My feed
Premium

Please
or
to access all these features

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Children's health

Looking for advice on 5yo DS's diet & figure - he is very skinny

12 replies

PiggeryJokery · 11/11/2012 19:53

DS is healthy and happy, quite active but not a live wire. He likes activities like building stuff as well as watching tv, games on the iPad etc more than kicking a ball around.

There is no fat on him. His is stomach is flat, his legs are unbelievably skinny, with his knee caps and ankle bones incredibly prominent.

He eats well, though I'm sure there's room for improvement. Is this all normal for his age? I don't want to "feed him up" only to find I've created problems in the other direction!

OP posts:
MrsPnut · 11/11/2012 19:57

My 6 year old has legs that look like a piece of string with a knot in it for the knee, I can see every rib and every vertebrae but I think she looks normal.

She won't eat fruit and eats limited vegetables but loads of sweets, I am just going with the flow and offering yoghurt regularly as a snack.

Indith · 11/11/2012 19:57

Sounds normal. You shoul dbe able to see their ribs at that age and their knees etc are not in proportion so do look really big and will even out in time. I think it just looks odd to us as it is the age where they have finally shed all the toddler chubby bits and sticky out tummy so they look like little waifs.

liveinazoo · 11/11/2012 20:40

as long as he has enough fat to keep him goin gwhen he is unwell he is fine..if he gets weak quickly when ill its time to start adding in some extras

InNeedOfBrandy · 11/11/2012 20:43

dd you can see her ribs, every bone in her spine, knees ankles ect ect she was a really chubby baby but after 18months shot up and has never had an ounce of fat on her again. She eats like a horse to and will have a figure to die for when she's older with her long legs that go up to her armpits.

N0tinmylife · 11/11/2012 20:46

I have another tiny skinny one. As long as he has plenty of energy, and seems to eat well I wouldn't worry about it at all!

PiggeryJokery · 11/11/2012 21:09

Thank you, very reassuring! He's had skinny legs since he could walk, but his ankles and knees suddenly looked enormous on the little stick legs poking out of his big bath towel tonight!

OP posts:
tilder · 11/11/2012 21:12

Ds1 is very thin too. Runs in the family (not mine sadly). He has been long and thin since first scan.

Foosyerdoos · 11/11/2012 22:57

My little boy (nearly 6) is exactly the same. He eats heaps but is so skinny. He has loads of energy though and is healthy. My worry though is that if he goes off his food for a couple of days he drops weight so quickly.

steppemum · 11/11/2012 23:03

ds was like this at this age, and he ate like a horse!

He finally looked more balanced at about 8/9 years

tittytittyhanghang · 11/11/2012 23:11

my whole family is like this, including me, i remember being too think for leggings as they just didn't cling (unfortunately 30 years and 2 dc later i cannot say the same). My youngest dbro who is still a teen was the skinniest out the bunch of us, and i remember my mum taking him to the gp's as she was worried. Apparently gp told her dbro was perfect and that the other kids she was comparing him to were actually fat!

LynetteScavo · 11/11/2012 23:11

Yes, DS2 was like this. The only reason I didn't worry too much was that my father was the same, and it gave my grandmother years of anguish.

He's now 9 and bulking up slightly.

FeckOffWithYourXmasBollocks · 12/11/2012 11:59

Where does he come on the growth chart. Don't forget, anywhere within that chart is 'normal'. Dd is coeliac, and used to run what I'd call skinny. She has a paediatrician and a dietician. Apparently, she is fine. She just looks skinny because so many children nowadays are at the higher end of the chart.

Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.