cheese! Really! There's nothing kids seem to love more than mac and cheese. I don't like prepackaged food myself so I made mine homemade. If you don't have the time for that (I'm on my way to four and my oven is now broken!) Annie's makes an ok boxed mac'n'cheese that doesn't have a bunch of additives and sugar in it. Other dairy products will work too like whole milk and whole milk yogurt (the Yo Baby stuff is great). However I will admit that I have a toddler who is NOT a dairy fan, I can't get her to drink anything but juice and she hates yogurt. But she is a big fan of cheeses (cream cheese, sour cream, cheddar, cottage cheese, etc.) so that's what she gets for dairy instead. Now I've started to be able to get her to drink some milk but it has to be chocolate, and since I hate most chocolate drink mixes I use Ovaltine which my other kids love, plus it has the added benefit of having vitamins in it. My kids are all inclined to be on the thin side anyway but they are otherwise healthy. Why does your ped think your child needs to gain weight? Is he unhealthy otherwise? My kids are pretty skinny and really low on the charts for weight but I've never had a problem with that. Does he eat well otherwise? With mine it doesn't matter how they eat they don't gain weight easily, but their not dropping weight either. Unless your child has had some sudden drop in weight or has stopped eating I would assume that he's just built that way. Do you think you could get another opinion? I know that my sister had some negative experiences with her former ped in regard to her kids' weight (she has three boys and the oldest is a little chunky but he's projected to be super tall, and the other two are thin like my kids). She went to another pediatrician and the second one told her not to stress out about it that it was normal kid stuff and as long as they were active and eating well she shouldn't worry about it. I think some peds are just really uptight about those stupid growth charts.

Pediasure mixed with some ice cream like a milk shake it has the vitamines in it needs and taste good. Start making sweet potatoe french fries bakes in the oven you cut swwet potatoes into wedges then dip in water and egg white makes it crunchy and taste good too. Get yogurt tubes freeze and give as treats, smoothies and guess what you can hide lots of stuff in smoothies use frozen fruit and different juices or use yogurt even avocado can be put in. Muffins bananna are great, I even freez bananna's on on sticks and dip in choc for a great treat you can give cookies but if you start offering other things that taste good your child will start to like them promise. Put two apple slices together like lips thing peanut butter between both then marsh mellows as teeth it looks like lips with teeth....celery with a thin coat of peanut butter on it and raisens (they look like ants). breakfast make scrambled eggs put 2 pieces of bacon broke in half under the eggs as feet then the other two pieces as sticking out of the top with risens as eyes you then have alien eggs...sometimes kids like everyday food if you make it interesting. I'd make my own cookies and put what I want in them it really doesn't take that much time and you can freeze a batch after baked to have on hand. Have little snacks ready and sitting out 3-4 times a day...when I go back to making some of these things my kids eat then of course they gain weight. Hope some of these ideas help but I can say the pediasure and ice cream helps a great deal.

I am not sure if this will help at all, but I have run into the same problem as you. I have a son who is 18 months and is barely in the 10th percentile for weight (he just moved up from the 5th percentile). He looks even thinner that that sounds because he is in the 90th percentile for height. My pediatrician recommended feeding him whenever he acted hungry (which seems like all the time) and feeding him "good" things (like whole milk yogurt, crackers and cheese, wheat bread with sugar free jam, etc.) My pediatrician also said not to worry to much about his weight because he is gaining at a steady rate and he is VERY active, so he is burning most of his calories. I have decided to continue to feed him healthy choices and not to worry to much about his weight, since he is gaining. Hope this helps a little!

Adding good fats to foods like olive oil is a great way. Earth Balance makes a great butter alternative with good oils. Avocados are high fat and very nutritious. You want calorically dense foods like yogurt and cheese and beef and chicken. Only use whole grains, nothing white. No juice. Whole milk. I've got lots of tricks up my sleeve so write if you want more or if he's dairy allergic!

Whole Milk with Carenation Instant Breakfast is good. My kids love it to this day...

