My picky child really needs to gain weight

[Guest guest]

Hello to all my vegan and vegetarian friends. I am asking for advice and shared

experience on an issue that my family is having. My middle daughter, Mckayla

Marie (almost 10 yrs old) is a very very picky eater. She is slightly below the

5th percentile on her body mass index, which means that she is a little under

weight. She does not like many of the common fattier foods like avocados or

olives, and she can only eat so many nuts. She does like peanut butter and I get

her to eat it as often as possible. She is vegan, although she is allowed to try

other foods if she wishes, but so far she chooses not to. She was raised omni

most of her life, but she just could not do it anymore. She is an ethical vegan,

her sisters and I are also. She has only lost about 1-2 pound, but she is not

gaining. Do any of you have any tips on how to slip her extra fats? She is such

a small eater too. She really likes bread, so as soon as I get my student loans

I will be buying a bread maker. I do make bread

by hand, but being that I am the sole caregiver of my children and a university

student, I do not have the time to make everything from scratch. Perhaps I can

sneak fats into her bread. That should be interesting. Her older sister has down

syndrome and is prone to obesity as a result (so far she is at a healthy weight

thankfully,) I might have to make her some of her own personal bread, hehe, that

could be fun. Thanks in advance for any assistance or advice that is given.

~Shelly

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

hi shelly,

 

i have VERY picky kids too and the way i get a TON of good stuff,

including fat, in them is through MUFFINS!!!

 

i make the muffins with a couple of TBLS of oil and i add either wheat

germ or oats. i basically follow any muffin or bread recipe (i just

make them i nmuffin tins always since that form appeals to my kids) and

substitute soy milk for milk and egg replacer (either wonderslim liquid

or enerG powder made into liquid - i like enerG a bit better) for egg.

 

i also add zuchinni, carrot, banana and other fruits and veggies. i

have just done some searches for vegan recipes and then it is

easy to come up with some muffin recipes.

 

basically, the oil in it is great for the fat and everything else is

healthy and great for weight gain!

good luck!

heather

[Guest guest]

Dips for veggies are a good way to add fat and calories to a vegan diet. I

did this while I was pregnant, at the advice of my nutritionist.

 

Think dipping oils for breads; salad dressings for raw/steamed veggies and

salads; gravies for casseroles, etc.

These options should also support your need to monitor your older daughters

intake as well.

 

You can purchase dipping oils, or, make them yourself with olive, avocado,

walnut oil, etc., infused with herbs and spices.

 

Does McKayla have any interest in nutrition? This might be a good

assignment for her to research and learn about. Could be a fun and great

lifelong lesson.

 

 

Good luck!

 

Kristy

 

 

 

 

On Behalf Of shelly

Monday, January 09, 2006 7:41 AM

; ;

VeganParenting ; veganscan ;

vegetariansincanada ;

My picky child really needs to gain weight

 

Hello to all my vegan and vegetarian friends. I am asking for advice and

shared experience on an issue that my family is having. My middle daughter,

Mckayla Marie (almost 10 yrs old) is a very very picky eater. She is

slightly below the 5th percentile on her body mass index, which means that

she is a little under weight. She does not like many of the common fattier

foods like avocados or olives, and she can only eat so many nuts. She does

like peanut butter and I get her to eat it as often as possible. She is

vegan, although she is allowed to try other foods if she wishes, but so far

she chooses not to. She was raised omni most of her life, but she just could

not do it anymore. She is an ethical vegan, her sisters and I are also. She

has only lost about 1-2 pound, but she is not gaining. Do any of you have

any tips on how to slip her extra fats? She is such a small eater too. She

really likes bread, so as soon as I get my student loans I will be buying a

bread maker. I do make bread

by hand, but being that I am the sole caregiver of my children and a

university student, I do not have the time to make everything from scratch.

Perhaps I can sneak fats into her bread. That should be interesting. Her

older sister has down syndrome and is prone to obesity as a result (so far

she is at a healthy weight thankfully,) I might have to make her some of her

own personal bread, hehe, that could be fun. Thanks in advance for any

assistance or advice that is given. ~Shelly

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

I may just be mean.... but at 10 years old - I would tell her that

either she's needs to start eating a greater variety foods (small

portions are not so bad - but they need to happen 5-6 times a day

instead of 3) or expand her diet to veggie not vegan - then you would

have a lot of fat options not just dairy but also the tons of veggie

meat substitutes (most of which have whey or some type of binder in

them)

 

Also, I've tried really hard not to put my views onto my kids. I

didn't start eating this way until I was in college. I think it would

be fantastic if they made the same choice - however they are picky

right now too, so I want the entire range of foods available to them

while they are growing. They would also be loosing weight if they were

on a strictly vegan diet now.

 

Sorry, I don't mean to sound condescending - it seems like you have

your hands full - and I admire your strength as a single mom!

