Worried my 2.5 year old is overweight?

[Snaggysnoo]

He’s 2 stone 11 pounds. He’s quite tall for his age too and most people think he’s 3. He wears size 3-4 clothes.

See a hv or gp
They can refer to dietician to review his diet
Keep a food diary for a week of everything he eats and drinks with portion size

No, it doesn't work like that. The 99th centile is every weight above a certain level. So the lightest children on the 99th centile will be fine whilst the heaviest on the 99th centile will be very overweight. Even at the revised height, his BMI is still on 99th centile.

@CecilyP you are incorrect. My son is on the 97th centile for height weight and head size but was under the hospital as he also had an eye issue and was worried about poss brain tumour. Both drs and health visitors have said that even tho he is on the 99 percentile he is in proportion. The issue is when the kid is wildly off the scale so a 50 centile height and 97 centile weight. Also if they jump or drop centiles

Yes yes overweight.

You say he's fussy about lunch, is he fussy or is he not hungry and only eating when sufficiently enticed with something he can't resist? I've never enticed my kids to eat. I make food, I offer a balanced and nutritious meals and 2 snacks and if they don't want it, that's fine but nothing else is offered until the next meal or snack time. I now know that if they choose not to eat, they're not hungry.

Did anyone look at the pic? Does he look overweight?

My son is now 17 .. but he was always on the 99th percentile. He’s built much larger than me and his dad (he’s like some other members of the family). Not fat. His legs and arms are bigger than most other men. I could tell when he was born by his hands alone he would be big. That’s his build though as solid. Even when he was thinner he was still bigger than most other kids if you know what I mean. Needed clothes a year or 2 older than his age. He’s always played for a football team and cycles with his mates. He’s 6ft 3ins already. He is on the top end of healthy on the BMI chart. So a few pound more and he’d be overweight. Although he looks slim simply because he’s a big build and not carrying excess fat. If your child is eating healthily and moving around, I’d say he’s just a big build. A doctor or any health professional has never advised my son is overweight.

Do you have a better picture OP? Is he wearing a nappy in that photo?

It's so hard to tell with 2 year olds I think - to me my toddler looks chubby but she's always around the 50th centitle. Still has a sticky out tummy. Extra hard at the moment when you don't see other children so much to compare! He looks very tall compared to my daughter. It might not be relevant but being overweight (or obese perhaps) can also lead to being 'over tall' - children grow taller faster and hit puberty earlier than they would which then means they grow less tall overall, meaning height and weight correlation isn't always as simple as it seems.

Sorry, meant to also say in that photo he looks in proportion to me - a tall boy so will weigh more. I'd speak to your GP if concerned.

Here’s another pic

That's not a great picture, is he laying down on grass?
I would say he does look overweight yes. Our own perceptions of kids weight are very skewed. Like a PP said, "stocky" "heavy" "well built" are just eupamisms for overweight/obesity, sounds harsh but is unfortunately true. You should be able to clearly see ribs in a healthy weight child.
Perhaps he doesn't eat a huge variety now, but portion sizes might be too big (again our perceptions can be skewed), plus extras such as milk, snacks, drinks. It could also be that his weight accelerated in the past, e.g. if he had a big appetite as a baby. Speak to HV or GP or look at infantandtoddlerforum.org/toddlers-to-preschool/portion-sizes-for-toddlers/toddler-portion-sizes-table/

Unfortunately health professionals are sometimes reluctant to be blunt about childhood weight/obesity, in order not to offend parents and may just say he's "a little overweight", or say he's fine.

My 8 year old is 3 stone 10 ....

So that sounds a lot to me!

Is this not what health visitors are for, make contact with one and arrange a visit. He doesn't seem to be over eating although I think I'd persist in trying him with a variety of foods. Toddlers are fussy but a reasonable diet and enough exercise should be enough to keep his weight ok.

I feel awful now, I’ve never even given him a Macdonalds as I didn’t want him to eat the wrong things from an early age. He hardly eats anyway. I’m confused at what I’m doing wrong, everything is home cooked. I feel like a failure.

And we take him out everyday for a walk or play come rain or shine. Sometimes twice.

To the people saying BMI charts aren't everything, no they're not. But unless you're built like a brick shithouse on steroids then they're pretty accurate.

Can you see his ribs?

@Wurrg yes

I would start to limit snacks and not react or offer any alternative food if he doesn't eat at main meals. At that age they are often trying to work out whether food is a battle worth having with you...other than that don't worry and don't talk about food in front of him. I have a "very overweight" 5 year old , only one in the family.

I think all this focus on his weight at such an early age is I Howarth and unhelpful. Don't let people on here wind you up into a frenzy. If you are genuinely concerned speak Tina doctor/health visitor. Do not let Mumsnet diagnose him

I don't know what happened there! Sorry for the typos. Unhealthy that should've said

I think he's probably okay then but would see the GP or HV to put your mind at rest. I think at 3 they sprout!

I agree about seeing a doctor. There's no shame in it and you'll get an answer that's better than speculation on mumsnet. To my eyes he looks normal but it is hard to say from photographs. I panic about my boy too (he's tall for his age) so I know what it's like to be analysing every skinfold and fretting!

Looks absolutely fine to me from the second pic! Don't worry.

Double check his height, if he's just 4 cm taller, 98cm, then his weight is healthy range. If he really is 94cm then try to up the exercise and closely watch snacks that perhaps you have forgotten to mention.... It has been Easter after all, if his weight is kept steady until his height has caught up it will be fine. You're not a failure, keep this in perspective, it's been tough on young families recently, it's difficult to keep youngsters busy and active when we can't meet friends, weather is crap, soft play closed, sports clubs and swimming closed. This will all be easier soon

@Couchbettato

To the people saying BMI charts aren't everything, no they're not. But unless you're built like a brick shithouse on steroids then they're pretty accurate.

They're not accurate under age 5, are they? That's why we have the charts.