Why does a child under one year old gain weight poorly and what should parents do? Should you be concerned if your baby is not gaining weight well?
If a baby does not gain weight before the age of one year, this causes concern among parents. Why this happens, what are the reasons for this phenomenon, what to do and what advice Dr. Komarovsky gives, you will learn from this article.
Signs
A child under one year of age may not gain weight well and appear thin compared to other children. Parents may worry about this case, although the baby's length and weight are determined genetically. But still, if the child’s parameters differ greatly from the established norms, which can be found in special tables, then you should seek help from a doctor.
Signs that your baby is not gaining weight well include:
- Weight does not fit within the specified framework (up to 4 months increase up to 0.6-0.9 kg, 6 months up to 0.4-0.6 kg, at 6 - 9 months 0.3-0.5 kg, up to 1 year 0.1-0.3 kg).
- There are no folds on the body, the skin is wrinkled and dry, not smooth and inelastic, pale.
- There is no physical activity, the child often cries, has poor appetite and sleep.
These signs together form a condition in the child’s body that requires a visit to the doctor so that the doctor can make a verdict. To eliminate it, you will need to do simple exercises and follow the rules so that the child gains weight and looks normal.
But if the baby grows with a good appetite, he has a cheerful mood, but there is a slight lag in weight, know that this is normal. He is inclined to have a different body constitution, so there is no need to do anything special.
Causes
A child may not gain weight well due to the following factors.
Lack of milk
A child under one year old may need an increased amount of milk, which is not enough due to the following reasons:
- Problem with milk production - for this, the mother needs to drink teas that increase milk production, or do everything to ensure that complementary foods are introduced correctly.
- The sucking reflex is not fully formed - the mother needs to teach the child to eat correctly.
- Uncomfortable position for feeding - review the instructions for holding the baby.
- Disorders of the mucous membranes in the mouth or thrush.
- Nipple pathology - in this case, weight loss will be detected already at 1 month.
Due to lack of milk, a newborn may have difficulty gaining weight. To identify it, write down your feeding ration and the amount of milk you consumed per day, so you can show it to your doctor later. The doctor will prescribe either complementary foods or lactation-enhancing drugs. Up to 4 months, complementary foods can be introduced in the form of mixtures, and after that - in the form of vegetable purees.
Refusal of complementary feeding
A bottle-fed baby may have difficulty gaining weight for up to one year. And here's why - the formula is not suitable for the baby. What to do when faced with a similar question - change the manufacturer. At 7 months, when the baby begins to feed complementary foods simultaneously with breast milk, the child may turn away from it due to an unknown taste, but already at one year the baby does not refuse and gains weight.
There is no need to give up complementary feeding, because mother's milk at 7 months does not properly provide the required amount of vitamins and calories. Also, the monotony of food causes disorders of the immune system. If a child does not gain weight well with the introduction of complementary foods, then you can diversify his diet.
Wrong diet
A bottle-fed baby can eat with appetite and not turn away from a plate of complementary foods, but still gain weight poorly. The reason for this is an incorrectly selected diet. To fix it, follow these tips:
- Add 5g of fat in the form of butter or oil for every 100g of soup or puree.
- Diversify your diet.
- Reduce the amount of granulated sugar you eat, which can interfere with the absorption of other food components.
The doctor will give you advice about the baby's menu.
Hyperactivity
A child under one year of age may exhibit incredibly increased activity, which can cause weight loss.
Signs of hyperactivity include:
- early walking;
- always in a cheerful mood;
- constant movement;
- requires attention constantly;
- unable to sit still.
Hyperactivity causes increased calorie expenditure, which contributes to the fact that weight ceases to be gained. Dr. Komarovsky speaks about this in his notes and forums. Don't worry about developing hyperactivity because it may go away. But it’s worth considering if your child shows signs of nervousness and anxiety.
Disease
If the above factors are not typical for your child under one year old, then it is worth visiting a doctor to identify hidden diseases. Here's why a newborn doesn't gain weight:
- cystic fibrosis;
- celiac disease;
- worms;
- thyroid dysfunction;
- diabetes;
- anemia;
- neurology.
