# Mamas of skinny babes- HELP!



## Qtopia (Dec 24, 2002)

Since Quin's 4 mo. well baby check up (he's now 8 mos), we have been struggling with the whole low/no weight gain issue. I have fought tooth and nail against stupid nurses and doctors and IBCLCs (!) who recommended stopping bfing or supplementing with formula, stupid nurses and doctors who said that the fact that he was hyper/ super active baby had no bearing on his low weight gain, stupid nurses and doctors who described all these horrific things that could happen to ds if we didn't get his weight up (development delays, illnesses, death!). It's been emotionally crushing for me to be told over and over that my baby is not OK and, in essence, that it is MY fault b/c I am his main source of nourishment.

In my heart of hearts I feel like my baby is healthy. He is an active, beautiful, bright-eyed and bushey-tailed little guy. He does not look sick, has never had a cold or fever or ANY type of illlness, does not have sunken eyes or flabby skin or dry skin/mouth/eyes. His pees and poops are normal. He is meeting or exceeding all developmental milestones. He is just, SKINNY.

The only thing that sets him apart from other normal babies is his weight. At 8 months, he weighs 14 1/2 pounds and is prolly 26 1/2 inches long.

A little voice inside me, and a great big annoyingly loud voice inside DH, is obssessed with the damn percentile chart. And yes, we have charted him on the new CDC charts- not on it.

I guess what I am asking for is support and stories about your skinny-yet-healthy babes. DH is way more concerned about the off the chart thing than I am, and his fear is beginning to rub off on me.

As shallow as it sounds, what I need to know is that there ARE babies like Quin out there. Babies who are healthy, happy, bright, active, and SKINNY.

Mamas, help!


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## lilylove (Apr 10, 2003)

My baby is skinny!! She is 9 months and has not gained any signifcant(sp) wieght in two months, But she is VERY active. At first I really worried, But I was told By my mother and Family dr that B/F babies are naturally leaner. It does not mean that breastmilk is less nutrional, just more efficient. Trust your instinct and maybe switch to a different dr or get a second opinion to sooth your DH. Hang in there. Breast really is best Good luck I'm rootin for Ya


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## mamapajama (Feb 9, 2003)

I too have a very skinny baby (8 1/2 mos). Anyone who sees him naked always says "Oh!!!! He is so skinny." He hasn't been to the ped in a couple of months and we don't have a scale so I really don't know how much he weighs at this point. But, he was in the bottom 15th percentile at his last visit. BUT he is very tall, and he started crawling at 6 months. He is incredibly active. I was worried, and my ped told me to bring him back at 8 mos to check weight, which I haven't done. IMHO I think if your babe is active and peeing and pooping, then they are healthy. Maybe you should try a diff ped for a second opinion????


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## PiesandAbrosmama (Jan 31, 2003)

First I'll start by saying I feel your pain, and you are right in all the feelings you are having. In answer to your question you are not alone in having skinny babes! And those of us that were skinny babes turned out normal and healthy (I being one of them, as my mommy will always point out). And if that's not enough my dd who is now two, barely weighs 24 pounds was always to low on the charts and my ds in contrast who is five months is a butterball chunk at over 17 pounds!! So who's to say? My dd was always active never stopping (still is) and my son is more interested in communication. So I'm I to asume that he is not going to be althletic andmy dd won't be talkative? I'd also like to point out you should look to see who puts out the chart. Usually a big manf of formula. I encourage you to listen to that mommy voice in your head telling you that your babe is healthy. Your the one with him or her all the time and you would be noticing if he/she was not healthy! It's hard to trust are little voices, but I believe they were put there to be heard! So please know you are not alone and you are giving your babe the very best, nature!


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## buttercup (Dec 18, 2002)

I am so sorry that you have to put up w/ that.

My dd just had her 9mo checkup 2 weeks ago. She weighed 17lbs and 4 oz. Her height was 27.5in long. She is bf, has not teeth and doesn't eat a lot of solids. She gained 2 lbs since she was 6mos.

Is there anyway you can switch to another Dr.? Drs and nurses aren't always right. That is why we have mommy intincts.

