Children's weights

[ayaandjudah]

This is a bit of a sore subject with me. I've always been thin, my husband as well. We're both under 5 foot 4 (he's very sensitive about that, lol).

Understandably, our children are small.

My daughter recently has had some GI issues. We brought her into a specialist who said she has constiipation and reflux.

As an aside she told us that we need to have her tested for celiac because "She's only in the 3% for height and weight and that is too small".

First of all, I almost leap for joy that she has reached the weight chart. Second of all, should I really subject my daughter to a blood test because the dr thinks she's too small? The pediatrician has always just chalked her up to genetics.

How do you feel about Drs weighing in (get it?) on the weight of your children. Whether they're big or small? My friends daughter is quite overweight and the drs want to put her on a diet. But my friend was very heavy as a child and outgrew it at puberty without any intervention.

[lovely1m]

I think genetics play a big part in it. Since both you and your husband are small, I wouldn't worry about Addison's weight at all. If you weren't both small, that's when I would worry. Plus I am sure your pediatrician knows a lot more than this one time specialist does about her weight/height over the years.

[marlathrall]

I see both sides of it... I mean, this specialist (hopefully) just wants to be safe. At the same time, he should have been able to tell by looking at you and your husband that it was genetic.

Those blood tests probably cost $900+, too. The cynical side of me wonders if he just saw a way to charge the insurance company a little extra.

[Traci Reed]

I wouldn't worry. Those charts are pretty stupid anyway...I'm sure she's just fine!

[Leah]

Genetics definitely plays a huge role in weight and height percentiles.

DD1 - was a "healthy" baby. She weight 6lbs. 9oz. at birth and put on weight steadily. She was a little chubby, had her little sausage rolls etc. and now that she's 10, she's probably average.

DD2 - she was 6lbs. 4oz. at birth and has always been an itty bitty little thing. I always tease and say that what she lacks in size, her personality makes up for. She's got no extra body fat to fall back on. But this was DH when he was that age too.

DS - he was 7lbs. even at birth and our ped. said that he's considered small for his age (he's 6 now). But again, my DH had a small, lanky build as a little boy too.

Personally, I think those percentiles are a load of foo foo. Yes, they need them for when there's reason to be concerned. But if there are no other issues that factor in, I think it's all genetics and they will be however they'll be. Does that make sense?

But...we just had our annual check-up with our ped. back in February and here's how our kids look:

DD1 (10.5yrs.) - 69.75lbs. and 4 feet, 6 1/2 inches tall.

DD2 (8.5yrs.) - 50.25lbs. and 4 feet, 2 inches tall.

DS (6yrs.) - 41.75lbs. and 3 feet, 8 1/2 inches tall.

[maryinaz]

My husband and I are average height/size and our boys are all skinny. Most of the time our smaller twin was only in the 5% range. Unless she is having tummy aches, I wouldn't bother with the test.

[rach3975]

If the only indication of Celiac's is that she's small, I'd probably skip it.

That said, I don't have a problem with doctors weighing in on kids' weights and wanting to intervene, as long as they do it sensitively and use common sense (ie, realizing that when small parents have small kids, it's probably not a sign of a problem). Genetics is part of size and weight, but environment and habits play a big role, too. Childhood obesity has skyrocketed even though our genes clearly haven't changed in the last 20 or 30 years. Your friend who outgrew the weight at adolescence was lucky, and her kids may or may not follow that pattern.

[RKSP]

My husband and I were both very skinny as kids, and as a result, both of our kids are also very thin. Really thin. At the most extreme, my daughter was 0.1% in weight and 50% in height! Now she's bulked up to 1% in weight and 40% in height, LOL. (She is 4.) Her dr chalks it up to genetics and sees that she is well-cared for, but she had us see a nutritionist just to help increase the calorie content in her diet. My son, who is 2, is overall just small, 7% in both weight and height, and we try to keep calorie content high in his diet as well.
I was small as a baby, and my pediatrician was a bit paranoid and inexperienced. She had me hospitalized for testing at 7 months old! Of course nothing was wrong with me and I was perfectly healthy, but I feel bad that my parents had to go through that.
I personally have no problem with doctors showing slight concern for my kids, but I'd be livid if they wanted to hospitalize my healthy kids!