Just don't do too much, as too much milk can cause anemia...

Hi S.,
I have a preemie girl who is 14 months old and we have always struggled to get her to gain wait. She has just hit 16lbs. We see a nutritionist to try and add on some pounds in a healthy way. Some things she has suggested are yogurt, which my little girl loves, we use YoBaby. Avocados pureed and mixed with other foods, these are high in fats that are good for your body. She also suggested cheese and peanut butter later on down the road. Also, Pedisure has more calories than whole milk, so she told us when she gets on regular milk to replace one or two milk servings with the Pedisure.
I hope some of this helps

Hello S., I won’t worry about the weight gain if your baby is a healthy active and happy toddle; some kids are petite especially if they are from that lineage. That said if you still want him to pickup weight here is what you can do.
Make sure that none of his food is low fat! Add ~ 1 Tbsp added fat per meal to boost the fat calories. He still needs a high fat diet. You can use olive oil or butter to do it. That should make him pick up the weight gain!!

Please do not hesitate to contact me if I can be of further help.

Cheers
www.yummyspoonfuls.com

Hi! My son is 28 months and stays in the healthy weight range. He can be a picky eater, but I don't like "junk" food either....here are some of the "healthier" and still fun items that I've found my son will eat; they may also help your son put on some lbs: YoBaby and now YoKids yogurts, all natural peanut butter and honey sandwiches on wheat, dry roasted peanuts, whole wheat pasta with a can of diced tomatoes stirred in, brown rice, oatmeal sweetened with either with honey or unsweetened applesauce (sometimes I thrown in some raisins). There's also a brand of organic foods called "Back To Nature" that I really like...they have mac & cheese, cookies, breakfast bars, etc. that don't have hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, etc. I have found that Kroger and The Fresh Market carry the brand.

Good Luck!! T.

Hi S.,

I totally agree with Trisha and Panya. He needs healthy fats in his diet and also additional nutrition. The reason kids are underweight or overweight is malnutrition. This DOES NOT mean you're not giving him the right foods. It just means he's not absorbing the nutrition. This is an imbalance in his body.

I do know of a chewable multivitamin that is fructose-compounded for guaranteed absorption. Fructose is a substance that EVERY cell in the body utilizes. The fructose is a healthy and natural sugar molecule so it and the nutrient easily get into the blood stream. Once the body balances, you will see an incredible improvement not only in his weight, but his attitude, his cognition, and his sleep habits. (I had my husband on the adult version and he lost 110 pounds and all of the above improved, lol!)

Vita-Bears are not sold in stores so let me know if you are interested. I'll do the best I can to help!

Regards,

M.

I too am a mother of a small toddler, even though he was born 8lbs, 1 oz. He is 22 months old and has just hit 21 lbs. I understand the frustration with this as we've had nurmerous tests run just to make sure we were not missing anything. Finally, his pediatrician has ruled that he is very active, and was meant to be small, my husband & I are both 5'3 - 5'8 and both have small frames. I still get upset when the doctor refers to the percentage chart as my son no longer is even registering on the chart. But, his doctor has put him on 1 pedisure a day just to make sure that he gets all the nutrition that he needs. It's a struggle to get him to eat sometimes, but his peditrian said that he's not going to starve himself. When I can't get him to eat anything, I usually make him a bowl of flavored oatmeal, or something I know is good for him & filling.

Same here with my daughter...

I have seen pediasure on here, but wanted to add that we use the generic strawberry Ensure (basically adult pediasure but much less expensive) which is 250 cals a container and my daughter loves it.

Good luck, don't stress it.

