What are the causes of underweight toddler?

(June 26, 2010)

Weight Problem In Toddlers

Weight problems in toddlers is not uncommon and often causes a great deal of anxiety for the parents. This anxiety is perfectly understandable but in most cases it may be unfounded. It is important to make sure whether your toddler is actually underweight. Furthermore even if he/she is underweight, it may not actually cause any medical problems and could just be a temporary phase. It is very important to check with your child’s pediatrician as this will help to determine the cause of this problem.

There are several causes of underweight toddler tendencies and it is very possible that your child is just very active and this causes him/her to burn more calories than their intake. Increased activity throughout the day will also cause an increase in metabolic rate which in turn will cause your toddler to expend more calories while going about their daily activities. Worms is another common cause of underweight toddler problems as the worms utilize the calories from the food your child eats for their own growth. This problem is especially common in toddlers as they are curious and spend a lot of time investigation their surroundings. As part of their investigation they may try to taste objects or may put their fingers in their mouth after playing about all day. Children who habitually suck their thumb are most at risk for worms and so you need to make sure that your child does not make this a habit.

You can try a combination of methods to prevent thumb sucking. You can coax your child not to do it and you can also apply an unsavory liquid to their fingers to discourage them. You can chop and boil a large piece of bitter gourd in a small amount of water and then paint their fingers with this liquid. Make sure that you reapply this liquid throughout the day. You may need to keep this up for a couple of days or even a week in order to get rid of this problem. Your child will start to associate thumb sucking with the unpleasant taste of the bitter gourd liquid and will soon stop. You should also teach your toddler important hygienic habits like washing their hands before they eat. If your toddler has been ill for a while, this could be the cause of their weight problems. This is a temporary problem and with a healthy balanced diet, they will regain all the lost weight within a few weeks.

Talk to your doctor about your toddler’s diet and make sure that he/she is getting all the nutrition that is needed.

Submitted by P T on June 26, 2010 at 03:58