Jenni and Helon 6/29/02


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## zombiemommie (Dec 6, 2001)

Is baby growing in height ? Sometimes when babies slow/down or stop their weight gains they are shooting up in height. No growth anywhere is alot different than some height growth, no weight growth. Does that make sense ?

Anywhoo - I am mother to a 2 3/4 year old skinny toddler whose ribs you can see and if he sucks in his stomach you can probably see his liver ROFL.

Born at 8 lb 13 oz, 16 lbs at his 4 mos visit, started crawling at 5 mos (yes, 5 mos) and then cruised at 7 months and walked at 8 mos. NEVER sat still from the minute he was born, including sleep time. Rolling, scootching, flipping, sleep talking, etc etc. Still that way. He fell off the curve. Waaaayyyyy off the curve. I think he went down to 15th percentile from the 90th or something. But he was growing in height and like your babe, ahead of all developmental milestones, and once he got older (12 months on) ate like a scavenger and STILL can eat us under the table and is skinny as anything. He just broke 30 lbs last monht, something I NEVER thought I'd see ROFL. Our pedi's wanted us to do a calorie count or some such and I said "I am not comfortable with that. He is growing in height and is healthy and developing fine.". If pedi would have suggested supplementation I would have found a new pedi pronto, which I did later on anyway because they sucked. LOL.

From the pedi standpoint, they have to "CYA" (cover your a$$). But they are ignorant and not well educated on breastfeeding matters. If you feel that your baby is doing fine, then don't worry. If you had a gut feeling that something was wrong, there probably is. That is something I firmly believe.

Keep on nursing, and chasing that baby !! YOU need to eat all your calories because when baby starts walking you're gonna be chasing chasing chasing all day.

(((hug))) yourself and know that you are doing best for your babe.

Oh BTW check out http://www.kellymom.com - she has some charts on their somewhere that talk about weight gain and what babies should be BREASTFED.

Anyway- the other thing is now that baby is ready to start solids soon, you are not gonna be able to control how much he eats ANYWAY. So tell your ped to go scratch or find a new one. I had a friend who had a slower gainer who was told to cut out a breastfeeding and give a jar of fruit 3 x a day (like subsitutite the feeding for fruit). OK a baby jar of fruit has what - 35 calories vs. a full boob of at least 150 if not more ? Even a formula recommendation would have been better then THAT stupid advice. Some docs are just....well.... dumb.

Hang in there.


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## mamapixie (May 30, 2002)

My first son was like that, and even now, he's thin for his height(he's 50 inches tall, and 45-50lbs) Our family doctor at the time was great though, she did take into consideration mine and Dh's size(and even asked us if we were thin baby's, which we both were), and just said to make sure we fed him when he was hungry. He was an extremely active baby, walked at 9 1/2 months, etc, and she took that into account too.

My baby is the opposite. He weighed 7lbs 7oz at birth, and by his 2 week checkup had gained 1 1/2lbs(and they were worried in the hospital because I couldn't get him to latch on, I'm convinced the nursery was giving him bottles when he was there in the morning and evening, but once we got home, he was fine)He has stopped gaining so quickly, only gaining 1lb a month, but he's grown in height, plus is much more active now.


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## PuppyFluffer (Mar 18, 2002)

Count our dd in on the "skinny babe" catagory. She is 10 months old now, exclusively breastfed and healthy as can be! She has had one little cold and no other illnesses. She was 7lbs 13oz at birth. She is now 15lbs 8.5 ozs (10 months). I have access to a digital scale at the animal hospital I work at on Saturdays and usually have dh weigh her then.

I like to think of her as sveldt! She has plump cheeks and a small crease or two on her thighs, otherwise, she is slender and cute as can be! She rolled over once at three months, didn't do it again til 4 months and has been "hellon wheels" ever since! At the rate she was moving, I was certain she was going to walk by 9.5 months but she hasn't yet. She stands and crusies holding on to things and is just starting to let go and stand on her own a bit. I am not rushing or encouraging her to walk. She'll get there soon enough! I play on the floor with her alot!

I asked about weight gain at our LLL meeting and was told to trust my instincts! They told me that the types of foods she'd be having at this point - cereal, fruits and veggies - would not have the nutrients and calories that my breastmilk has and that it would not subsitute adequately for breastmilk.