I have had this same problem with my second son. He was diagnosed with failure to thrive/malnutrition by one pediatrician and even though he has never lost weight, he just grows at a slower rate than the pediatricians would like. Other pediatricians looked at my husbands weight/height and mine, and said he was ok. This started around 15 months. My husband and I are not big people, but the doctor was more worried about his percentile than how well he is developing (he was physically more advanced at walking, throwing ball, riding bike than even his older brother). The nutritionist said he was fine. We kept food logs for about six months on what he ate, how much he ate and how many calorie he consumed. She did a calculation on how many calories he should be taking in and how we could add more calories to his diet. He was very active and loved healthy foods like veges(lower calorie foods). To add calories to his diet, the pediatricians recommended Pediasure and a multivitamin (Poly Vi Sol, then flintstones). the nutritionist talked about higher calorie nutritionally dense foods. Sometimes you can just add extra fat or protein to existing meals (mayo on grilled cheese, Butter & cheese on eggs, full fat milk and yogurt, butter and full fat milk in tomato soup, milkshakes, mashed potatoes made with milk and cheese & butter, pudding, peanut butter and jelly, an extra serving of lean meat and cheese crackers. My son loved to eat small meals all days long, or graze. I had to start limiting snacks (to 2-3 per day)so he could actually feel hungry at meal times. Sometimes we cmake a game at it (beat the clock) with his own timer so that he eats a certain food group first (higher calorie foods) and so he eats a little faster before he gets distracted and tries to leave the table before he was finished. If he ate too slowly, he would feel full before he was actually finished (try to get him to eat within twenty minutes or so). This also helped him slowly increase the amount of calories he was taking in. He is now 5 and still lightweight, but he has moved up on the chart and the doctors dont give me as much trouble. We went through a year of horrible testing on him,(blood, stool, and a series of referrals to specialists- nutritionist, GI, cardiologist) that resulted in nothing more than pain and suffering for him and me. His last visit they tested him for anemia, and he was fine. I advise doing some of your own research online, and try not to let the doctors stress you out too much, as long as he is eating well and continues to developed normally. The doctors are now "watching my daughters weight" as she is 12 months and only 18.6 pounds. Again, this is occurring at the same approximate age as my son when transitioning from breastmilk to table foods and when the kids become more active as toddlers. We keep a photo of the food guide pyramid on the wall at the kitchen table and try to remind the kids of all the different servings of each group they need to keep their bodies balanced and healthy, so I dont have many food battles as to what to eat. Its like a game where we find out "whats missing" (which food group is missing from each meal and they try to help me find a good choice to add - if fruit is missing, choose berries or applesauce/veges: carrots or peas?) To that we try to opt for the higher calorie choices (potatoes instead of rice, veges with DIP, whipped cream/yogurt on fruit) and/or add an extra serving of dairy (4 servings instead of two) or protein (3 servings instead of two) and add an extra snack before bed. I would start a food journal, so that you can show the doctors what your child is eating, and then they can help make suggestions on what you can add.

If you feed him carbs and protein he should be able to gain. Here is a small list you can try:
Carbs & Protein
Home made potatoes,beans,cabbage,eggs,carrots,soy milk,bananas,refried beans,whole grain bread,cheese,juice- fresh squeezed,yams, brown rice, oatmeal,grits.

These are healthy items and maybe will help.
LAM

I have dealt with this and still am, my son is now 13. Don't worry because my very skinny son is very healthy. My doctor said you need to think in terms of high calorie not junk. Use whole milk, butter on vegetables ice cream in a fruit smoothie, stuff like that. Good Luck!!

Pedisure its tasty and has extra protein.

Does he like peanut butter? You can get the natural kind with no added sugar or preservatives. Peanut butter is packed full of good stuff, plus plenty of fat, but the good kind. If you can sneak that into at least one meal per day he should start to gain a little weight. Also, encourage a protein of some kind at every meal. My son (22 months) loves those string cheese sticks. You can also make cookies from ingredients that are healthy but still taste great and may help put of some weight. You can find lots of good recipes online, or send me a message and I'll send my recipe to you. Good luck!

Ok, let me ask this since you didn't say....does he eat plenty during the day or is he picky? If he eats plenty of good food during the day then I honestly wouldn't worry about where he in on the curve. If he is a picky eater or just picks at his food, then you can try Carnation Instant Breakfast mixed in his milk.