Based on the diagnostic results, the doctor will prescribe treatment, after which the child will begin to gain weight again.
Prematurity
Premature babies often suffer from health problems - they have organ pathologies, so parents will have to try to ensure that the newborn child has time to develop normally before the age of one. This is especially important when a premature baby is artificially fed.
Treatment
You can take control of your weight loss. You need to do everything possible to raise your child healthy and active. Here is what Dr. Komarovsky advises on this matter:
- consult a doctor at the first signs;
- conduct a complete examination of the child;
- find out the cause and eliminate it;
- do not try to diversify complementary foods and mixtures, or abruptly switch from one to another;
- feed your baby breast milk longer;
- do not experience stress;
- feed the baby in a relaxing environment according to the schedule;
- if a newborn with low weight asks to eat outside the regime, give him the necessary food, even at night;
- There is no need to panic, but just do everything possible to correct the situation.
Remember that heredity also plays a big role in a child's weight gain, so ask your parents how you behaved as a child. If you ate poorly, then perhaps this was passed on to your baby's genes.
The problem called “the child is not gaining weight well” is one of the most pressing for parents and pediatricians in the entire post-Soviet space. And, in fairness, let us note that it is one of the most “inflated”. Because in those countries where, in general, the child health index is much higher than in the territory of the former USSR, the baby’s weight is not generally considered a direct indicator of the state of his health. If they pay attention to the deviation of a child’s body weight from generally accepted norms, then, as a rule, if we are talking about a tendency towards obesity.
Let’s try to figure out in what case your baby can receive a diagnosis of “underweight,” and when you should listen to it, and when you can write it down in the category of “myths and legends of Soviet medicine.”
What are the criteria for “correct” weight gain?
In 2006, new standards for height and weight of children from 0 to 5 years were published on the website of the World Health Organization, developed as a result of many years of comprehensive observation of 8440 healthy children from different countries. All children in the first months of life were on breastfeeding, received complementary feeding in accordance with WHO recommendations. Below we present the weight standards for boys and girls published in these documents.
Let us note that, although the use of standards published by WHO in medical practice is advisory and not mandatory, in most civilized countries they are at least taken into account. Meanwhile, among Russian pediatricians (and their colleagues from the countries of the former USSR) the situation is quite common that they have no idea about these new standards, but use tables 30-40 years ago, compiled on the basis of observations mainly of artificial children. Thus, such a doctor diagnoses a six-month-old child with a body weight of 6 kg as “dystrophy,” although, according to WHO standards, there is absolutely no reason for this.
Let us pay attention to one more nuance: according to the standards often used in Russia, children under one year old should gain weight fairly evenly (600-700 g per month) - such data is also given in some training manuals for parents. Meanwhile, such dynamics of body weight gain are also typical for bottle-fed babies. If you look closely at the WHO data, you will see that infants “gain weight” most intensively in the first three months (600-700 g per month or more), then their “gain” becomes more and more modest.
What conclusion can be drawn from all this? Obviously, if your pediatrician believes that your child is not gaining weight well, but the child’s body weight “fits” into WHO standards, then no measures need to be taken. There is no need to supplement him with formula (if we are talking about a baby), change his diet to a higher calorie one (if we are talking about a child older than one year), and, moreover, give him drugs to adjust his metabolism. And if formally everything is fine with the weight, but you or your relatives subjectively think that the child is too thin, take into account the order of one good doctor: “parents, remember that you are raising a child, not a suckling pig!”
What if the baby is excessively delicate, even according to WHO standards? Here are the most common causes of underweight (here we are not considering the option when the child is truly malnourished - this is no longer a pediatric problem, but a social one).
Option 1. The child does not gain weight well due to constitutional features.
If the father or mother (or both parents) of a child in childhood were “goons” who were simply impossible to fatten, there is a non-zero probability that the children will inherit their constitution. If this is your option, and your child’s body weight deviates somewhat from the WHO standards to a lesser extent, but the baby feels well and is developing in accordance with his age, most likely he does not have any deviations (if you still have doubts, it makes sense consult an endocrinologist). In order for your little one to grow healthy and strong, take him for walks more often, teach him to exercise, and provide him with good sleep.