DD is just now grabing at food in my hand. She does not reliably reach for food, she does not open her mouth when we eat. She only has one bottom tooth. I'm in no hurry to start solids and will probably wait another month or so, just basically gonna follow her lead.

You know your baby, trust yourself! I think you are doing fine!


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## Qtopia (Dec 24, 2002)

Thank you mamas!!!

I needed to hear about the other awesome bean pole babies out there!

I am totally dreading Q's upcoming 9 month visit. I think I'm going to make DH take Q so I don't have to listen to any crap from the nurses and docs. I would change peds in a heartbeat (we've already switched once) but we are moving at the end of June and don't want to go through the insurance rigamarole for one visit. We are just going to wait out this last visit and hope we find a better ped in North Carolina.

We did start solids at 5 months, partly because DH was freaking out and partly because I had a moment of emotional weakness and was tired of fighting. But I figured that if we were doing it for caloric value we sure as heck weren't going to give Q rice cereal; instead we've been doing 2 tablespoons of avocados mixed with flax seed oil as the main solid food in the AM and PM (so each 'meal' is about 130 calories) and breastmilk every 2-3 hours 'round the clock.

So, I wanted to ask after reading all your posts: were you all obssessed with checking your babe's weight every week or not? DH and I broke down and bought a digital scale after Q's 6 mo visit so we could weigh him at home every week, but sometimes I think that I should stop doing that and just trust how Q LOOKS rather than what he WEIGHS. I feel like I've been brainwashed into believing that fat baby=healthy baby!! Or, I don't know, did you mamas think it was important to keep up with how much babe weighs on a weekly basis?


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## bo night (Dec 14, 2002)

I say throw out the scale and just be a little watchful. If he's eating, peeing, pooping, alert and healthy there is NOTHING wrong with him. I find it absolutely absurd that your doctor would question you considering what you described him as - healthy and active. You're obviously being very conscious about this and are doing the best things you could be doing for your son.

My dd is a skinny girl. My ped says there really isn't any need to chart weight/height but just to watch their pee's/poops and alertness level. At eight months, she has gained less than a pound in two months.

Your stress level is probably more detrimental than his slow weight gain. Your doctor should be ashamed.

Do you even need to go to the appointment?


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## Friendlymama (Nov 13, 2002)

Just wanted to chime in.

Another mom here of a skinny baby. I understand how stressful it is - I really do. But I think the food/weight issue is my first big lesson as a parent - that I can't force her to eat more than she wants, that there are going to many things I can't control in her life, and gaining weight is probably just the first of many!

But still it's hard. Dd was a big baby at birth (9lbs,5oz) but at 8.5 months, she is just 15lbs,10oz. She is probably not going to double her birth weight by a year (i'm trying not to freak about that!).

As far as the doctors telling you to supplement - wow, this surprises me. I think you could find a better ped out there for sure. Dd's ped has never once suggested that I supplement or push solids. In fact, he's done just the opposite to reassure me that I'm doing a great job breastfeeding. He knows I'm worried tho', so he's made a point more than once to show me where the fat on her body is (thighs, stomach, arms). Frankly, I think he thinks I'm paranoid.

But anyway, I do know how you feel. It's something that people with big babies never have to deal with, and so they really don't understand it. Slowly I'm learning how to make my peace with it tho' - and I'm sure you will too.


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## Friendlymama (Nov 13, 2002)

P.S. - I totally have a digital baby scale.

I know it's hard not to agonize over it, but really, I've learned that no amount of worry or will on my part makes my baby gain any faster or slower. It keeps me informed, but that's it.


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## buttercup (Dec 18, 2002)

Re: your question about weighing weekly

We never weighed dd weekly. My ped had always said she was ver healthy and fell w/in the 50% range during her 9mos Dr. visit (17lb 4oz and 27.5 in long) No one had ever commented on her size. But, the first question they always ask is if I am still bf.

I'd stop weighing her so you can stop thinking about it AND I'd find another Ped.

I hope you feel better.

