Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 4: Identifying Causes
• Method 2 of 4: Changing Your Eating Habits
• Method 3 of 4: Choosing nutritious, high-calorie foods
• Method 4 of 4: Increasing the number of calories in food
• Warnings

In the modern world, there is an acute problem of increasing the number of obese children. Nevertheless, doctors note that the problem of underweight in children also remains relevant, and many children would benefit from gaining a few pounds. However, this is not an easy task: it is not enough just to let the child eat whatever he wants. Instead, you should change your eating habits, include nutritious, high-calorie foods in your diet, and "secretly" add extra calories to your meals. If you think your child needs to get better before helping him gain weight, be sure to consult with a specialist.

Steps

Method 1 of 4: Identifying Causes

1. 1 Try to establish the reasons. Like adults, some children are simply skinny and find it difficult to gain extra weight. However, other possible reasons that your child looks too thin should be ruled out.
   • Children are quite picky about food, but if your child has a consistently poor appetite, this may indicate some kind of physiological or psychological disturbance. Sometimes excess thinness is associated with hormonal problems or metabolic disorders such as diabetes or hyperthyroidism (increased thyroid function).
   • Eating may be associated with discomfort due to gastrointestinal upset or food allergies.
   • If your child is taking any medication, be aware that some medications can reduce appetite.
   • Unfortunately, factors such as peer pressure can also lead to digestive upset, even in preschool and primary school children.
   • Perhaps your child is simply very mobile and expends more calories than goes into his body.
2. 2 Check with your pediatrician. If you and your child have regular check-ups, the pediatrician may advise your child to gain weight. Feel free to ask your doctor for advice on what worries you.
   • As noted, intolerance and allergies to certain foods, digestive problems and many other disorders can lead to excessive thinness of the child. The pediatrician will help to establish the correct diagnosis and prescribe the appropriate treatment.
   • In most cases, the situation can be corrected through changes in everyday life and daily habits. However, expert advice never hurts.
3. 3 Follow your doctor's advice when feeding your baby. The methods for gaining weight in an infant are certainly different from those for older children. Serious illnesses are rare; underweight is mainly caused by inappropriate feeding, insufficient breast milk, or gastrointestinal disorders.
   • If you think your baby is gaining weight poorly, be sure to check with your doctor.The pediatrician will examine the child, prescribe the necessary tests, refer you to a nutritionist who will instruct you about proper feeding, or to a pediatric gastroenterologist.
   • Treatment will depend on the specific situation, it may include the following measures: supplementation with milk formula (in case of insufficient breast milk); feeding the child not on a rigid schedule, but when he wants; switching to another milk mixture (with intolerance and allergy to the old milk mixture or switching to a more high-calorie mixture); introduction of complementary foods slightly earlier than six months after birth. In some cases, your doctor may prescribe medications for acid reflux.
   • Timely weight gain early in life is very important for later health, so if you have the slightest problem, you should consult a doctor. Lack of weight can almost always be eliminated in time, and it will not affect the health of the child.

Method 2 of 4: Changing Your Eating Habits

1. 1 Feed your underweight baby more often. In many cases, the problem is not what the baby is eating, but the amount of food. Young children have a small stomach volume, so they need to eat more often than adults.
   • Often, children are encouraged to eat five to seven times a day, not counting snacks between meals.
   • Feed your baby whenever he gets hungry.
2. 2 Give importance to your meals. While not giving up light snacks, focus on your main meals. Teach your child not to be distracted while eating and to enjoy the food.
   • When children perceive eating as an unpleasant duty or as a kind of punishment (for example, requiring them not to leave the table until the plate is empty), this discourages them from eating.
   • When eating, follow certain rules. Turn off the TV. Create an environment that will help your child focus on food while enjoying it.
3. 3 Lead by example. It may turn out that it would be useful for your child to gain a couple of kilograms, but, on the contrary, it would not hurt you to lose weight. However, even in this situation, your nutrition and your baby's nutrition should not be much different. Nutrient-rich foods are good for everyone, including those who are lean or overweight.
   • Looking at adults, children follow their example. If your diet is varied and includes healthy, natural foods such as vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, children will adopt your healthy eating habits.
   • Try to eliminate unhealthy foods from your family's diet, regardless of whether someone in the family should gain or lose weight.
4. 4 Teach your child to exercise regularly. Like healthy eating, exercise is more often associated with weight loss rather than weight gain. However, when you combine exercise with proper nutrition, it can help you gain weight.
   • Usually, increased muscle mass contributes to weight gain, especially in older children; this method is certainly more beneficial than the accumulation of adipose tissue.
   • Exercise tends to stimulate appetite, so encourage exercise before meals and see where it goes.

