I know some of the moms will be furious with me for saying this - but those who have kids that are on the downward slope with regards to weight will hopefully be ok with me writing this.

I am 'petite', and have 2 girls who are delightfully cute but also petite and tend to stay on the early percentiles on the weight chart. The doctors were ok with the older one's weight till a particular time, but when the downward slope did not turn up, they began to suggest options that I thought they never would. 

To cut to the chase - here are some techniques I have tried to help with weight gain (most worked and my kid is better than bony now, per the scale too):

1. Give whole milk, flavored milk, buttermilk, hot cocoa or milkshakes rather than low fat milk options.
   1. If none of this works try Pediasure, Carnation Instant Breakfast milk or Ensure – Not all

kids like these

1. Try giving only Organic Milk or Milk from Grass Fed Cows – the growth hormones in regular milk will in the immediate term make your child gain weight but can lead to increased chances of early onset of puberty
2. Greek yogurt provides high calories and could be used instead of plain yogurt.
   1. Added tip:  When making rice/yogurt, mix whole milk and not water with the greek yogurt to get a thinner consistency. My favorite brand is Fage .
3. Add whipping cream to any dessert and you could even mix it with rice/yogurt type food
4. Cream cheese instead of butter for bagels/sandwiches
5. Peanut butter or Nutella instead of jams  (if your kid is not allergic to nuts)
6. Melt cheese with almost everything – Added to Pizzas, Pastas, Roti, Rice etc.  ( My girls love white sauce recipes that are heavy on cheese – to add the nutrients, I would buy Spinach Ravioli and mix white sauce in it)
7. Boil rice/pasta in half/half milk rather than plain water
8. Avocadoes are heavy in nutrition and also provide good fats – Try blending them in smoothies, or make ‘atta’ dough with just them mixed in without any water
9. Eggs and meat also help in providing good proteins for the growing body – if you can, try and add some olive oil when you serve to add up some calories
10. And finally – My 6 years of chasing around playgrounds has taught me to always try to pack calories for the picky eaters in small meals – If a good eater will eat a full bowl, expect that your selective eater will only eat half – but make that half worth his/her and your time!

And finally, don’t push the kid and yourself if it’s not working – My older one would not eat till a particular age but does relatively ok now. Sometimes it’s just a phase that passes away and other times, the kid is just following genetic makeup.

I derived some of the above from reading below as well:

How to help Child Gain Weight

Puberty before Age 10 – A new normal?

Disclaimer : I am just a mom and not a doctor and am sharing my experience with 2 picky eaters. So, please apply your own judgment when trying any of the above.

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