Jenni and Helon 6/29/02


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## juicylucy (May 20, 2002)

ok, I'm sure people here are sick of me posting about Gabe's weight (!), but he is 23 months old and weighs not quite 19lbs. I have been though all the crap you are going through Quinsmami, and it is crap. As long as he LOOKS healthy, is reaching his milestones relatively on time and eats plenty, you have nothing to worry about. I don't think that is such a low weight at that age anyway, but maybe cos I have such a teeny one









I always knew Gabe was ok as well, but let the docs do all the tests on him, and had endless lectures on how I should stop BFing and how it was my fault that he was so low weight because I ignored their advice. However, at this point they had done ALL the tests and everything was fine with him. he doesn't look gaunt, he is healthy and happy and fine. Kids just come in different shapes and sizes. I would change docs- obviously it is good to monitor their weight if they are really small (or really big!) but you don't need the lectures as well.

Good luck, and try not to let it all get to you- I know from experience that it's not easy, but just listen to your instinct.


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## simonee (Nov 21, 2001)

I'm sure SDMummy is tired of me chiming in after her, but I know her Gabe and he's one fine little fellow. He's one of those children that makes everybody smile, because he's really cuter than a button.









Do as SDMum does: listen to simonee when simonee says that size is overrated (to her own advantage as she's a big girl







), and that happy healthy kids are happy healthy kids no matter what their size is.
















FWIW my own dd was at or near the bottom of the weight charts from birth until about 12 months, and then she shot way up because suddenly her tall genes kicked in. She was very healthy on both sides of the line, her weight has never affected her health at all. And we all know that the only weight that affects America is overweight.







:


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## RaisingCaine (Apr 6, 2003)

Another mom with a skinny baby here. I knew he was skinny compared to most babies but it never worried me since his father is very skinny as well (5' 8" and 114lb). He was 5lb 4oz and 19in at birth so he has always been pretty small. But he is happy healthy and energetic. He also eats like a pig and is reaching all his milestones on time.

He was gaining weight pretty fast in the begining. He gained 5lb between his first visit to the ped and his 2 mo c/u, and then 2.5lb between then and his 4 mo c/u. When he went in for his 6 mo c/u he had gained less than a lb. The NP freaked out, started asking me all kinds of questions. I had allready started him on solids, I was feeding him half a jar in the morning and half a jar mixed with a little rice cereal in the evenings. Her solution was to feed him four full jars mixed with rice cereal a day. Ummm no thanks.

The only thing I worry about is finding clothes that fit him :LOL I don't have a baby scale, I find out how much he weighs at his apointments and thats fine with me. Both dh and I where skinny babies. In fact my youngest brother was the odd one in my family because he was such a rolly polly baby. I only gained 2lb between 6 and 12 mo.


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## Island Mommy (Mar 26, 2003)

I wanted to chime in here and relate a story about a woman in my mom's group. She was told from the very beginning that she didn't have enough milk. The doc's prescribed domperidone. She started supplementing. She kept with the BFing until 4 months, when her father-in-law (retired doc) said that because ds was in 75% percentile for height and only 25% percentile for weight, his brain would not develop properly!! Note that mom is skinny like a bean pole and she says her dh is as well. She was so concerned at every mom's group meeting. Finally at the last meeting she said she had stopped BFing, as ds was only interested in the bottle. She was feeding him at the last meeting, and she kept putting the bottle back in his mouth the whole meeting, to make sure he got to the last drop. He had obviously had enough but she couldn't let up. She's so freaked now about how much he weighs. This baby looks very healthy and active.

Anyway, I think her whole confidence in breastfeeding was undermined from the beginning. I had the same experience (milk slow to come in, nurses pushing formula, dr prescribing domperidone). I had read these boards and I was determined. I didn't take the domperidone and I just nursed. My nipples were a complete mess and the pain was horrible. I just kept nursing. Sometimes I cried and wanted to give up (still do sometimes) but kept on. Today, dd is almost 3 months and weighs 11 1/2 lbs (only weighed 6 lbs when we left the horrible hospital). Not huge, but OK. I was fanatic about weighing her at the beginning and I'm still always squeezing my breasts to convince myself there is actually milk there.

