Looking for Tips to Help My 1 Year Old Son Gain More Weight

Trust me he is fine. My son was the same weight at that age. Just let him eat when he wants. For my son little debbie donut sticks was the trick. But then my son also has very high metabolism. He will catch up with himself. He knows how hungry he is. Sometimes extra snacks helps and ice cream. But my best advice is to just wait it out. It may take a couple of years but he will be okay.

Pot pies - we do those for lunch sometimes. I would never eat them because of how much fat they contain - but kids love them!
But don't let a doctor freak you out. If he's hitting his milestones developmentally -then don't stress. Some kids are just string beans!!! My son was below the 5th percentile on weight for the first two years of his life. He's super smart and his weight has evened out now that he's three and eating more - running around.

I agree about not worrying too much as kids with parents who care and a full refrigerator do not starve :) But I wanted to second the avocado idea. It's full of healthy fats and you can either feed it in slices (or spoon fulls) or mash it up and freeze it in an ice cube container. Good luck!

Three of my 6 children were the size of yours at 1 year of age. They are all now wonderful healthy full grown adults, so I wouldn't worry too much. One of them has a son who is 6, and he also is very petite, but healthy, bright and cute as a button. The best things come in small packages!

I used to worry too but now I just realize that my son is very lean. To compare him to the chubby bunnies out there is not fair to him. I don't feed him a lot of processed foods or any fast food so to compare him to the kids that get that stuff on a regular basis is wrong. Of course they will weight more than my son but my son is healthy,very active and intelligent.
My son is 4 years old and weights 35-36lbs. Maybe it would be nice to have him a little bit heavier but I remember when I was little I was very lean as well and you could see my ribs too. As long as your child is developing in a consistent manner and there haven't been any sudden changes either gaining too much weight or losing weight then I would just keep doing what you have been doing.

Also...Mosi,
I guess this is what I mean by comparing to other children that aren't as healthy. The doctor is looking at a growth chart but has no way of knowing, when looking at it, just how healthy those numbers are.Just because a kid is in the 75th percentile doesn't mean that they are healthy. Who knows whether some of the kids in the 75th percentile aren't obese and unhealthy? This country has become unhealthy and overweight and the growth charts reflect that but the doctors are still using it as a way to gauge a child's health instead of looking at the overall state of the child and overall development.

I wouldn't worry.

Our son was always falling very low in the weight percentile too. Our peds recommendation was to put a teaspoon of butter or oil in everything possible. We also gave him pediasure instead of or mixed with his milk. (Ask your ped before you do this.) Pediasure is pretty expensive but I found that Target has a generic of it for about two dollars less.

Hope this helps!

T.

How much did your son weigh at birth? If your doctor isn't concerned, I wouldn't be either. You can't force feed a child. If he's hungry, he'll eat. If he is otherwise healthy, let him be slim! When he hits a good growth spurt, I'm sure he'll pick up weight and grow bigger. Relax and enjoy. :)

Hi A., I have two girls with whom I had the same problem. My oldest had a lot of trouble gaining weight. I kept a food diary and the doctor could not believe everything she ate and didn't gain weight. She was below the growth chart line in the malnourished range for 3 years!! However, she was anything but malnourished. She just had a very fast metabolism! Now she is 14 and is totally where she needs to be. My second daughter has always been in the 5th percentile (she is now 11). My point? As long as you know your son is eating his fruits, veggies, dairy etc and you are keeping it healthy and your doctor isn't worried, don't worry. With both of my daughters, we used evaporated milk, whole milk, lots of rice, potatoes, cereal etc. NOthing worked. As long as he is developing, just enjoy him and his surprises!!

Hi A.,
I have a 20-month old who is underweight for his age too. He is 32 1/2 inches tall and at his last appointment he weighed 26 lbs. His dr. would like to see him around 30 lbs.
Anway, she gave me a list of high calorie, high protein foods for him to eat. She also said that he needs to drink at least one nutritional drink per day. Either Pediasure, Boost Kid Essentials or the like.
I have started putting wheat germ in his food. He has an almost adult size bowl of oatmeal each morning and I put butter and canned (evaporated) milk in it. For lunch and dinner he eats whatever we are eating.
In potatoes I add sour cream and canned milk. He also drinks whole milk instead of the 2 percent that we used to drink. I feed him regular yogurt, not nonfat or lowfat. If your son is not allergic to peanuts, try giving him peanut butter. Also try cheese.
I hope you find something that works for you with your son.

