A mother’s story of an underweight child and tips for weight maintenance
Below is a special contribution to The Twin Source from Melanie, a Malibu mom and member of The Twin Source’s Consumer Research Team. Melanie is not a mother of twins, but she has experienced a fairly regular twin mom occurrence: Her son has been underweight since birth to the point of never being on the pediatric growth chart.
Many twin parents experience the “preemie” situation for one or both twins. The Twin Source asked Melanie to share her story not only because you are likely to relate to it, but also because her solutions and strength in dealing with the situation are inspiring. There are plenty of tips and lessons twin parents can learn from this special contribution filled with emotion and honesty.
At my son’s 3-month appointment, he was still wearing a newborn onesie. In fact, he was well below 0% on the pediatric growth chart, according to the small dot the doctor scribbled on his chart. My husband and I were concerned and shocked. Our pediatrician turned to us and said, “What? Neither of you are big people.” Even so, I was determined to go home and feed my child until he got on that chart.
At age 2, my son weighs 23 pounds. He’s still not on the chart, but he has maintained the same curve and is developing proportionately. He’s okay.
Even as a first-time mom, you know about the growth chart. You see your friends post growth chart stats on their Facebook pages or hear about it in casual conversations with new moms. “He’s off the chart,” they often say. Before I had my son, I don’t remember ever hearing about the small kid, the one who never made the chart.
Because my son was underweight, we had additional visits (outside of the standard visits) to the pediatrician’s office to check his weight. We were asked to increase his caloric intake by using pre-made drinks like Pediasure. While I wasn’t opposed to Pediasure, I felt it was more important to teach my child how to get calories through nutritional foods he enjoys vs. through a processed drink. I also didn’t want him to get confused between milk and Pediasure.
At first, I tried to control how much my son was eating and felt the need to "force" him to eat so he would gain weight. Then I changed my approach, based on a method I read about in "Child of Mine: Feeding with Love and Good Sense." I made it a priority to make mealtime a positive experience for my son. This meant I no longer got upset or stressed-out if he didn't want to eat, and I no longer begged him to take one more bite.
Under this new approach, I was responsible for providing what, where, and when my son ate. He was responsible for how much he ate and if he ate at all. Maintaining a division of responsibility in feeding was an important lesson for me, and it’s a lesson we live by to this day.
Here are six weight-gaining “super foods” I use to enhance what my son eats:
Melanie is an honest-to-goodness California mommy. Residing in Malibu, she is ever-conscious of maintaining a healthy lifestyle for herself and her family.
Please Note: The information contained on The Twin Source is not intended for medical diagnosis. Any medical information found on this site should be discussed with your health care professional. Always consult your doctor for any medical advice.