[Guest guest]

hey there,

first off is it really a problem or is it just bother the doctors

because she doesn't fit in to there mold of what is normal. does she

appear healthy to you, is she fit and strong. to gain weight she needs

more calories then she burns period. doesn't matter where they come

from, so look for more high calorie foods such as dried fruit, granola,

bread. if she seems to small and week also while uping her calories see

if you can get her to start working out and building a little muscle

(not talking cardio here but resistance). and most important if you

think she is healthy don't listen to the doctors and especially don't

tell her things like that. she needs a positive body image, a huge

problem with girls this day and age.

peace

jeff

[Guest guest]

Thanks for your reply Jeff. I agree that many young girls suffer from very poor

body image. My daughter likes her body thin. She told me that she does not want

to gain weight. This was a new thing to me, she just told me yesterday. She IS

slightly underweight. She does not have a lot of energy, in fact she is tired,

unable to concentrate and irritable much of the time. She barely eats and has

always been extremely picky.I had a discussion with her about body types and

what is healthy. I told her that very skinny, like bones showing (as her ribs

do) is not healthy in the least. Healthy bodies and minds that are fed well and

taken care of are very attractive and work far better than skinny undernourished

ones. I showed her pictures of models i.e. a flattering photo of a more

healthily figured Cindy Crawford and a unflattering and wasted looking Kate

Moss. No she is not a big model person, actually one of her heroes is Jane

Goodall, but those were the best examples I could come up with

quickly. I do not have cable TV so my girls do not watch music videos often or

commercials, I think that helps a bit. I think being up front with her and

telling it to her as it is will garner more seriousness than sugar coating the

issue. My daughter is exceptionally beautiful. She looks like a young Penelope

Cruz. Everyone comments on how pretty she is. She says that she does not feel

pretty, although i sometimes catch her checking herself out in the mirror with

an " I am so gorgeous " expression on her face. She always turns away and giggles

and gives me heck for looking at her looking at her own self. I did not take her

to the doctor about this. I calculated her body mass index myself as her lack of

weight gain is of a concern to me. I would prefer to keep this out of the doc's

office as I do not think that everything needs to be medicalized and I do not

think that it will help her if she is treated like she has something wrong with

her. If after a few months of consuming more

calories and still not gaining, i will take her to see our family doctor. She

has been out of taekwondo for about 2 months as our car has been broken, now it

is fixed, so she will be able to go back. She has ecoartists classes starting

this month as well. I think that this all together will help her to brighten up

a bit. ~Shelly in northern Ontario

 

jeff <climbzen wrote: hey there,

first off is it really a problem or is it just bother the doctors

because she doesn't fit in to there mold of what is normal. does she

appear healthy to you, is she fit and strong. to gain weight she needs

more calories then she burns period. doesn't matter where they come

from, so look for more high calorie foods such as dried fruit, granola,

bread. if she seems to small and week also while uping her calories see

if you can get her to start working out and building a little muscle

(not talking cardio here but resistance). and most important if you

think she is healthy don't listen to the doctors and especially don't

tell her things like that. she needs a positive body image, a huge

problem with girls this day and age.

peace

jeff

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

Shelly,

 

I see you live in Northern Ontario. You mention that she is tired these

days. I wonder if it could be the time of year. The days are pretty short

and many of us struggle this time of year without enough sunlight. I just

wondered if she might be perfectly healthy but suffering from the winter

doldrums. Her tiredness might not be diet related at all.

 

I was going to suggest fatten her up on food (potato chips, tortilla chips,

spreads, dips..rich desserts - tofu cheese cake, deep fried appetizers,

somosa's (fried food) etc) but if she's only a pound or two too light I'd

not think that adjusting her diet would be worth changing - all you will be

doing then is setting her up for a weight problem of a different type later

in life. I know you said she is a teen. If her menses is regular and her

health is otherwise good (no mensus can be related to being underweight).

I'd not worry so much - but make sure that at her next physical you somehow

ask the doctor " when do you start worrying about being too skinny "

 

Just my thoughts

 

Yvonne

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

in terms of what you said, i think its *very* important that food not become a

battleground... so i think what you're doing here seems to be right.

 

i was very similair at that age--actually, i was exteremly underweight my

entire life until i became consuming alcohol, and now i'm at a " healthy " weight

(125lbs at 5.8), mainly because of alcohol calories [when i don't go out much, i

lose weight].

 

i was also *so* picky until i became vegetarian at 13.

 

i think a huge thing for me was going to the grocery store and picking out

food myself...and then cooking it myself, as my parents were discouraging my

vegetarianism by trying to make it inconvenient. luckily, it backfired, and

now, my god, i love all types of food!

 

Could you maybe get her involved in cooking? i know she's young, but there's

still got to be stuff she can cook with supervision. once she's personally

invested in it, she'll want to eat more (or, at least i did).