[Milmomma]

I believe as long as they are healthy proportion from weight and height I don't want to hear anything from the doctors. My kids usually range from the 5-9% on the charts as they are both small. I'm 5'6" and Dh is 5'9" so we don't expect them to be super tall or anything. If there is issues I would probably test her since knowing could improve her health and life. Not sure how old she is but blood tests usually are not that bad. I do believe it is a parents choice though. They know the kid best.

[mariewilcox]

I would go by what her pediatrician says, not a doctor who has seen her once or even twice. Your pediatrician knows her history and the family history, etc.

My daughter (12 this summer) didn't even hit the growth chart until she was 10. Her pediatrician has always drawn his own chart for her and told me long ago that as long as she was steadily progressing up that chart every year he wasn't worried.

The women in my family are small-boned and petite (except my Amazon sister - LOL). My mother, grandmother, and various aunts and great aunts are all barely over 5 feet tall and weigh about 100 pounds soaking wet so he chalked her size up to genetics.

Cheyanne is still smaller than most kids her age but is very muscular and fit. She's only about 4' 10" and now weighs about 70 pounds, so her pediatrician is very very happy.

[HeatherKS]

I would be more concerned if she had been higher on the scale and suddenly dropped off, kwim? It seems to me that the growth charts are used mostly to see if children are growing and gaining steadily or if there is a cause for concern because of a lack of growth or progress. I'd probably get a second opinion from your ped or family doctor and go from there.

[tanyiadeskins]

I would not necessarily worry but I guess I am the odd one out that I would rather do the bloodwork and PROVE there is nothing to be concerned for. *shrug*

[Joana1n]

If she's not even been ON the growth charts in the past, and is now at 3%, I wouldn't worry. SOMEONE has to be in the 3rd percentile. It's most likely genetics.

I'm sorry to hear she's having GI issues. I'd skip the blood test and maybe just pull gluten from her diet. A person can test negative for celiac, and still be gluten sensitive. Any time I eat it, I get a horrible headache for days on end. It doesn't cause me digestive issues, but it does greatly affect how I feel. My daughter isn't immune-allergic to any foods, but I can guarantee you she is sensitive to them.

That being said, if you DO decide to have her tested for celiac, it needs to be done while she's still eating gluten. Being gluten-free and then being tested for celiac can produce false negative results.

[ayaandjudah]

Originally Posted by tanyiadeskins

I would not necessarily worry but I guess I am the odd one out that I would rather do the bloodwork and PROVE there is nothing to be concerned for. *shrug*

Tanyia, I completely agree with you and have been known to OK tests because I'd rather be safe and know that something is negative than worry about it.

But this one particular test just seems so unnecessary. If she thought celiac because of her GI issues that would be one thing, I'd OK it instantly. It's suggesting it because she's small that gets me.

She'll be 7 next month and is 38lbs and 43 inches.

[sczos911]

Well, she has 3 pounds and an inch on my seven year old daughter.

So my DD1 has never been on the charts. Ever. BUT she is growing in sync with the chart - if that makes sense. We've tried everything short of growth hormones (I said no) and she is who she is. I did have her tested for celiac as a precaution. She was young at the time and so was I. I did do a bit of research into the symptoms and thought it best to check.

I would call your pediatrician and see what he/she thought.

[kim21673]

I would definitely talk with the ped but I am sure they will say there is no need!!

My boys...all four of them are SKINNY....I mean, you can see their ribs and pants won't stay up skinny!! BUT they are SUPER tall. Our 4 and 5 year old are over 4 feet tall now. My hubby is 6'8 and I am 5'8....they are just bones.

The baby just had his 18 month appt last month. He is hovering around the 5th % for weight. Our doctor is NOT concerned though....he said he would much rather them be a little skinny. He is growing along HIS OWN curve and that is what your doctor should look at for your daughter. At this rate Derek is going to be in kindergarten and still rear facing because he has to weigh 22 lbs to turn around in his carseat. He only weighs 20 lbs 6 ozs!!!

[tanyiadeskins]

awww, she is a teeny one! I can see why you would hesitate though. On my side my kids are all tall and overweight lol joy

[mummytothree]

Originally Posted by rach3975

I don't have a problem with doctors weighing in on kids' weights and wanting to intervene, as long as they do it sensitively and use common sense (ie, realizing that when small parents have small kids, it's probably not a sign of a problem). Genetics is part of size and weight, but environment and habits play a big role, too. Childhood obesity has skyrocketed even though our genes clearly haven't changed in the last 20 or 30 years. Your friend who outgrew the weight at adolescence was lucky, and her kids may or may not follow that pattern.