Option 2. Problems with breastfeeding (for children in the first months of life).
In fact, the problem “mother has little milk” is often a figment of the imagination of overly suspicious young mothers who cannot understand why their child often cries and blame everything on hunger. Meanwhile, signs of malnutrition in children in the first months of life are often the exact opposite: lethargy, drowsiness, low physical activity. If your child has these symptoms (plus dry skin) – this is certainly a reason to sound the alarm. In addition to your pediatrician, be sure to see a lactation consultant who can recommend ways to increase your lactation and, possibly, new breastfeeding tactics (for example, if you were feeding on a schedule, it would make sense to switch to on-demand feedings, increase the number of nighttime latches, and etc.). You may need temporary supplementary feeding with formula (consult with specialists on how to fully return the baby to the breast over time).
Option 3. Metabolic disorders.
This problem can be diagnosed by a number of signs, and insufficient weight gain is just one of them, along with poor health, changes in blood composition, etc. Naturally, this is a serious disease that requires medical intervention.
Finally, a few popular myths about baby weight.
In addition to purely pediatric “myths,” there are a lot of prejudices regarding a child’s weight gain that exist among “experienced” mothers and grandmothers, which they are happy to share with young parents. Here are the most common ones.
1. A baby may not gain weight well due to the fact that the mother has “empty” milk.
Milk cannot be “empty” - it always contains the substances a child needs for full growth and development. In principle, if you include certain foods in a nursing mother’s diet, its fat content will increase slightly, but, as studies show, this does not significantly affect the child’s weight gain.
2. If a child eats fractionally, and not according to the accepted “breakfast-lunch-dinner” scheme, then he may begin to have problems with weight gain.
In general, this statement is incorrect: physiologically fractional meals is more consistent with the child’s needs; in itself, it cannot cause weight gain. Although, if your goal is to “fatten” your child, and not to maintain his weight at an optimal level, then three meals a day of at least two dishes will allow you to do this faster and more efficiently.
3. If a child has a poor appetite, he must be force-fed, otherwise he may become exhausted.
In fact, children have a good instinct for self-preservation, and if he has access to food, he will never push himself to the point of exhaustion. Poor appetite It is treated not by force-feeding (this can only worsen the situation), but by playing in the fresh air, playing sports, and changing the baby’s diet.
Parents are always very worried if their child is not gaining weight well and looks small and thin compared to other children at a certain age. Despite the fact that this parameter is determined by the individual developmental characteristics of the baby, in pediatrics there are specific norms for the ratio of height, age and body weight. And if the last indicator deviates significantly from them, you need to take appropriate measures in consultation with your doctor. Otherwise, having missed the right moment in infancy, it will be more difficult to gain the necessary kilograms later, which will affect the child’s health in the future.
How can you understand: a child is not actually gaining the weight required for his age, or is this just fiction and fantasy of suspicious parents and grandmothers? You should sound the alarm if you notice the following factors in your baby’s development.
Deviations from normal weight indicators
- In the first 4 months, infants gain from 600 to 900 grams monthly.
- In six months - from 400 to 600 gr.
- From 6 to 9 months - from 300 to 500 g.
- From 9 months to 1 year - from 100 to 300 g.
Skin condition
- there are no fat folds on the body;
- the skin looks wrinkled and dry like an old woman;
- lack of smoothness and elasticity;
- pallor.
Physical activity
- lack of activity;
- frequent crying;
- poor appetite;
- sleep disorders.
If a newborn baby is not gaining weight well and at least some of the above-mentioned alarming symptoms are present, you really need to consult a doctor. Especially if there are no thin or petite people in the family, and the baby has such a sluggish physique.
After the examination, the doctor will give a verdict and advise whether any additional measures need to be taken. In any case, the causes of this phenomenon must be recognized in time and, if possible, eliminated.
Keep in mind! Even if your baby, by all indicators, is somewhat behind in weight from his peers, but at the same time has a good appetite and cheerfulness, which touches everyone, there is no need to sound the alarm. It's just his body type.