Anyway, I'm rambling. To the person who started this thread, you know your baby. He will probably be one of those lucky people who never have to worry about their weight. If he's healthy and happy, don't worry. Your breast milk is the very best thing you can give your baby. Don't let anyone tell you different!


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## Quilter Mama (Mar 13, 2003)

I had to check my records for DS weight at the 8 mo check up and couldn't find it.

@birth he was 7#8oz
@4 weeks he was 8#
@ 15 months he was only 18#3 oz
@ his 3yr check up this week he was 27# 8 oz (10% but luckily his Ped looks at his proportions and says he's perfect)

He was always in the 0-5% range and some visits bellow that but like most of the moms posting he crawled early (5 1/2 months) and walked early (9 mo). I think he was just to active to nurse for very long.

I know it's hard if DH is concerned but I say ditch the scale. I am 39 weeks right now and my MW sent me home with a blood pressure cuff to keep a log and it has been a nightmare! Everytime I go to check it, my pulse starts racing and I find myself more panicked than I have been the whole pregnancy. I think you need to look at your child for clues on his well being and not to the scale.

I hope you find a better MD with your move!
QM


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## mom2tig99Nroo03 (Apr 24, 2003)

ds was and still is skinny- he is now 3
dd is a little chub.

both are on target developmentally etc. you know your baby better than anyone else, and if you feel he is fine, he probably is.


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## annakiss (Apr 4, 2003)

My son's 8 mo. & just over 15 lbs. He didn't crawl early, as his development seemed to plateau for a while there, but his head is in the 75th percentile while the rest of him isn't even on the charts!

Before he was 3 months, I added formula to my breastmilk b/c I had to get him to ten lbs. for his cleft surgery. He made it to 10 lbs. the day of the surgery. Then he promptly went back down. 2 weeks post-op he was 9 14-1/2 which was the weight he'd been just prior to surgery. I'd had a dietician coming to my house to weigh him weekly b/c of the surgery. She wanted me to put him back on the formula again, but I said no way & asked her to stop coming to my house.

So long as your babe's following his own growth curve, looking generally healthy, and pooping & peeing, he's fine.


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## organicbanana (Mar 25, 2002)

i just posted a thread on bfing about this same concern - the only difference is that i'm not confident that ds is getting enough milk from me... the responses to this thread are making me feel a bit better about his weight though - he's also a very skinny guy but seems healthy - i'm hoping the issue is just with my own need to boost supply. good to know there are other skinny little ones out there - i'm feeling less stressed.


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## 3miraclebabies (Oct 5, 2002)

I know just how you feel! I have a skinny minny breastfed baby also. She just had her WIC appointment yesterday and at 9 mos., she is only 16 pounds 5 ozs. and 26 1/2 inches long. Although that is low on the growth chart, my WIC nurse wasn't concerned at all because she eats well and is healthy. All 3 of my kids are 'petite'







Like the mamas said above, as long as your baby is alert, happy, peeing and pooping regularly then I don't think you have anything to worry about. How is your milk supply? I think the only reason to even consider supplementing would be if you just are not producing enough milk and your babe seems hungry, even after feeding. Too bad that instead of criticizing, your ped could have offered you more encouragement and support with your breast feeding. I'm sorry that he made you feel so bad


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## Qtopia (Dec 24, 2002)

Mamas of skinny babies!!

Thank you all for the good advice & support. Haven't ditched the scale-- DH still weighs Quin-- but I told him to not tell me the numbers. I just can't get caught in that worry trap. Every chance I get I try to point out to DH how healthy Q looks and what an engaging personality he has and what a great stander/ cruiser he is and wow! he has four teeth now just to take the emphasis off the weight. I think DH is sloooowly starting to realize that you can't look at weight alone as a characteristic of health. I also gave DH a fake ultimatum and told him if he didn't back off he was going to sabotage my breastfeeding and did he really want Quin to be on formula. He totally freaked out







and seems to have taken a chill pill for now.

And I think I'm boycotting the 9 mo ped visit. DH can take Q himself or not go. It's gonna be a real doozy of a visit anyway b/c the ped is probably going to give flack about Q's weight, AND about the fact that we stopped vaxxing at 4 mos. Oh yeah, this ped just loooooves us.







