In an age where obesity is the bane of everyone’s life, I have an unique problem.

I am a working mother of a 20 month old baby boy. My problem started during the fourth month of my pregnancy when I was unable to put on more than 200 grams a month for almost three months. It was a cause of concern for everyone around and very complicated for me. I ate well but my body just refused to put on any weight. It was in the very later stages that I managed to gain a few kilos.

I had a baby boy who was 2.8 kilos when born, This is normal. He continued to gain weight as expected for the first three months of his life, but then, his weight gain drastically reduced.

All parents would relate to the tension you feel when the doctor charts the baby’s height and weight.My child had dropped below the zero percentile. we made sure that his little heart was fine and his developmental milestones were all met.
We finally met a doctor who stamped Failure to Thrive on my little one. I have scoured the internet for ages now and finally decided that my son comes by his thinness quite genuinely. I am 5feet 3 inches. My mom is 4.8 and my sister is around the same mark. The small gene is lurking in the background.

But my son was certainly woefully thin and any infection would make him cross the spectrum from thin to absolutely bony.

I have tried a lot of things and some of them have worked for me.This blog is for all those moms and dads desperately trying to put some fat on their small built kids.

My methods:
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1)Kids tend to eat much lesser than what you expect them to. DO NOT force feed. It is going to make meal times very frustrating for both of you.

2)Make sure each spoonful that goes into your little ones mouth is calorie dense. I have read that cholestrol is required by babies until around 3 years for mental development.

3)My biggest hit was eggs. They are one of the most versatile foods we have. Boil them and make then into small egg canoes. Sprinkle some salt and pepper,
Make scrambled eggs…easy to eat and easy to feed. There is also the lovely french toast and you just cant forget the omlettes. Add a slice of cheddar cheese wherever possible and you have a nutritious high calorie snack.(Not for kids with an allergy to eggs)

4)Drizzle butter and ghee on dosas, idlis, uppit and the rest.

5)Starchy veggies like potato help some as well

6)Offer your kid a dessert after meals. Mine loves jamoons and payasam.

7)The occasional pastry does help.

8)Hiding one food inside another…camouflage the flavour of a food he dislikes. If you want to give your baby some avocado, then mix it with mango. Your toddler is sure to gobble it down.

9)I have read about peanut butter but have not tried it yet.

10)Dry roast all dry fruits and grind them into fine powder and store it. Mix with jaggery and ghee and feed the child.

11)Cook with milk instead of water wherever possible…say while making rave ganji, use milk and a dollop of ghee.

This is not an exhaustive list neither am I an authority on this. Please do these only after consulting your doctor.

I just wish I had had the knowledge much before and hope this helps some desperate parent.

Feel free to add on to the list. I will certainly appreciate it :D

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