Causes and their elimination
First, try to understand why your child is not gaining weight well: consider possible reasons which may concern physical development your baby.
Lack of milk
Often a child under one year old does not gain weight well because he simply does not have enough breast milk the following reasons:
- the mother has little milk, problems with lactation, which will have to be improved in a short time;
- if a child does not gain weight while breastfeeding, often his sucking reflex is simply not formed - in this case, the mother will have to teach him to eat;
- uncomfortable position: it’s worth watching an instructional video on how to hold your baby correctly when breastfeeding;
- diseases or pathologies of the oral cavity (the same as thrush) that prevent him from sucking: usually they are detected during a visual examination of the mouth and are successfully treated;
- pathology of the nipple, which is inconvenient for the baby to wrap his lips around - in this case, you will notice a lack of weight gain already in 1 month of the baby’s life.
Lack of milk is the most common reason why a breastfeeding baby does not gain weight well and does not meet normal levels. To identify this factor, you need to try to calculate how much the baby eats at a time/day and record the results for several days, and then show it to the pediatrician.
If he confirms that the baby actually does not have enough nutrition, he will tell you what to do: either prescribe drugs that enhance lactation, or recommend additional feeding. Up to 4 months - mixtures, after this age - vegetable purees.
Refusal of complementary feeding
If your baby is bottle-fed and is not gaining weight well, he may not like the taste of the formula. Try replacing it with another (brand, manufacturer).
The same thing happens after 7 months, when the baby begins to be fed, but he simply does not like banana or cabbage puree after his mother’s sweet milk. You need to be patient: by the age of one year, babies get used to new tastes in their diet and begin to gain weight in accordance with the norms.
Under no circumstances should you give up complementary feeding completely in such a situation. Firstly, after 7 months the baby will no longer have enough kilocalories from breast milk. Secondly, due to the meager menu, he may have problems with the immune system. So if your child doesn’t eat well and doesn’t gain weight after solid foods are introduced, try to please him with a variety of dishes.
Wrong diet
Parents are often surprised to see that their child eats well, but is not gaining weight well, and cannot understand the reasons. Perhaps the whole point is in an incorrectly composed diet. Review it:
- add fats to complementary foods: 5 grams of any oil (vegetable or butter) per 100 ml of soup (or puree);
- make the menu more diverse;
- reduce the amount of sugar in complementary foods, which interferes with full absorption nutrients.
If you are not sure that you are feeding your baby correctly, consult your pediatrician about this. Perhaps, after your baby’s menu changes, he will gradually gain weight and become equal to his peers.
Hyperactivity
If one year old child is not gaining weight, observe his behavior and answer the following questions for yourself:
- Did he start walking early?
- Is he always cheerful and cheerful?
- Is he constantly on the move?
- does he always need someone's attention to be played with?
- Is he restless and nimble?
If you answer all these questions positively, then the reason for your baby’s underweight after one year lies in his hyperactivity. He just manages to burn all the calories that come to him with food, and even more. Its activity takes energy, fats do not have time to be deposited. In this case, there is no need to worry. The main thing is that later it does not develop into nervousness and anxiety.
Disease
If your baby is not gaining weight well, has enough milk, eats well, has a balanced diet, and is not more active than usual, it’s time to visit a pediatrician. Perhaps the problem is more serious and lies in an internal disease.
The main reasons for underweight are:
- cystic fibrosis is a hereditary disease that affects organs that secrete mucus;
- - digestive disorders;
- helminths;
- disorders of the thyroid gland;
- type 1 diabetes;
- low hemoglobin level;
- neurological problems.
If these diseases are identified, treatment is carried out, as a result of which the child may gain the missing weight.
Prematurity
If a premature baby is not gaining weight well, you need to pay special attention to his health. Typically, such children are born with pathologies or disorders in the functioning of internal organs. Parents know about this and must do everything possible, according to the doctor’s instructions, so that by the age of one year the baby catches up with his peers in terms of parameters. Especially if he is on IV due to certain circumstances.