We're leaving at the end of June so he can just lump it.

I wish you mamas lived in my neighborhood!! Sometimes I get a little tired of being surrounded by only chubster babies!

much peace and love


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## annakiss (Apr 4, 2003)

*Quote:*

I wish you mamas lived in my neighborhood!! Sometimes I get a little tired of being surrounded by only chubster babies!

NO KIDDING!!!


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## danaalex (Mar 19, 2003)

I am sure everyone is feeling much better about thier "skinny babes" by now, but I just wanted to add my 2 cents and tell you all what I was told my our ped......
Our DD #1 is tiny! She is in about the 3rd percentile for her weight, about 25th for height. She was exclusively breastfed until almost a year when she weaned herself off the breast and onto a cup of soy milk. Our ped explained to me that some women who breastfeed have very low fat breast milk. His wife's was analized because thier three girls were growing slowly, and they found it was very low in fat. Still the best nutrition, just low in fat. He thinks that is my issue too. Also, she absolutely refuses to drink any kind of milk but soy......... which is very low in fat







!!!!

I would recommend not worrying so much about the exact pounds and concentrate on the actual development of your children. Also, if your peds are recommending supplementing, testing and what not--- find a new doctor!!!!


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## Peppamint (Oct 19, 2002)

My dd is 22 1/2 lbs at 27 months. Very petite.







The ped. has never been concerned at all.

Stats that I remember off hand:
She was 6lb 2oz at birth
7lb 4oz at 2 weeks
17lb 8oz at one year
18lb 8oz at 18 months
22lb 8oz at 2yo

She's always had jolly cheeks and looked extremely healthy.

Try not to worry!


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## Periwinkle (Feb 27, 2003)

I would just echo what a lot of other moms have posted, and that is, it is certainly fine for your babe to be a skinny little guy, but he should be *growing* between 4 mos and 8 mos. I guess it's one thing to taper off, but not to grow probably IS an issue. I too have posted a lot about my ds who was very skinny. Yes I was obsessed with CDC charts. He was hanging out around 3rd or 5th % for weight in the same time period as your ds; he's always been tracking around 60% for height. There were several times he grew so little that his growth curve looked like a plateau, i.e., he "lost" percentile. We all got freaked, heard all the scare stories, and it turns out needlessly because now he's 11 mos. and eating all sorts of solids - his growth really took off once he started solids (at 7.5 mos.). Now he loves eating and I see no problems. He's somewhere around 7th% now. A BIG guy! :LOL Anyway, I do want to reassure you that you probably don't have anything to worry about, but just to inject a tiny hint of caution, re: being skinny is NOT the same thing as not growing at all... especially for an infant. Anyway, sounds like everything's fine and you've R/O any medical issues, so just hang in there !


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## sohj (Jan 14, 2003)

We're still dealing with this. Our little one is below 5th %ile in wt., above 75th in height and head size.

We had two checkups (with 2 diff. paeds. in the practice) where we were told stuff to make us worry and then the third was with someone with a little more experience who said "Did he start crawling early? Yes? Well, active kids don't gain as much weight. Looks healthy to me." Our last visit we saw that guy again and we still had to discuss it. He asked me what I thought (I hadn't been there for the previous two visits, only DH and nanny as we couldn't get an appointment at a time I could come) and I said I was annoyed as I knew the pixie was healthy, his development was fine, and I had been a skinny kid, so had my whole family, along with the big head and my DH had been skinny, along with the height and I've got pictures of family for four generations and my pixie looks like a tall version of my grandfather at this age who went on to be a hockey champ and who exactly are those curves based on? Formula fed babies from a particular town in Wisconsin? (Nothing against Wisconsin!!!!!!) Paed. was a little taken aback.

Well, he did ask what I thought.

I figure, he gets unlimited boobie access when I am there, and we offer him food about every hour and a half, just in case. Sometimes he wants it, othertimes no. He eats anything that is not nailed down when he is hungry. We feed him good food. I am not worried. Maybe he'll be a pole vaulter.

Don't worry.


