Slow Weight Gain - Omaha,NE

I would add some more breastfeeding sessions in. Breastmilk actually has the highest fat content (higher than other foods or drinks) and will help her to gain more weight. I would actually cut back on the solids since she is only 6 months anyways and breastfeed on demand day and night. Then add in the foods you mentioned like avacado and banana. Just make sure breastmilk is still her primary source of nutrition for the first 12 months and that you aren't putting her on rigid feeding schedules. At six months she should be nursing at least every 3 hours during the day and probably a couple of times a night. Glad to hear your pedi isn't concerned though, she could just be a small baby!

My guy is also having weight issues. He eats like crazy, but doesnt seem to be gaining (less than 1%). We started him on solids at 3 months. We did bananas, avacado, and lots of potatos. and we do them at every bottle feeding (between 2-3 oz of solids). We also started adding rice cereal and oatmeal in with fruits to thicken them. I think some babies are just small babies or burn the food off faster. It seems you are doing everything right! Keep up the good work! Good Luck!

We had issues with weight gain with our daughter too. She actually LOST at one point. It turns out that she was spending so much energy developing skills that it didn't go towards growing her body.

There's a chart out there that lists the caloric content of foods. Breastmilk is highest by far. Sweet potatoes are another good choice. One thing you can do to increase her caloric intake is to mix up to a tablespoon of olive oil into her solids (start with 1 tsp and slowly increase).

First of all you have to look at family genetics, how tall is your family? I have a home daycare and have seen all sizes of families that make no sense to me.. even my own kids, I have 5, my 2nd one is still pretty small, 20th percentile, 1 & 3 are really tall and stocky (all girls by the way) # 4 literally did not grow or gain any weight for 2 months when I had her, she ended up losing a lb. even though she ate like a horse. She was 20lbs for over a year when she should have been close to 30. She just hit 32lbs and is almost 3. she is only in the 50% for her weight and 75% for height. #5 finally a boy is really long but doesn't gain much weight yet.

I had one little girl who was 18mo. old and was still is size 2 diapers. Ate like a horse, formula fed but was just little.

As long as she is eating and healthy I wouldn't worry too much. Every kid is different, she will grow when her body decides to.

Best of luck to you.

You could try mixing whole milk ricotta in with her banana or whatever you're feeding her at the time, as long as the texture doesn't bother her it should work wonders. We had a slight dip with my now 20 month old around that time too (also breastfed) and when we added in dairy products (at the suggestion of his ped -- i guess dairy products are fine just not milk or eggs) he went right back up. Other than ricotta, we also used the full fat all-natural yogurt and cottage cheese. One more thing you could try is flax, you should be able to find it in the grocery store by the baking supplies. Its super calorie rich and you just add it in to their pureed food like you would a baby cereal. I wouldn't worry about your supply at all -- the babies regulate that. Good luck with everything!

You've gotten some good info already, but I just wanted to add that 6 months is a pretty common time for a growth spurt, so it may just be that she's about to have hers and the appointment caught her just beforehand. Babies also often mimic their birthparents' growth patterns, so if you have access to your own or her dad's growth charts you might see a parallel. Otherwise, I'd second everyone else's advice to not worry too much unless her health seems compromised. You may want to go slowly with adding solids, and breastfeed first and then "top her off" with the solids since she'll still absorb way more nutrients from your milk than from other foods.
Take care,
Sara

i've had this problem with all my children, the last was the most 'confusing'. she was breastfed, developing great, obvious no problem with supply, but she wasn't gaining any weight at all. my ped was/is VERY supportive of bfing, especially when no apparent supply issues :) we tried a lot of things, but the only thing that seemed to help her gain weight finally (after 4 mos of no weight gain) was just adding whole fat yogurt to EVERYTHING solid i fed her. she suddenly gained weight and at 12 mos or so just took off:) I'm sure it's not the percentile your doc is looking at so much as the curve of your childs growth.

hmm.
is she happy? healthy looking? are there any internal red flags going up? are her eyes glossy? her soft spot sunken at all? grey tone to her skin?

basically, if shes happy, healthy looking, no grey tone to her skin (unless of course she has that tone all the time), no red flags for you, glossy eyes, normal soft spot, etc, shes probably fine.

breastfed babies really bend the rules when it comes to growth. they are typically smaller. 1 lb smaller across the board. so dont worry unless, like i said, you have red flags. your instincts are important. so if you feel she is fine, dispite her growth, she is more than likely fine.

as far as those percentage charts, i HATE that doctors use them, but they dont explain to you really how they work.
basically, they are just comparing your kid to every other kid in her age group. its GROSSLY unfair because NO kid grows exactly the same as another. as long as she stays around in the same area of the graph, thats whats important, not where she compares to others. she doesnt need more calories, she doesnt need to eat more, she doesnt need extra formula - but its not a problem if you give it to her. formula has extra calories, so if you are doing it and its working for you, dont worry about it! :D

dont put the pressure on yourself. doctors "like to see" a lot of things that they dont because mom knows best. in EVERY SITUATION YOU KNOW BEST. shes your child. the doctor does NOT have the connection that you have with her. she never will. you are more important than the doctor! :D

just play it by ear. dont force solids if you dont want to, or if shes not ready.... but go for it if she is! dont worry about making sure she gets "more" as much as you worry that she is satisfied with whatever you do. making a baby eat when they are finished is only going to help her shut off her 'fullness' cues. not a good thing!

anyway, just follow your heart. you know. ;D doctors are wrong more often than we think!