Artificial nutrition
There is an opinion that an artificial child gains weight much more slowly than his peers who are on breastfeeding. On the one hand, everything is quite logical: the latter receive more nutrients. On the other hand, this is why such babies have everything in order with their metabolism from the very beginning. early age, and they are not obese. Whereas it is precisely with artificial people that this problem most often arises. Therefore, all pediatricians unanimously assert that IV cannot be considered a cause of underweight in children.
Do no harm! Noticing that their baby weighs little for his age, caring mothers and grandmothers urgently begin to feed him, which only worsens the situation. It is much more difficult to combat obesity that develops after this.
What to do?
What should parents do who believe that their child is not gaining weight well, unlike their peers? Useful tips Experienced pediatricians will help you take control of the situation.
- Tell your doctor about your fears and listen to his qualified opinion.
- Check the child’s health for the presence of internal diseases.
- Try to find out the reason why the baby weighs little for his age and eliminate it.
- Do not experiment with complementary foods and mixtures.
- Preserve breast milk for as long as possible and feed it to your baby (if suddenly the milk disappears, try it).
- During lactation, maintain peace of mind and do not worry. The mother's fears and stress are transferred to the baby, and he cannot eat normally.
- Feeding a child of any age should take place in a calm environment; you need to create a pleasant, relaxing atmosphere for this procedure, which will help the little body absorb food.
- Develop a feeding schedule. But if your baby, who is not gaining weight well, asks to eat outside the schedule you set, don’t be too strict: give him what he asks for.
- Don’t be lazy to get up and feed your baby up to a year old at night if he needs it.
Have you noticed that your child is gaining weight poorly and is lagging behind his peers in this parameter? Don't rush to panic. First, ask your parents about what you were like as a baby. Perhaps heredity is to blame. But there may be more serious reasons that should be paid close attention to and eliminated as quickly as possible. Otherwise, this may affect the baby’s health in the future.
The weight of a newborn baby is one of the indicators of its normal growth and development. Every baby gains weight differently. Some children grow faster, others slower. But even despite the individual characteristics of newborns, too slow weight gain can be a serious cause for concern for parents.
The fact that the child is not gaining weight , may indicate the ineffectiveness of breastfeeding. In this case, in addition to problems with weight, when the baby gains less than 18 grams per day and lags behind the normal weight gain schedule, parents should also notice that their baby sleeps too much, constantly looks lethargic, slow and sleepy, cries quietly, and constantly asks for the breast. , and feeding takes too long. The child's stool is rare or practically absent, and the urine is dark and also small. At the same time, signs of dehydration are visible on the baby’s skin - folds of hanging skin. All of the above symptoms should force parents to immediately contact a pediatrician, since it is clearly visible that the child is receiving insufficient nutrition, and this is dangerous to his life and health.
But it also happens that the child seems to be gaining little weight, but at the same time he is cheerful and active. He is applied to the breast at least 8 times a day, and each time he actively sucks and swallows milk. At the same time, the mother feels that the breasts are softening. During breaks between feedings, the baby is calm. His skin looks healthy and his muscles are toned. The urine is light and diapers have to be changed every 1-2 hours. The stool is normal, several times a day. It would be wrong to say that a child has a problem with lack of feeding, even if he gains at least 18 grams from the normal 18-30 grams per day. Therefore, the main recommendation that pediatricians give to parents is if infant is not gaining weight, look, first of all, at his well-being and activity, and only then at the tables.
How much weight does the child gain?
Weight gain standards for children under one year of age do not imply too strict indicators. And for babies who are breastfed, they are rarely used, mainly for artificial ones. But, nevertheless, norms exist, and you can focus on them.
In the first 3-4 months of his life, a child should gain approximately 600-900 grams monthly. At 4-6 months, the increase should be reduced to 400-600 grams each month. After six months the increase is already about 300-500 grams, and at the age of 9-12 months it is only 100-300 grams. If you notice obvious deviations from the norm, and the baby seems too restless, practically does not urinate, and his skin looks wrinkled, consult a doctor.
Why is my baby not gaining weight?