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## TrinitysMama (Mar 13, 2002)

I think the worst part about having a tiny or skinny babe is all the comments that you get from family, friends, and even total strangers.

Lily was 7lbs and 19" at birth. At 5 months, she was only 10lbs 11oz and 24.5" long. Now at 6 months, she is still in 0-3 month clothes. If we buy her Gymboree outfits, the length of the 0-3 pants is perfect but they have to be taken in at the waist!

She is bf'd and started solids at 5 months. She eats whenever she wants to eat. My mom seems to think that I should supplement with formula because she doesn't think my bm has enough fat in it. Just to prove her wrong, I expressed some milk and left it in the fridge to settle for a few hours. You should have seen the thick layer of cream on that milk! Anyway, I can't force her to eat more than she already does!

She is healthy and active and she pees and poops just like she should. She has been hitting all of her milestones ahead of schedule. She is sitting on her own and is working on crawling and is about to cut a tooth.

I have total strangers approaching me in public to ask if she was a preemie.







My family is convinced that there is something wrong with her. My mil is convinced that Lily would be growing if we would feed her meat. You know the old adage. . opinions are like assholes, everybody's got one and they all stink .

If our babies weren't tiny, we'd be hearing a lot of crap about them being to tall or too fat or too slow or too whatever. It's always going to be something.







:


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## MangoMamma (May 14, 2002)

Lately I've been up nights( I'm typing this at 3am )about my toddler's weight. She is 22 months and 18 lbs. We found out she is iron deficient, just a little. But she eats, runs, talks, talks and did I mention talks. I've taken her for sweat tests, blood tests. She eats a lot of fat and still she doesn't gain weight. When I don't go to the doctor I see what a great little girl she is. Whe I go to the doctor I feel like a failure. Then I obsess about what she eats and am not a fun momma. It's really hard but you have to follow your gut. I just try and relax, try the advice that makes sense and throw the rest in the garbage.


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## artgirl (May 17, 2002)

I have a skinny baby too but I'm not worried.







Both dh and I are kinda naturally on the thin side anyway and dd is super active. She's 10 months and weighs 18 lbs. I keep waiting for her to round that 20 lb. marker (she sure feels heavy if you carry her around enough) but she's just as determined to keep herself trim.







We are now feeding her solids 3 times a day!! Plus she nurses maybe another 5 or six times beyond that. I just figure she'll tell me if she's hungry.
Don't worry. You'd know if something was wrong.


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## minnowmomma (Oct 7, 2003)

Allyou moms of skinny babies might want to chech out the thread located in the find in your tribe area called parents of small or skinny babies.


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## Colorado (Dec 4, 2003)

Hello!!
I also have a very tall and slender 7 month old baby girl. Our pedi is very supportive of the breastfeeding and he keeps pointing out how well perportioned she is. In response to my concerns that wshe was too thin he said that in fact we have a obesity problem in America from the very beginning with infants!!! Perhaps this will put some of your concerns into perspective!!!
All the best.


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## USAmma (Nov 29, 2001)

As long as he continues to grow *some* and is doing what babies his age should be doing, he's fine. And don't let anyone tell you otherwise. My dd has always been very thin and at 3 years old (next week) is only 29 pounds. At 1 year old she was 19 pounds, at 2 years was 24 pounds.

But she's perfectly normal, very active, and just fine. She never got baby fat except on her cheeks. If it makes you uncomfortable perhaps consider switching peds.

Darshani


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## MamaFern (Dec 13, 2003)

my son elwynn was 7lb 8 oz at birth was born at home. we had a very hard time breastfeeding at first. he had tongue tie! by the time we got everything working my milk supply was low but i kept it up only giving him bottles sometimes and hating it. he gained weight slowly and my milk ajusted to his needs. he seemed healthy but i worried when i saw babies 6 months younger and bigger. he is almost 1 and still very small 17lbs and is a super picky eater mostly he likes his boobs!he wont eat more than hew will eat and will not take a bottle anymore. no way! i get worried then i realise hes fine -just small. but my fears never completely go away. hearing about others with the samesituation i realise that our babies are just who they are-and its kinda nice being able to still carry him around everywhere witout getting sore!


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