How to Gain Weight on Purpose

[va32h]

My son is six, and quite skinny. Our doctor told me at the last checkup that while it's not a crisis (yet), he would "really like to see him put on a few pounds this summer".

Because ds is so active, the doctor has advised a daily caloric intake of at least 2500 calories, with 35% of that coming from fat.

Why is it that when you want to find high-fat, high-calorie foods, you just can't! I've been through the grocery store looking at labels, and nothing is quite fattening enough!

Ds already drinks whole milk, and I am going to start using real butter when I cook his meals. Unfortunately, ds does not like red meat. He likes chicken and pork. He doesn't even like sweets that much - except chocolate pudding, chocolate ice cream, and oatmeal cookies. But even a child can only eat so much chocolate ice cream in one day.

And suggestions or recipes for boosting calorie/fat content in meals?

 

[luvindisneyworld]

How about some Ensure?If he likes chocolate.

 

[bananiem]

I had a friend that was told to drink a milkshake a day to gain weight.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

One of the kids Peds. (2 in the group) suggested we put butter on DD's food. I didn't do it though.

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

I had a friend that was told to drink a milkshake a day to gain weight.

I had to do this when I was younger. My mom made the milkshakes with Ensure and ice cream.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

How tall is he and how much does he weigh? My 15yo was very small as a 6-7yo. As a matter of fact, when he was 7yo I measured him and his 4yo brother around the ribcage and his brother was larger. You wouldn't know it now, though. He went through a growth spurt all of a sudden (don't remember what age) and shot up and put on lots of weight.

I would consult with a nutritionist before I tried to put on weight like that because you don't want to encourage unhealthy eating habits that might be hard to break when he's older (trust me, I have older boys with unhealthy eating habits! ).

 

[AuntieM03]

How tall is he and how much does he weigh? My 15yo was very small as a 6-7yo. As a matter of fact, when he was 7yo I measured him and his 4yo brother around the ribcage and his brother was larger. You wouldn't know it now, though. He went through a growth spurt all of a sudden (don't remember what age) and shot up and put on lots of weight.

I would consult with a nutritionist before I tried to put on weight like that because you don't want to encourage unhealthy eating habits that might be hard to break when he's older (trust me, I have older boys with unhealthy eating habits! ).

I was thinking the same thing. I was really skinny at 6 and my mom decided to fatten me up. She did way to good a job

 

[Stacey2grls]

I'm going through the same thing with my DD 6. She lost a few pounds a couple of months ago, and since she is already thin, 44 inches tall, and 35 lbs her doctor said she needed to gain at 1-2 pounds over the course of 2 months. Well, my daughter loves chocolate milk, so every morning I made her chocolate milk with about a 1/3 of a cup of heavy cream, she never noticed the difference. My daughter doesn't eat much, so I had no other choice than this to squeeze in extra fat/calories. She gained 1 pound over the course of 1 month, so the doctor was satisified with this. Good luck to you and your son.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

I was thinking the same thing. I was really skinny at 6 and my mom decided to fatten me up. She did way to good a job

You made me laugh out loud!!!



Stacey2grls, you might have the answer--if it's possible to sneak the calories in without him knowing it, after he's gained the weight, you could back off and he wouldn't know the difference. Kind of like people who sneak mushed up vegies in the spaghetti sauce.

 

[SillyMe]

When I was younger and trying to gain weight, my doctor recommended a milkshake every day, too.

 

[padams]

We had this issue with my younger DS. He wasn't even on the weight percentile chart. Our ped said to include a lot of cheese and other dairy products (whole milk, butter, etc.) in his diet. I sprinkled parmesan cheese on his pasta, vegetables, and even salad. After a couple of years, he finally made it to the 25th percentile (he's 60th percentile in height). Now, he just eats what the family eats- no extra parmesan.

 

[Pig Pen]

When I lost weight during my pregnancy my MD prescribed eggnog!

Luckily I was able to keep it down. I can't stand it now though.

 

[lil mermaid]

I understand that your doctor wants your son to gain weight, but I sort of cringe at the idea of loading a six year old up with artery clogging saturated fats (i.e., butter.) Couldn't you do it using healthier fats, like olive oil? Olive oil is quite dense in calories - I believe something like 120 calories per tablespoon.

Does he like avacados? You could load him up with homemade guacamole made with olive oil.

 

[scubamouse]

DS is 5% for weight 60% for height and is 5.5 it's still a total struggle

He loves sour cream so we give him that straight. For breakfast we do a milkshake w/high fat ice cream and carnation instant breakfast - he likes that best.

We add olive oil to his pastas and extra butter in his mac and cheese. Cheese sticks and cheese slices as snacks are good too. and nuts - peanut butter plus whole nuts.

 

[Stephres]

I would just worry if you give him too much milk or too many milkshakes he won't be hungry to eat real food. I would ask the doctor what specifically you should do or not do.

My six year old is very thin too. I think they go through a really big growth spurt this year and it takes some time for the weight to catch up. Good luck!

 

[goodeats]

Can he eat nuts? Peanut butter has lots of calories and fat.

 

[2sweetangels]

I have weight gain problems, I am 25 and only 97lbs and I had 2 children already my youngest being only 8 months old. DH tells me to drink milkshakes, he even went out and bought a blender so I could make my own, but I hate milk, I havn't drinkin milk since I went off the bottle when I was only 1. The Ensure stuff just doesn't seem to get to me. Not sure what to do and my doctor doesn't seem to worried about it, but DH does worry especially when he touches me and feels my bones

 

[Belle0101]

I too would be worried about adding in high-fat foods. I have a friend who's son has high cholesterol and he's only 7! They didn't always pick the best foods.

I would look for Ensure. When I was underweight, the goold old days, that's what my doctor suggested.

If only I could take it off as easy as I put it on.

 

[va32h]

Sorry I couldn't reply sooner, I had to go to the store. My son is 44 inches high, and at 42lbs, is in less than the 5th percentile.

He does like peanut butter, and usually has a PB sandwich for lunch. But he doesn't like jelly, so no calories there!

I don't worry too much about instilling bad eating habits, because he really isn't a junk food kid. He doesn't eat chips or drink soda. He just has a light appetite and an amazing metabolism.

I know he wouldn't go near Pediasure - we tried that once and he hated them. But I will try instant breakfast. We do milkshakes too, but he is full before he finishes a whole one.

I like the cream idea, though!

As someone who has always been on the chubby side, I am partially pleased that my kids are so lean. But I do worry about his growth and energy levels.

 

[Tigger&Belle]

My 6yo son is 48" tall and I think about 50 pounds, and my son is obviously bigger, but your son sounds proportional. My 15yo was probably about the size of your son when he was 6yo. I really do not put much stock in growth charts. It's important to make sure a baby is growing, of course, but so much goes into the size of a 6yo, especially the size of the parents and if it's right before, during, or after a growth spurt.