There can be several reasons for insufficient weight gain. The main ones are insufficient milk consumption by the baby and its lack in the nursing mother herself. To determine how much milk your baby eats at a time, weigh him before and after feeding. With your readings for the week, go to see your pediatrician. If it turns out that the child is really not eating enough, analyze the situation. Perhaps he sucks weakly and does not have enough strength to reach the deep layers of fatty milk. Or maybe he just falls asleep against his chest. In this case, the doctor will show you how to properly put your baby to the breast. If the baby is strong and active enough, the problem may be with the mother, who simply does not have enough milk. And then the pediatrician will recommend means to enhance lactation or give advice. Or perhaps you will just have to introduce vegetable complementary foods into your little one’s diet a little earlier.
Sometimes it happens that a child stops gaining weight normally due to illness. In this case, you cannot do without an examination. But after the illness is over, the baby will definitely get better again and quickly return to its normal weight.
It often happens that everything seems to be normal - the mother has enough milk, and the child eats well, but still does not grow. Think about whether there are short or thin people in your family. Even if the parents are quite large, the genes of a miniature grandmother or a short and thin grandfather could be passed on to the baby. And in this case, you have absolutely no reason to worry. Especially if a thin child is very active, which clearly does not contribute to the accumulation of fat deposits. Don't worry, he's completely healthy.
What to do if your child is not gaining weight
As you understand, everything is individual, and in order to help a child with underweight, you need to know the cause of the problem. But there are a number of general recommendations for breastfeeding that all mothers can use:
From the very first day after the birth of the baby, the mother will have to repeatedly measure his body weight. There are certain criteria by which doctors evaluate whether a newborn baby’s health is normal, and whether the baby receives enough nutrients. Meanwhile, do not forget that the rate of growth and weight gain of each child is individual.
In some cases, insufficient weight gain can indeed be an indicator of some health problems in the baby, but for other children it may simply be a feature of individual development. In this article we will tell you about how a child should gain weight, and what to do if the gain is not enough.
What weight gain is considered normal for a newborn?
Normally, during the first month of life, the baby should gain from 500 to 1200 grams. In the first half of the year, the baby should gain at least 400 grams of weight every month; in the second half of the child’s life, the increase is usually 200-300 grams per month.
After the baby reaches the age of 1 year, weight gain becomes less important; the child’s body weight is measured once every 3 months, but its value should not differ significantly from the norm for this age.
Body weight norms, depending on age, are indicated in a special centile table, with the help of which the doctor can determine whether the child is developing normally:
Why isn't my baby gaining weight?
Most often, a newborn baby does not gain weight for the following reasons:
- Malnutrition. This situation usually occurs when a young mother places her baby incorrectly to the breast, or she simply does not have enough milk.
- Stress of mother and child after childbirth.
- Also, one of the reasons why a child is not gaining weight well may be bad digestion, associated with congenital health problems.
- mothers with breastfeeding.
- In addition, a child gains little weight when he has teething, or he has a cold. Often the cause of weight loss is stomatitis. In this case, babies also often refuse to eat.
- Finally, some children are naturally "little ones." If at the same time the child does not have any health problems, and he is active and cheerful when he is awake, then he does not need more food, and there is no need to try to force feed him.
What to do if your child suddenly stops gaining weight?
Many parents turn to their doctor asking how to help their child gain weight. The doctor may prescribe vitamins or special medications, for example, Elkar drops, that promote food absorption and weight gain, but first you need to understand the reasons for insufficient gain.
If this is due to a lack of breast milk, the mother needs to increase lactation, for example, drink special tea for nursing mothers. Meanwhile, this method does not always work, and if there is still not enough milk, you should think about supplementing your baby with formula, after consulting with a pediatrician.
In addition, it is necessary to create a calm and friendly environment at home so that the baby does not worry or be capricious. once again. Mom may need to reconsider her diet, because her nutrition during breastfeeding should be as nutritious and healthy as possible. You will have to give up any bad habits during this period.
Finally, if the baby’s underweight is associated with medical problems, treatment should be prescribed by the pediatrician observing the child. Usually, after eliminating the main cause of weight loss, the baby quickly gains the required body weight.