I wouldn't worry about his weight. As kids get more active they burn the calories way faster. My 17 1/2 month old weighs 18 6 and was 16 something at her one year check up. My last two were petite and they are growing in proportion to their weight & height. The percentile is based on any 100 kids and you will always have a child in the 100% and someone elses child the 1%. 100% is not a goal. You want consistency from check up to checkup. Did he drop more than one range (100% to 50%) If not do what you have been doing and don't worry. If you force the food he will never learn to stop when full. Their bellies are suppose to be as big as their fist and that is not big.

I had a friend who was told to pack on the weight now her 12 yo son is over 140 and a couch potato.

Hi

As long as your son is gaining weight then I would not worry , just carry on doing what you are doing and make sure he is eating healthy nutritous meals and snacks. My son who is now 6 still only weighs 38lb and my daughter was 18 months before she weighed 20lb and now at 3 1/2 she is only just 30lb , they are just natutally slim children. Keep in mind that all kids are different and the height/weight chart that the Dr refers to is only a guideline and while some kids follow it others will not.

All the best

K.

It's hard because they are so active and burning calories now more than ever. I have a son who I think could gain more weight too. I think he was 20lbs and 31 inches at 12 months. I feed him anything he'll eat. In the morning we'll do toast with butter on it or toast with peanutbutter (butter underneath) and hard cereals, regular fruit or baby food fruit. I have to change his food a lot because he seems to get bored. Shortbread cookies are good as well -like Pepp. Farm Chessmen. Ice cream is high in calories too. Make sure all dairy is regular -no low fat. Keep feeding him is good advice. Try lots of things. When we grew up they didn't pay much attention to saturated fats and it's hard to not think about it when I buy food for him. I buy stuff for him that I wouldn't eat. It's tough to recondition your thinking.

Pediasure. There are about 200 calories in each one, and they are packed with vitamins and minerals. When my boys are sick, and don't have an appetite, I give them a Pediasure. Ask your doc if your 1 yr old would benefit from at least 1 can a day. It won't hurt. Good Luck!

I cannot give you any advice on how to get your son to gain more weight. But I can provide comfort in letting you know that I went through the same thing with my 5 year old. By 1 he was only 17 pounds, and even now he is still small for his age and height. He is very active, and has a healthy appetite, that is all you can worry about. The weight may or may not come to him.

I hope this helps you feel better.

L. D.

If the Dr says he's fine, I wouldn't worry too much. At 1 yr old, on average, a baby will be about 3 times his birth weight. So if he was 5 lbs or so at birth, he's right about where he should be. My son was 9 lbs at birth and at 25 lbs at 1 yr old. If you are still worried about it - most babies love French fries.

Hi A.,

Cheerios are really good for 1 year olds. Raisens are good, as are diced apples, bananas, pears, and other fruits and veggies. Just cut them up to about the size of a cheerio and let him have at it. Your pediatrician is right that your little one is a fine weight. If you're up for a bit of a mess, you can also try oatmeal with a little brown sugar. Whatever you like, he should be able to eat by now unless he doesn't have all his teeth. Spaghetti and Mac and Cheese are really popular at that age too. Hope this helps.

I'm not sure what he drinks, but try to stay away from juice as much as possible and give him whole milk to drink. Milk helps with growth and development while juices are not that good at this age. If the doctor isn't really worried, then try not to worry either. As a mom we all want what is best for our children and sometimes that makes us worry too much. There are so many things that we do worry about, just keep an eye on him and try to enjoy all the things that he does. Good Luck.

