Slow weight gain at a year old

Did your babies stay on or around their growth curve once they reached a year? My son put on tons of weight early and was in the 90th percentile through the first 4 months. Around 6 mos he was in the 75th, 9 months around the 50th and now I think he's in the 20th or less? I took him today to get his ears checked. They weighed him, but we didn't really discuss it since it wasn't a well visit. When I got home I plugged it into an online percentile calculator. He's a little over 21 lbs now at a year old. I even feel like his tummy and back are feeling bonier to me. Now I'm worried about him being on whole milk and off bottles. How do I know if he's eating enough? He's a pretty picky eater. One day he'll gobble up something and the next day he will barely touch it. Then I'm torn whether or not I should make him something else, or if he's just not hungry. His well visit isn't until 4/8, so before then I want to try to load him up with food and maybe a higher fat (but still healthy) diet. Any ideas? Would you be worried?

 

Cody did seem to fall down in the charts at a year. They become so much more active & are burning more calories. From 1-2 we have very little weight gain but tons of height. I think it is a little too early for you to worry about "fattening" him up. Talk to your ped & see if that eases your mind. I did add a little carnation instant b-fast to J & J's milk but I think they were closer to 2.

 

Both my kiddos starting droping percentiles when they got super mobile. The baby who was running at 12mo only gained 1lb between 9 & 12 months. But he never.stops.moving. He also eats almost twice as much as his brother. As this was the 2nd check-up where we dropped percentiles I was really getting concerned. The pedi said it wasn't uncommon for kids once they started being more active for them to slow down on the weight. She said we were just a little ahead of the curve on the mobility so we were seeing the slowing down most people see a little later (like 12-15mo). She said it was perfectly normal and as long as they were eating well, eating good portion sizes, and eating until they weren't hungry anymore it was fine. And if he was hungry, or needed more calories he would let us know (like acting hungry before the next meal time). We talked about the abysmal transition to milk, too. She re-iterated that when they are thirsty they will drink. And turns out it is apparently true. It took us 3 weeks, but the kiddos polished off 22oz of milk each out of sippy cups yesterday. They started at about 6 when we first made the switch.

If you are really worried, and I know this is sacrilidge to say, but maybe think about giving him a bottle of milk once a day to supplement? We ended up going back to a bottle in the morning because they were taking so long and drinking so little we were really late to work. After two weeks they actually liked the sippies better than the bottle and we went back to sippies much happier babies than where we started. I think it may have helped to know that only milk came in the bottles, too. They really are a stubborn lot.

 

Yes, I'm sure I would worry too - even though he's probably fine! My girls were higher percentage-wise before they were mobile too. The more mobile they became the less they kept weight on. It got a lot easier for us once they were done with bottles and on table food. I do have to give the girls high fats - real butter, not a substitute, real ice cream, full fat cheese and yogurt, etc. but they are doing so much better than at their 1 year appointment. We were told at the 1 year appointment that if Lily didn't gain enough by 15 months they would have to run tests.

 

At our one year appointment, both of our babies were in the 5th percentile for weight (DD was 17 lbs and DS was 18)...our pediatrician recommended 24 oz of milk everyday and high fat foods. Like Aimee's girls, ours get full fat everything. They went for the 15 month appointment today, the pediatrician was happy with their weights (DD 19lbs, DS 20 lbs)...our babies have always been on the slight side and I think the more mobile they are, the harder it is to keep weight on. We also put Carnation Instant Breakfast in one of their bottles of milk for extra calories. Good luck!

 

I think its normal for kids to slow down in gaining weight when they become mobile. Is your pedi concerned? Have they dropped completely off their curve? You can sneak calories into their diet by using full fat milk to cook and butter. If he is picky, can you try modifying some of the things he likes to make them more caloric :hug:

 

I think it's normal to slow down too, but they should stay on their curve. Are they gaining weight at all? Mine are gaining 1lb every 2 months at this rate... but they're still where they were.

Now, i know a baby that was 24lb at 4 months, and she's still 24lb at 15 months, and very healthy. So unless they seem not to be very active I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

I just pulled out his growth record. Here's how his weight gain has trended:

birth: 5 lbs 14 oz
2 weeks: 7 lbs 3 oz
5 weeks: 10 lbs 2 oz
4 mos: 16 lbs 7.5oz
6 mos: 18 lbs 9.5 oz
10 mos: 20 lbs 6 oz
12 mos: 21 lbs 3 oz

He is a pretty good milk drinker, even with his sippy. Maybe he's filling up on it? Though I would think the fat in it would be good for him. I think I will be calling the pediatrician on Monday for guidance and peace of mind. I don't think I'll be able to wait until 4/8. Thanks for all your responses!

 

It sounds good to me really. DS was just 9 ounces heavier at 12 months and he's in the 40th percentile, so yours can't be far off. He might be drinking too much milk, yeah. Our pediatrician said not to give more than 16oz a day anymore because otherwise they're less hungry for the 'real food'.

 

QUOTE(DeniseT @ Mar 28 2009, 10:43 AM) [snapback]1248161[/snapback]
I just pulled out his growth record. Here's how his weight gain has trended:

birth: 5 lbs 14 oz
2 weeks: 7 lbs 3 oz
5 weeks: 10 lbs 2 oz
4 mos: 16 lbs 7.5oz
6 mos: 18 lbs 9.5 oz
10 mos: 20 lbs 6 oz
12 mos: 21 lbs 3 oz



OK Rose was born 5lbs 14oz exactly too. Daniel was born 3lbs 14 oz. At 13 mos check up they were both 19lbs 7 or 9 oz and were 30" and 30" 1/4 tall. My pedi had no worries about their weights which are much less than your boy. I was told at the 13mos appointment that I should expect to see a massive slowdown in growth. The slowdown in growth coincides with them learning how to move so they are learning to move with a body that stays pretty much the same. Also if he is on the constant move now it explains why he didn't grow much. I was also told to limit their milk intake to no more than 18oz a day now so they don't become anemic. I really wouldn't worry about his weight it seems normal compared to most of the boy twins on my other board!