I'll just agree with this because it's exactly how I feel!!!

[Mari Koegelenberg]

Honestly it depends on you but at the urging of my pediatrician I had my daughter tested since she also was not on the growth chart and had some other tell tale signs, she was positive for Turner Syndrome.

She will always be a shorty and there is not much we can do except for Growth Hormone which she gets daily, and keeping a close look on her health since she can develop heart and kidney problems.

The Diagnosis was extremely hard on us and we took a long time accepting it. But what I have taken away personally from this experience is you can better deal with a situation when you know exactly what it is...and we also have an opportunity to help my baby grow to be at least 4ft plus which we would never have been able to do if she was older.

This is a choice you must make and I would urge you to get a second opinion from your pediatrician and confirm with them that they agree on doing the testing.

[jessica31876]

My niece has a growth disorder. At ten I do not think she has reached 4 foot. She may be just slightly over it. I am not sure of her exact diagnosis though.

from my experience with my kids that is really small to me. But I must add my son was 11 pounds 24 inches at birth and almost 40 pounds at one year old so he was HUGE!!. At 17 he was 6 ft 1 and weighed 182 pounds of which he was nearly all muscle and would have likely grown another 2-3 inches the doctor told us. He stopped gaining and just got taller and taller. My pediatrician said they really only get concerned when either the weight or the height is way out of range. So like for my son he was always above 95th percentile even from birth for both weight and height. So she told me say he dropped down to like 50 percentile for height and continues to gain weight quickly that would be concerning but since he stayed even on the charts all his life they never told him to diet or gain weight. Pretty much they said people come in all shapes and sizes and he was normal weight for his height so it was not a probem.

So my question would be how would they determine whether your daughter had this issue? Is it a simple blood test? An xay? something more complicated? What are the risks to having the test done? If the risks were relatively minimal I would likely do the test just to eliminate that thought of what if from my head. But I am a worrier and once I get something in my head it is hard to just let it go.

[nun69]

Originally Posted by tanyiadeskins

I would not necessarily worry but I guess I am the odd one out that I would rather do the bloodwork and PROVE there is nothing to be concerned for. *shrug*

this is me....because what if something is wrong and you don't find out until later? KWIM.....I guess I would rather be safer than sorrier....and if yoru pedi referred you to this specialist, than they must put some kind of trust in the specialist....

[[michele]]

Well I tend to agree with the thoughts that overall patterns are what make the growth charts useful and that your daughter is probably exactly where she should be based on her genetics BUT I think I'd consider the test anyway? If it turns out she doesn't have to avoid gluten, great - and if she does then you can go from there.

[kristijoy]

Originally Posted by ayaandjudah

Tanyia, I completely agree with you and have been known to OK tests because I'd rather be safe and know that something is negative than worry about it.

But this one particular test just seems so unnecessary. If she thought celiac because of her GI issues that would be one thing, I'd OK it instantly. It's suggesting it because she's small that gets me.

She'll be 7 next month and is 38lbs and 43 inches.

I agree with you here. If the doc really felt that celiac could be contributing to her GI issues (my sister just went through all of this) I would do it. But if it's just an off-the-cuff kind-a thing I would be tempted to try some other things first (especially if she gave you some things to try!) It's relatively easy now to find LOTS of gluten free items to eat. Rice Pasta, even breads, etc...

[TeriBeary]

I hear you. My son is almost 10 and weighs 50 lbs. he's about 50 inches tall. I'm 5'1" and his dad is 5'8" - our kids won't be big! I take him into the GP every 6 months or so to make sure he's growing along at the same curve and he always is. he's about 10th for weight and around 3rd for height, I think. He's just not a big kid I'd probably do the tests since I worry there is something wrong, but only if the ped. mentioned it. I'd talk to the ped. and see.

[ryliesmom]

If the pediatrician recommended it then I would consider it, but coming from a specialist that's seen her just a few times no. Your pediatrician has tracked her growth since birth and as mine always tells me his concern is not in their size really but that they stay on track.

[AmberK]

This exactly. Talk to your pedi first to see what he thinks.

Originally Posted by ryliesmom

If the pediatrician recommended it then I would consider it, but coming from a specialist that's seen her just a few times no. Your pediatrician has tracked her growth since birth and as mine always tells me his concern is not in their size really but that they stay on track.