Method 3 of 4: Choosing nutritious, high-calorie foods

1. 1 Avoid unhealthy foods. Yes, cakes, pastries, cookies, sugary sodas and fast foods do contain a lot of calories that can help you gain weight. However, their use can lead to a variety of health problems (including even diabetes and heart disease in children) that far outweigh the minor benefits of gaining weight easily.
   • High-calorie but nutrient-poor foods such as sugary drinks are not conducive to healthy weight gain.It is better to eat foods rich in both calories and nutrients: helping to gain weight, it provides the body with essential vitamins and minerals.
   • Don't tell your child that he should “get fat” or “build meat on his bones” - instead, tell your child that you both need to eat healthier foods.
2. 2 Eat a variety of nutrient-dense foods in your diet. Diversity is important not only because it provides the body with all the vitamins and minerals it needs, it also maintains interest in food and helps to enjoy it. The monotony of food can discourage a child from eating.
   • A high-calorie, nutritious diet for weight gain in children should include foods rich in starchy carbohydrates (bread, pasta, cereals), at least five servings of vegetables and fruits daily, proteins (meat, fish, eggs, legumes) and dairy products (milk, cheese and so on).
   • All children under the age of two need whole milk products, and your child's doctor may recommend that you give your child these products at an older age to gain weight.
   • While a healthy diet should include fiber-rich foods, you shouldn't give too much to a child trying to gain weight. After a large meal of brown rice or whole grain pasta, your child will feel full and even overeat for too long.
3. 3 Give your child healthy fats. We used to think of fats as bad, but this is not always the case. Many fats, especially vegetable fats, are essential for a healthy diet. Such fats also help to gain weight, since there are about nine calories in one gram of them, while there are only about four in a gram of carbohydrates or proteins.
   • Flaxseed and coconut oils work well and can be added to many dishes. Linseed oil is almost odorless, while coconut oil is often added for a pleasant aroma; They can be used to dress a variety of dishes, from vegetable salads to smoothies.
   • Olives and olive oil are also good choices.
   • Nuts and seeds, such as almonds and pistachios, will provide your baby with enough healthy fats.
   • Avocados will give your meals a creamy texture and will also provide the body with healthy fats.
4. 4 Choose the right snacks. Children who are gaining weight need to have a snack from time to time. As with the main meals, you should choose healthy foods over high-calorie, low-nutrient foods.
   • Opt for nutritious, high-calorie meals that are easy to prepare and serve as light snacks. For example, you can make sandwiches with peanut butter, jelly, and whole grain bread, make a nutritious mix of nuts and dried fruit, make apples and cheese, or stuff pancakes with slices of avocado.
   • As a treat, you can first use bran muffins, oatmeal cookies with nuts and honey, or yogurt, and only then offer guests regular cookies, cakes and ice cream.
5. 5 Track what and when your child drinks. It is important for children not to feel a lack of water, but too much fluid creates a feeling of fullness and interrupts appetite.
   • Beverages containing empty calories, such as soda, have little or no nutritional value, and the sugar in fruit juices is bad for teeth and overall health if consumed in large quantities.
   • While water is always an excellent choice, it is good for children who are gaining weight to also drink whole milk, smoothies, smoothies, and sometimes drinks fortified with food additives such as PediaShur or Enshur. Check with your pediatrician to help you make the best choice.
   • Try to get your child to drink mostly after meals.Avoid drinking plenty of fluids before meals: Before eating, you should drink only a small amount of liquid, sufficient to support normal digestion. In this case, drinking will not create a deceptive feeling of satiety in the child.

Method 4 of 4: Increasing the number of calories in food

1. 1 Don't forget about milk. Dairy products can be added to a wide variety of dishes. This will increase the calorie and nutritional value of your food.
   • Milk smoothies and shakes are a great way to get extra calories. By adding fresh fruit to them, you will improve the taste and provide the child's body with the necessary nutrients.
   • Melted or grated cheese can be added to almost anything from scrambled eggs to fresh salads or baked vegetables.
   • Try boiling soups with milk instead of water. If you are giving your child chopped vegetables or fruits, suggest dipping them in a sauce based on sour cream, cream cheese, or yogurt.
   • If your child is allergic to milk, or if you don’t want to use dairy products for any other reason, you have an alternative. Soy milk and almond milk are also high in calories and a variety of nutrients, and you can add soft (silk) tofu to a variety of smoothies.
2. 2 Give your child peanut butter. This product, unless you are allergic to it, is almost always a useful addition to the children's diet, serving as a source of additional calories and protein.
   • Spread peanut butter on whole grain breads, bananas, apples, celery, multigrain cookies, bagels, and pretzels.
   • You can also add peanut butter to a variety of smoothies and shakes, use it as a filling for pancakes, and make French toasts (croutons fried in milk with an egg) with it.
   • If your child is allergic to peanut butter, use almond oil instead. Flax seeds and flaxseed oil are also excellent sources of calories and essential nutrients.
3. 3 Add calories gradually, in small portions. You can build up healthy calories with simple supplements and substitutions in baby foods. For example:
   • Cook pasta and rice not in water, but in chicken broth.
   • Give your child dried fruits - because they are low in liquid, they can be eaten much more than fresh ones.
   • Add some virtually odorless flaxseed oil to a wide variety of dishes, from salads to peanut butter and fruit smoothies.
   • Add boiled beef or chicken to noodles, pasta, soups, stews, omelets, cereals, and more.
4. 4 Try making healthy, high-calorie, healthy meals. The Internet is full of recipes for these foods that allow your child to gain weight with health benefits. For example, many of these recipes, from sweet fruit sauce to “super cocktail”, can be found on the University of California Davis Medical Center website (http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/cancer/pedresource/pedres_docs/HowHelpChildGainWeight.pdf ).
   • This site also explains how to prepare high-calorie milk by adding two tablespoons of milk powder to each glass of skim milk.
   • Another useful article is devoted to the recipe for making "energy balls" - a quick meal of dried fruits, nuts and other healthy foods that can be stored for a long time.

Warnings

• Don't try to build up your calorie intake with obese foods and sugary foods and drinks (chips, cakes, candy, and sodas). These foods may help increase your child's weight, but they can have detrimental effects on teeth, metabolism, muscle growth, heart and brain, and complicate pre-existing conditions (such as diabetes).
• If you are concerned that your child is not gaining or even losing weight, talk to your doctor right away, especially in the case of sudden weight loss, which may indicate a serious illness.