Poor weight gain / failure to thrive

Your baby or child may be underweight, they are struggling to gain weight or they are not gaining weight at the same pace as their peers. Poor weight gain is also referred to as ‘failure to thrive’. Babies or children who suffer with poor weight gain tend to also have faltering growth due to it hindering their full growth potential. Poor weight gain or failure to thrive is usually determined by a baby or child’s pattern of growth using a growth chart, rather than their specific percentile or weight in a moment of time. Your baby or child may have failure to thrive if they have:

• A weight that has crossed down 2 or more centiles on an age appropriate growth chart after 6 weeks of age
• The growth of the child is persistently below the 2nd centile of a growth chart (weight and/or height)
• The baby or child has an asymmetrical weight and head circumference measurements (e.g. weight on 5th centile, head circumference on 50th centile)

If your baby or child has not been plotted on a growth chart or you think they need nutritional support with their weight and height, our dietitian can help. To book an assessment please contact us.

What are the outcomes of long term poor weight gain?

If poor weight gain continues for a long period of time, it can start to hinder your baby or child’s growth and development. Poor weight gain can cause the following outcomes:

• Nutritional deficiencies
• Faltering growth
• Stunted growth
• Poor appetite
• Malnutrition
• Frequent illness
• More sick days from school
• Developmental delay
• Become fussy with food

If your baby or child is struggling to gain weight, is underweight for their height, oe is failing to thrive, our feeding team can help.

What are the causes of poor weight gain?

There can be a number of reasons why your baby or child is struggling to gain weight such as a premature birth, an inadequate food intake due to behaviour and feeding difficulties or even due to naturally higher energy requirements. Identifying the main cause of poor weight gain can be difficult, but our dietitians are experts within this area and can identify the reasons for your baby or child not reaching their growth or weight potential.

What do you assess for poor weight gain?

Our dietitians will assess your baby or child’s weight, height, nutritional intake and plot them on a growth chart to identify their growth pattern. Our dietitians will assess your baby or child’s growth to scale the severity of their failure to thrive and identify your baby or child’s goals and give treatment plan on how to reach them.

What is the treatment for poor weight gain?

Treatment for poor weight gain differs according to each baby or child. Our dietitians will give an individualised treatment plan which will identify their micronutrient deficiencies and work towards achieving their weight goals. Our dietitians will intensely monitor your baby or child to ensure they reach their full growth potential and nutritional status.

Summary

If you think your baby or child needs support with gaining weight, our expert feeding team can help. To speak to one of our dietitians and book an assessment please contact us.

Make a referral

To refer a child to our services this can be done online, or by calling 0161 820 8262 or emailing office@kids feedingteam.co.uk

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