Just remember every child is differnt in how they gain weight. My friend's son is a 6wk premie (he will be 2yr in the end of April) and only weights 24lbs. (He is on the Carnation Breakfast per his Ped since he tends to pick at his food) My son who will be 2 the beginning of May is already over 27 lbs and my son has only gained 7 of those lbs since he was 9 months old and let me tell you he will eat me out of house and home!!! Now my 7 yr old (8yrs in July) didn't even weigh 20lbs by time she was 1yr old and now only weighs 50 soaking wet!!

A couple I know has a 7 month old that is only 12 lbs and she is the tiniest thing you'll ever see!! She takes 6oz bottles and is on stage 2 baby food!!!

So unless you are cocerned that your son doesn't eat enough then just keep giving him healthy foods to eat and he'll plump up when he is ready!

S.

Hi S.,

I'm a mom of two little girls. My oldest was having trouble gaining weight when she was about 1-2 years old. I tried feeding her things like cream of wheat (a great source of iron) some of her favorite things later in the day. Everyone's metabolism slows, so just for a few months I tried this and it worked. Maybe an additional mini-meal will help.

Be Blessed,

T.
Lawrenceville, GA

Sara,

As everyone else said, just increasing his calorie intake and his "healthy" fats will help him gain weight. What I was told to do is for at least one meal a day to replace milk with Pediasure. So I would make mashed potatoes and take my son's portion out before I added milk and put in pediasure, while the rest of us had it made with milk. Or make sugar free pudding snacks with pediasure rather than milk.

Low sugar/no sugar peanut butter is a great way to increase your son's calorie intake. I used to make peanut butter cookies with applesauce to replace some of the sugar, I did use real unsalted butter, but that was a flavor choice on my part. So for dessert on "cookie baking day" we would have peanut butter cookie and pudding parfaits. Which are very yummy.

Something else the nutritionist recommended was to get liquid omega-3 fish oil and to put a little bit of that into my son's yobaby, or into pudding, or something of that consistency. Just to find little ways of increasing his calories without increasing how much he has to eat was the train of thought we followed.

I hope this helps some,
M.

Both of my children now 3 and 4 were "underweight" when they were 1-2 years old they are still very fit and trim but both extremely healthy and most importantly active. If your child is very active he will be thin! My father-in-law is a pediatrician and I so I get the inside scoop on what doctors say out of obligation and what they really think. He says as long as you offer healthy snacks and water throughout the day and your child is eating his meals and is staying active he is fine. Lots of it has to do with genetics. Don't worry so much for the most part if you feel that your child is healthy then you know what they say...
Mother knows best! :)

I had a similiar issue .. except it was the nurse practioner.. i am 5'1" and weigh 125 pounds.. all of my kids were small .. still are & petite.. my physician recommended starchy foods & whole milk.. my son is now 4 & maybe tops 30 punds.. he eats like there is no tomorrow.. but he also does not stop .. literally.. I wouldn't get to concerned if you know he is eating well & does not act like he is starving..you may also try the pediasure products as well.. mine son never liked any of those but worth a try.. good luck

Hi!
I posted about this very same issue several months ago and I know EXACTLY what you are going through. First- stay calm-your child is probably filling his diapers so he is getting something. My daughter is also 19 months, but she is only 20 lbs. Second, drill your child's doctor if you have to or change doctors, but you should be working together on this like any issue concerning your child's health. My daughter's Dr. told me to put her on Carnation instant Breakfast 2x a day. We also decided that frying was ok as long as it was done in good oils like olive oil. Olive oil can't be used in deep frying since the smoke point is too low, but it makes tilapia and french fried sweet potatoes extra yummy without adding bad fats. We also decided that using PB and jelly was great since my daughter will not often eat chicken or beef and hates pork. We have no allergies to PB in our family though- so that is a personal decision. Also, watch your child's eating habits. Does he take a long time to eat? Does he eat especially well after he has been allowed to make big messes with his food? Will he only eat well with music in the background or with you sitting right there with him? Take these things into account. It is more than a matter of food at this age- it is the habits that they form as part of their own personal personality. My daughter has actually become the inspiration behind a new business for me- making long sleeve wip off bibs- because she eats best when given the chance to "play" with her food. BTW- she has risen in percentage since trying all of these things. Just be aware of your child, and don't sweat it if he is small or doesn't grow as fast as everyone else. As long as he is filling diapers and seems happy- you are doing your job. Good luck mom.