 

at least, take her to the store with you and allow her to pick out any one or

two item she wants [within a price range].

 

anyways, those are some random suggestions. hope something helps

 

suz

 

shelly <joychild72 wrote:

Thanks for your reply Jeff. I agree that many young girls suffer from very

poor body image. My daughter likes her body thin. She told me that she does not

want to gain weight. This was a new thing to me, she just told me yesterday. She

IS slightly underweight. She does not have a lot of energy, in fact she is

tired, unable to concentrate and irritable much of the time. She barely eats and

has always been extremely picky.I had a discussion with her about body types and

what is healthy. I told her that very skinny, like bones showing (as her ribs

do) is not healthy in the least. Healthy bodies and minds that are fed well and

taken care of are very attractive and work far better than skinny undernourished

ones. I showed her pictures of models i.e. a flattering photo of a more

healthily figured Cindy Crawford and a unflattering and wasted looking Kate

Moss. No she is not a big model person, actually one of her heroes is Jane

Goodall, but those were the best examples I could come up with

quickly. I do not have cable TV so my girls do not watch music videos often or

commercials, I think that helps a bit. I think being up front with her and

telling it to her as it is will garner more seriousness than sugar coating the

issue. My daughter is exceptionally beautiful. She looks like a young Penelope

Cruz. Everyone comments on how pretty she is. She says that she does not feel

pretty, although i sometimes catch her checking herself out in the mirror with

an " I am so gorgeous " expression on her face. She always turns away and giggles

and gives me heck for looking at her looking at her own self. I did not take her

to the doctor about this. I calculated her body mass index myself as her lack of

weight gain is of a concern to me. I would prefer to keep this out of the doc's

office as I do not think that everything needs to be medicalized and I do not

think that it will help her if she is treated like she has something wrong with

her. If after a few months of consuming more

calories and still not gaining, i will take her to see our family doctor. She

has been out of taekwondo for about 2 months as our car has been broken, now it

is fixed, so she will be able to go back. She has ecoartists classes starting

this month as well. I think that this all together will help her to brighten up

a bit. ~Shelly in northern Ontario

 

jeff <climbzen wrote: hey there,

first off is it really a problem or is it just bother the doctors

because she doesn't fit in to there mold of what is normal. does she

appear healthy to you, is she fit and strong. to gain weight she needs

more calories then she burns period. doesn't matter where they come

from, so look for more high calorie foods such as dried fruit, granola,

bread. if she seems to small and week also while uping her calories see

if you can get her to start working out and building a little muscle

(not talking cardio here but resistance). and most important if you

think she is healthy don't listen to the doctors and especially don't

tell her things like that. she needs a positive body image, a huge

problem with girls this day and age.

peace

jeff

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

HI Shelly,

we are ethical vegans here as well... my son will be 10 on friday. He is also

a skinny

kiddo.. we are all slim. My daughter is 7 1/2, also slim, but my son is really

skinny. It's

just in our genes. how skinny is your daughter, ..or more importantly.. does

she have

enough energy to fill her needs? Is she energetic, happy? does her skin look

healthy?

what foods does she like? what activities is she into? How does her mind work?

is she

sharp, thinking clearly? showing any signs of malnourishment? Is it possible

you are

worrying too much, (that is not a dig at you..it's more of a ben there, done

that,.. do it still

sometimes thing)

 

feel free to email me off list, or on,

 

=)

jenni

 

 

, shelly <joychild72> wrote:

>

> Hello to all my vegan and vegetarian friends. I am asking for advice and

shared

experience on an issue that my family is having. My middle daughter, Mckayla

Marie

(almost 10 yrs old) is a very very picky eater. She is slightly below the 5th

percentile on her

body mass index, which means that she is a little under weight. She does not

like many of

the common fattier foods like avocados or olives, and she can only eat so many

nuts. She

does like peanut butter and I get her to eat it as often as possible. She is

vegan, although

she is allowed to try other foods if she wishes, but so far she chooses not to.

She was

raised omni most of her life, but she just could not do it anymore. She is an

ethical vegan,

her sisters and I are also. She has only lost about 1-2 pound, but she is not

gaining. Do

any of you have any tips on how to slip her extra fats? She is such a small

eater too. She

really likes bread, so as soon as I get my student loans I will be buying a

bread maker. I do

make bread

> by hand, but being that I am the sole caregiver of my children and a

university student,

I do not have the time to make everything from scratch. Perhaps I can sneak

fats into her

bread. That should be interesting. Her older sister has down syndrome and is

prone to

obesity as a result (so far she is at a healthy weight thankfully,) I might have

to make her

some of her own personal bread, hehe, that could be fun. Thanks in advance for

any

assistance or advice that is given. ~Shelly

>

>

>

>

> Photos

> Ring in the New Year with Photo Calendars. Add photos, events, holidays,

whatever.

>

>