My daughter's doctor said the same thing at her 1 year appt., because my daughter's weight percentile when down in between 9 and 12 months. She was still gaining but just very slowly since she was so active. She said I could simply add butter to my daughter's food. I also gave her healthy high-fat things like cheese and peanut butter (no history of allergies in our fam). Also, I started her on whole milk... she was still breastfeeding a little, too. By her 18 month appt., she was in a a higher percentile - the doctor was actually very impressed with her growth, and of course I am biased, but she is one of the healthiest looking 22-month olds i've seen! She enjoys her vegetables, and is just a really good eater in general. I stopped adding butter to her food after her 18 month appt, too. Also, I have more recently added hummus to her diet, and it is one of her favorite things! I hope this helps. Avocado is really high in fat, too, but my daughter only liked it spread on bread, not plain.
Oh and I do a lot of fruits for snacks because they leave her hungry enough that she usually eats very well for the big 3 meals. But she usually eats at home with very little distraction. She usually eats less when we are out and about. So you just kind of need to evaluate your baby's environment and the activities for the day when deciding on food, and try not to worry, because it sounds like your baby is doing A-OK!

Hi A.,

Try the Super Baby Food book, it has GREAT tips!!

Good luck, S.

Hi A.. My kids have been on the lean side at 1 year, too, and I've just tried to make sure they get lots of full-fat dairy--Yobaby yogurt, cheese, milk, etc. I also add some healthy-fat spread (like Smart Balance or Brummel and Brown) to whole-grain waffles and toast. My son caught up weight wise and now at 3-1/2 he's just about 50th% for both height and weight. My daughter is almost 13 months old, and she's entering a more-food-on-the-floor-less-in-the-mouth stage (I'm about to post a ? about that!), but I'm hopeful she'll catch up, too. Anyway, if your doc isn't worried, I wouldn't either--just put out healthy foods for your little guy and he'll eat what he wants/needs.

My son always like to drink more than he liked to eat. So try whipping your child up a smoothie. You can put/hide a whole lot of good stuff in the blender and mix it up. This particularly worked well in the summer with my child when it was just too hot and icky to feel like eating. Yogurt, ice, and a myriad of fruit-banana's make everything taste better and help give a really smooth texture. All the regular grocery stores now carry pre-processed frozen fresh fruit (like Goya-for good prices try the international sections) that make it so easy and give more variety. Invest in a decent juicer too. So worth the $80-100 you may spend(FYI-they usually have the Jack LaLane Brand at Costco- I have this one and it does a good job of extracting most of the juice in the fruit- cheaper brands don't, trust me). My son is 6 now and it's the only way I can get carrots into him at this point. The juicers come with recipe books- a couple of apples will help hide the taste of just about any fresh vege you are trying to get in there! Not to mention with all this, there are all kinds of natural powdered and liquid nutriional additvies on the market you can sneak in. Good luck and don't worry!

My son is 14 months and has always been on the smaller side but he recently caught up.

My pediatrician said from the beginning that as L. as he was developing fine and hitting appropriate milestones there was no need to worry.

You could try pediasure along with or in place of whole milk, but its very expensive. My son loves pediasure (we use it when we are going to be out during meal time and can't keep milk cold).

A.,
Both of my children seemed to level off on growth around a year and either didn't seem to grow at all or, in my daughter's case actually lost weight. Of course, as a mom I worried!!! Our pediatrician checked a couple of simple things with my daughter, but didn't do anything but watch and wait with my son. In both cases he said just offer plenty of healthy food (meals and snacks) and let them eat as much as they want. (Both of my children are also HUGE eaters.) I'd worry less about getting some weight on your son and more about giving him plenty of healthy food. He'll eat as much as he needs and be as lean or chunky as his body was meant to be. The charts and stats are just to give us an idea of averages, but kids come in so many sizes and all have growth spurts at very different times.
B.

My little guy is in the 5th percentile at 2 years of age & has pretty much been there since birth; our pediatrician has asked questions about our family, I was always a small kid & has come to the conclusion he probably just takes after my side of the family. If we follow the 5th percentile line out to 18 years of age his height & weight will average around mine averaged out for a male.

If your guy is a good eater I wouldn't worry.
Enjoy

As long as you are offering healthy foods and his growth curve is consistent try not to worry. I worried constintly with my oldest he was/is between the 5th&15th percentile on weight. His growth curve is consistent though. He is half chinese so against american growth charts he is on the low side. My younger son actually weights a couple pounds more than my older (8yo & 5yo). But they are built completely different.