As long as you know he is eating well, do not push it. I know he is still young, but it fosters bad food issues. 22 pounds is not bad, and he my just not be a big kids. You do not want to start pushing anything and everything you can in his mouth for the doctors sake. The worst thing you can do for a child it foster bad eating habits. I do not give a child a cookie if they fall, a snack if they are bored, etc, and this fall right into line with those things.
The most important thing here is that he is eating enough of the right foods. I highly doubt you are starving him, he probably has plenty opportunity to eat. And if he is anywhere near as active as mine where, you have little prayer of getting him to gain much, bc he is constantly burning it off.

Smile and nod to your dr. and then do what you feel is right. But there are toooooooo many ppl out there with MAJOR food issues, to not think about that now, even if he is just a toddler.

I don't know how much help this will be but try to get him to eat yogurt. My little girl is 23 months old and weighs 19 lbs so I completely understand how frustrating it is. Also if it becomes too much of a problem as it has with my daughter, you may want to look into the Marcus Institute in Atlanta. My daughter went for outpatient treatment once a week for two months. She will eat just about anything I give her now. Your insurance may cover it considering he is so underweight. My insurance covered hers. Hope this helps.

You don't have to feed him fries to help him gain weight, but increasing his carbs probably wouldn't hurt. Healthy dishes with potatoes, toast, rice etc. My kids love mashed potatoes with garlic and cheese, or sweet potatoes with brown sugar and a bit of vanilla. Rice dishes are great as well. My kids are not big meat eaters, never have been. For snacks, think healthy whole grains, even goldfish have a whole grain version these days! Cheese is also something that would help bulk him up a bit. Another kid favorite around here is pasta, with a little butter, olive oil, parmasean cheese and a shake of oregano or italian seasoning or basil. My kids yum it up.

It may just be that your little guy is going to be a little guy!

My favorite recipe website is www.allrecipes.com -- I find lots there that I use.

S.,

My husband is a chef. He suggests fatty foods that are high in Omega 3 oils. They are naturally fatty and good for the heart. Salmon, baked potatoes, avocado ( fun guacamole dip) are all examples of good fatty foods.

You can also resort to getting better vitamins and supplements at www.mholmes7.qhealthzone.com

P. R.

Good luck and do not give up getting your baby to his healtiest weight.

Another option is nutritious supplemental drinks, like pediasure.

Beyond fruits and vegetables, my 17 month old loves rotiserie (sp?) chicken - I remove the skin etc, sweet potatoes (you can get them canned - just rinse if they are in syrup), cheese (cut into sm chunks or buy the crumbles), and wheat bread. All of which would be healthy ways to gain weight. Good luck!

Hi,

I had the same problem with my son. Our doctor told us to give him one can of pedia sure twice a day. This worked really great!! It provided the calories needed in a healthy manner. Pedia Sure became pricey after while, and our doctor said carnation instant breakfast would work as well for a lot less.

I had the same issue with my daughter whem she was 18 mos. My pediatrician said to give her Pediasure instead of milk. Walmart and Kroger both have a store brand. My daughter loved it, but it got very expensive. Now I mix instant breakfast powder into whole milk at least once a day instead and my pediatrician said that was OK. Just remember, If you or your husband were small children, your kids will be too and that's alright. If height and weight are proportional and he is healthy, don't worry overly much. I have 2 smart, beautiful, healthy children and they are both small for their ages. Also, I don't think 22 lbs is that small. My 29 month old only weighs about 25-26 lbs.