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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To ignore the nurse about DD's weight?

56 replies

FoxyTheFox · 03/12/2020 14:08

3yo DD had an appointment with respiratory nurse today. She has mild asthma and it was her first routine check-up. They did height and weight as part of it. Her height is 100cm and her weight is 17kg. The nurse told me that this isn't acceptable and she is overweight because her weight is a higher centile than her height however she did point out that DD has been on the same centiles for height and weight since birth so her current height/weight show her growth is consistent with previous measurements.

She advised me to cut down on her portion sizes and make her move more.

Yesterday DD had one Weetabix for breakfast with a spoonful of natural yoghurt (she doesn't like milk) and some blueberries. At nursery she had half an apple at snacktime, she didn't want any of the other food (they have the snack in little bowls on the table for the kids to self-serve). For lunch at home she had a soft-boiled egg and a slice of toast cut into soldiers, she ate around half the soldiers dipped in her egg, one small spoonful of egg, and left the rest. At dinnertime she had 5-6 cucumber slices, a small slice of roast chicken, around half a serving spoon of sweetcorn, 2-3 red pepper slices. She had a wrap but didn't eat it. This is a typical day for her. So far today she has had the same breakfast but with half a banana instead of blueberries. Her book says she had three cherry tomatoes and a breadstick for her snack at nursery. For lunch she had 5-6 raspberries and a slice of brown toast with peanut butter on, she asked for a Babybel too but didn't eat it. Dinner tonight is going to be steak with roast potatoes, spinach, broccoli, and beetroot. She will likely have 1-2 potatoes, a small piece of steak, and one piece of "tree" (broccoli). Drinks are all water (all day) or sugar free squash (mealtimes only). I don't know where I could make cuts to any of that.

Appearance-wise, I can see her lower ribs, no double chin, and she's all in proportion. She wears age appropriate clothing although she has short legs so I tend to buy leggings and tights in a size lower otherwise they're too long. She is always on the move. She goes to nursery five days a week and they have a large indoor play area as well as an outdoor one so they run around and play whatever the weather. We walk there and back unless its absolutely tipping down with rain. At home she is in and out of the garden where she has a trampoline and a seesaw, up and down the stairs, constantly climbing, etc. I'm not even sure where she is hiding this 17kg!

My other DC were very similar at this age and they all had their height and weight centiles catch up with one another between the ages of roughly three and four, although one does now see a dietician due to being underweight (ASD related food restrictions).

AIBU to disregard what the nurse has said about it and just see for myself how DD goes over the next few months?

OP posts:
pessimistiquerealistique · 03/12/2020 18:09

Just ignore her. Some people may have heavier bones although look skinny.

DartmoorDoughnut · 03/12/2020 18:12

I think she’s exactly the same as my youngest (I say think as I’m not 100% on kg but he’s 2st 10lb and 100cm) and according to the NHS chart he’s in the green range for BMI, top end yes but fine

LittleGwyneth · 03/12/2020 19:06

Ignore. She's clearly having a healthy and varied diet, and percentiles are a bit wooly in this case. The worst thing that can happen right now is for you to worry and for her to eventually start to pick up on that worry. If you and your DP or whoever else you live with are healthy eaters with an active lifestyle the chances of her having weight issues later in life are very small.

Marshmallow91 · 03/12/2020 19:12

You've given absolutely perfect information to make a good assumption that you should continue as you are.

My daughter is in the 24th centile for weight (up from the 9th centile she was born at). She's pretty short so I'd say height would be similar. She's a few months off two years old and eats pretty similarly to yours ( minus the dairy and egg due to allergies)

If she's active and has plenty of energy then I really wouldn't worry.

Tambourinell · 03/12/2020 19:15

If that's honestly what she tends to eat in a day then doesn't sound like too much, not sure where you could cut down really x

NaughtipussMaximus · 04/12/2020 08:08

It doesn't sound like you could cut much out of her diet anyway (unless you're going to do a massive dripfeed that she goes to McDonalds every third day or something!). My only question would be, might it help her asthma a little if she were on a lower percentile? This is a genuine question and I'm fully happy to be corrected if there's no link. I only ask because when I was (more) overweight, I had sleep apnoea, which resolved when I lost a couple of stone.

In saying that, even if there is a link, I'm not sure how you can get her to move down the percentiles given the fact she's not overeating and is active. Sorry, not much help.

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