Smoothies are great I also gave my oldest formula until he was 2yo. My pediatrician said if we could afford it to continue it for the extra calories. Good luck.

My daughter weighed in at 17 lbs. 3oz at her 12 month check up. My Dr. wasn't overly concerned. She was walking by then and burning lots of energy. He did suggest that I keep her on formula until the 15 month check up, which I did. I feed her lots of fruit and always had snacks - animal crackers, organic bunny cheddar crackers, fruit cups, cheese, yogurt. She is a good eater, but some days she was hungry and other days she wasn't. Now at 2 she is over 31 lbs. She caught up to the growth charts and then some. Your son will too!

My daughter weighed the same at 12 months and her doctors were concerned. One inexperienced doctor suggested testing for celiac disease, but our regular ped disagreed and said she would probably catch up in her second year. He wanted me to feed her Pediasure, but she hated it. I kept nursing and offered as much high-calorie food as I could. This included:
-organic butter on pasta and melted into cooked vegetables
-organic cream and maple syrup in her oatmeal
-avocadoes (usually as homemade guacamole)
-whole milk yogurt and Kefir (she would not drink milk)
-cheese sticks and other forms of cheese
-organic eggs - she would eat 2 yolks in one sitting!
-meatballs, cut-up chicken and steak, canned beans
-gluten-free cookies (in case gluten was an issue)
They also tested every 6 months for lead and anemia. She was borderline anemic at times.

By 18 months she only weighed 19.5 pounds, but after stressing about all the calories, at her 2 year check up, she was 23.5 lbs! Back on the growth chart and looking good! She was always a voracious eater, which is part of the reason we didn't worry so much. My husband and I were also small/skinny kids and relatively short adults.

If your son isn't wanting to eat, that may require some follow up. But otherwise, expect him to catch up in year 2 if you are feeding him healthy, high-calorie foods. If you are nursing, don't wean until you are sure he'll drink cow's milk. Good luck!

When my son was your sons age he was way OFF the charts in weight and so I was always worried about what I fed him but in the opposite way. Now that he is 3 years old and runs nonstop he has thinned out and is right in the average range for weight for his age so don't worry too much because as he grows he will become more in line with what is considered average.

Just make sure you feed him healthy options and don't try to feed him high fat content foods to pack on weight. If your doctor wasn't too concerned then you shouldn't be too concerned!! Now that he is 1, I imagine you are transitioning him away from formula or breastfeeding so I would make sure he drinking plenty of whole milk if he can tolerate cow's milk. I would maybe suggest oatmeal/yogurt for breakfast or eggs if your son is eating table foods. Maybe make sure he gets a starch during dinner time like mashed potatoes or pasta along with a vegetable or fruit. Those would be my suggestions but I wouldn't stress yourself over it. As long as your son is happy and healthy and eats well throughout the day (which your doctor seemed to confirm) then he is doing just fine!!! :)

He sounds fine. My brother was always in the lower percentile.

Stick with the healthier options:
yogurt, cottage cheese, fruits, veggies, a piece of bread at each meal, crackers for snacks. My kids love the drinkable yogurts, goldfish, mini nillas, apple slices.

Good luck.
M.

A. -- I would not do the butter on pasta etc. That gives kids a taste for butter which is full of animal fat and cholesterol. Instead, put good-quality olive oil on his pastas, in rice, on veggies, etc. It has no cholesterol, gets him used to the taste of a very healthy oil he can eat for the rest of his life, and is full of healthy fats he needs as he develops. At his age he likely won't notice or care that there is olive oil in his food and it adds plenty of healthy vegetable-based calories. Also, if he gets used to sugars and syrups on oatmeal etc., yes, he's gaining calories, but at the cost of getting him to love sugary additions. Try stirring spoonfuls of fruit-only spreads into his oatmeal or thinning fruit spreads by heating them in the microwave for a moment and spreading them on whole-wheat pancakes instead of using syrup. You do want to give him calories but always consider what those calories are coming from -- are they from healthy foods or unhealthy ones, and what's he developing a taste for that could cause problems for him later in childhood or adulthood?