My frustration stems from the fact that there isn't a whole lot of guidance on feeding serving sizes. Most books or online talk about feeding to the child's hunger, which we've done. But when your kid is hovering around the 2%-range for weight, there isn't much comfort that you are doing the right thing or that they truly are getting what they need.
Additionally, and this is where I'm going to rant for a bit, my 'underweight' baby is being compared to all those kids out there eating junk food and drinking soda (and yes we have actually witnessed this). Elliott was substantially nursed (automatically making him a lower weight baby), eats primarily organic, eats tons of fruits and veggies, loves his plain yogurt, and generally eats really good food (better than his mommy and daddy most of the time). Add in the fact that he comes from light-weight baby stock and that my pregnancy was far from normal, you are going to get a kid who weighs significantly less than the above average
Anyway, while we do have a great pediatrician, who seems to really 'get it', I wasn't holding out much hope for the nutritionist...especially when they told me it wasn't required for Elliott to come to the appointment (what!?!). But I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. She went over his food log and had a great handout that talked about what serving sizes were appropriate for his age. And you know what? Elliott's right on track. The biggest thing that stood out as being underrepresented, is the amount of grains he gets, which I'm not all that worried about...especially given criticisms about why the food pyramid is so grain heavy in the first place...hello conspiracy. He could also get a bit more protein. And we are making an effort to give him a bit more in both areas.
So, for information sake as well as my own historical records, I thought I would share what the guidelines suggest for an average day as well as what an average day looks like for Elliot.
What they recommend..........................What Elliott gets
Breakfast
1/2 cup low-sugar cereal...................1/2 cup oatmeal baby cereal
1/4 cup peaches............................1/3 large banana
4 oz. milk..............................6 oz milk
1 scrambled egg....................................2 oz milk (in cereal)
1/2 cup low-sugar cereal...................1/2 cup oatmeal baby cereal
1/4 cup peaches............................1/3 large banana
4 oz. milk..............................6 oz milk
1 scrambled egg....................................2 oz milk (in cereal)
Morning Snack
4 oz. milk...........................................1 container apple sauce
..........................4-5 crackers
4 oz. milk...........................................1 container apple sauce
..........................4-5 crackers
Lunch
1 slice whole-wheat bread...................4-5 crackers
3 tbsp. cooked broccoli......................................3 tbsp. yams
1/2 small orange.............................................2 tbsp. green beans
4 oz. milk..........................................................4 oz milk
1 oz. roasted turkey..........................................2 tbsp. ham
1 tsp. mayonnaise......................................1/4 cup plain yogurt
1 slice whole-wheat bread...................4-5 crackers
3 tbsp. cooked broccoli......................................3 tbsp. yams
1/2 small orange.............................................2 tbsp. green beans
4 oz. milk..........................................................4 oz milk
1 oz. roasted turkey..........................................2 tbsp. ham
1 tsp. mayonnaise......................................1/4 cup plain yogurt
Afternoon Snack
3/4 oz. low-fat cheese....................................1/4 cup yogurt
1 corn tortilla.......................................4 crackers
water.........................................4-5 banana chips
3/4 oz. low-fat cheese....................................1/4 cup yogurt
1 corn tortilla.......................................4 crackers
water.........................................4-5 banana chips
Dinner
1/3 cup rice..........................................1/4 cup plain yogurt
3 tbsp. cooked spinach.......................................3 tbsp. yams
1/2 small mango.........................................2 tbsp. green beans
4 oz. milk................................................6 oz milk
1 chicken leg.................................2 tbsp. chicken thigh
1/8 avocado............................................2 tbsp. cereal
..............................................2 tbsp. milk
..................................................... 3 tbsp. strawberries
1/3 cup rice..........................................1/4 cup plain yogurt
3 tbsp. cooked spinach.......................................3 tbsp. yams
1/2 small mango.........................................2 tbsp. green beans
4 oz. milk................................................6 oz milk
1 chicken leg.................................2 tbsp. chicken thigh
1/8 avocado............................................2 tbsp. cereal
..............................................2 tbsp. milk
..................................................... 3 tbsp. strawberries
We also made it back to the doctors on Monday where Elliott weighed in at 19 lbs. 10 oz! This is almost a pound more from 4 weeks ago! We had thought he was going through a growing spurt because of some rather off days and this confirms it. The doctor was really happy with that growth. He is now clearly following the 2-3% growth line. He said he would much rather see him at the 10% line, but he's happy as long as he is growing according to the curve. His regular 15 month checkup will be in about 3 weeks, so we are hoping he will make it to the 20 lb mark by then...I'd really love to flip his car seat around :)
5 comments:
You guys are great parents! It looks like you are on the right track and as you said, it comes from small stock. Love, Grandma M
Well this is obviously a much-discussed topic between us, so I'll spare the rest of your readers my own rant. ;) I'm just glad you have more peace of mind now that he's doing just fine, which we always knew* he was. :)
Yippee for weight gain!! I always felt lost when in came to feeding Jake at that age, what he should get, how much, eating enough, etc., and I have one of those well-fed "big kids" :) And don't get us started about the grain requirements on the food pyramid - Hog-wash!!
Yeah, they are really more concerned when a baby's growth suddenly drops down to another curve. That's when you really know something's not right. If he's following the curve he's on, that's steady growth, now matter how to view the weight he's currently at.
And, a question...
What curve is he on for height? If he's at 95% for height and 2% for weight, and he doesn't have at least one tall, thin parent, okay, maybe there's a problem, but otherwise... Uh oh, you're going to get me on a rant about the medical system turning every little variation from the norm into a disorder/anomaly. *SIGH*
And, I have to say I admire your patience with all this. I'm not sure how well I would have done with people scaring me into thinking my 1st born wasn't eating enough.
And, a little anecdote...
I knew a lady who was deadset on breastfeeding and wouldn't feed her kids adult food until 1 year, because of allergy issues in the family. Problem was, she had low milk supply. I watched her half-starve her younger daughter. It was sad to watch. The kid was lethargic, practically, because she was very tall for her age but had no meat on her bones. She walked and crawled late, and just watching her, you knew it was because she didn't have the energy to move. Elliott seems really active, so you can at least be sure he's not starving without you realizing it.
(By the way, once she hit a year, the girl put on weight by eating other foods than breastmilk...).
Was he an IVF baby? My husband and I had our daughter via IVF and the doctor told us ahead of time that most IVF babies tend to be small. She was 6lbs 6oz at full term. Good luck with your little man. He is so cute!
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