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I can not read your comment any more seems it posted before you were done.....

@Trufflehunter: Is she breastfed, formula fed, or a combination? My twins were small (4 lb 15 oz and 5 lb 15 oz at birth) and it took until 4 month appointment for my son to make it onto the growth charts. We put my kids on reflux meds at 2 weeks old (they were spitting up whole feedings which obviously had an effect on their growth) and fortified their formula feedings to 24 calories (they were breastfed with formula supplementation). I think the 24 cal formula made a huge difference for them in gaining weight! At 11.5 months old, my son is 40% and my daughter is 15% and thriving. Your daughter may just be small (my daughter appears to just be this way), but there may be some things you can do to bump her onto the charts if you or your dr are concerned.

First of all, ignore the comments! it's like when you are pregnant and people say your bump is huge or not big enough, etc. People are going to comment on the size of your child, and you kinda have to just ignore them.

I have a very small LO, and she's perfect in every way. She's always been small, and she'll always be small, but all that matters for now is that she stays on her own growth curve, and she has. And she's met all her milestones early, etc., so i know she is fine. As for long term outcomes, that is totally individualized, so it's impossible to say. However, we were assured that even if she stayed in the single digits through the first few years, she'd likely hit a spurt later on in childhood and catch up a bit. She might never be in the WNBA, but i'm not exactly tall either. Also, when she's older, there's a lot more they can do, such as steroids and such, to maximize growth. however, at this young age, all that matters is her growth curve. Once LO turned a year, she started growing a lot in height all of the sudden, and she's suddenly in the 20s for height!!! her weight is still in single digits, but that's way less of a concern, because that's easier to change. So just because she's 1% now, doesn't mean she'll always be in the 1st %ile, don't worry!

@Trufflehunter: I wouldn't assume your milk isn't nutritious! Your body knows what it's doing! She may just have a fast metabolism or just be very petite. Are you and your significant other small? Both DH and I are short and pretty small (well, I'm less small than I used to be, haha) so I'm not shocked that our kids were little. My ped took a pretty aggressive approach with my kids, but that's not the only way. If she's eating well and meeting milestones, she might just be a little one. Ignore the comments, if you can (harder done than said!) and treasure your little girl! You're doing a great job mama!

@Trufflehunter: I'm not sure they would test growth hormone before a year. They can also determine the child's bone age via x-ray, but again they wait until over a year at least. Under 12 mo it is a lot of wait and see and lots of weight checks. Sometimes they suggest things like feeding tubes or adding calories to formula or BM, but if LO is remaining in their curve that may not be necessary. A dietician/nutritionalist may be helpful for determining ways to maximize caloric intake if that is something they want to consider.

Our endo suggested waiting and rechecking in 4-6 mo before further testing and jumping to growth hormone injections. If her IGF-1 (also called somatomedin-c) and IGFBP-3 are still low they will do further testing where they obtain samples throughout the day since levels can fluctuate and depending on those results are we would discuss treatment options. I already give my LO injections for her bone marrow so I am okay in waiting a little and making sure. We do have a family history of no/low growth hormone so it is something I want to watch closely.

Is there a point where she dropped off in height before weight? It is more concerning when they start dropping in height first. If it is a nutritional issue it is usually reflected in weight first. My LO started dropping in height a little before weight and we had her thyroid checked as that can cause growth issues, usually reflected in height first. Her thyroid levels were fine. That is something they can test now.

ETA: both of my children were EBF and I was on a severely limited diet for both due to fol allergies. My first gained like crazy! My second didn't and nursed just as much and I had a hearty supply. Please don't think it is you. Every baby is just different and providing her with BM is an amazing gift!

My daughter is small for her age too! It hasn't hindered her, as she is smart, developing normally, and hitting her milestones. We are smaller people (5'5" and 5'6") and she's following the same type of curve that I did (I was very small and skinny until middle school).

My daughters were both born right around 5.5 lbs. The younger one caught up quickly and is now around 25th petcentile - nearly 20 lbs - at almost 1 year. The older one was falling off the chart for a long time, and still only weighs about 27 lbs (around 5th or 10th oercentile I think) at almost 3 years. We caught flak from our ped for awhile, then one day she decided the growth was consistent, recognized that I'm also very petite, and shrugged it off!

We actually supplemented with High calorie formula and Pediasure for maybe 4 months and it did nothing to change her growth curve. She will be 3 at the end of June and is very bright, potty trained, physically strong, etc. etc. don't beat yourself up - your DD will do just fine - she's most likely just petite!

We're in a similar situation here. DD had her 4 month appointment about a week ago and was under 11lbs and at the 5th%ile. When at her 2 month visit she at at the 10th. Our drs suggestion was to feed her more, not to supplement though. She is ebf, but since I work I pump for her and in the last week she's been drinking 18 ounces at daycare instead of 16.

Honestly I'm not that concerned though because I was never on the charts growing up. Plus my husbands niece and nephew were the same,so she's getting it on both sides of the family.

I've never quite understood the hysteria surrounding small and slow to grow kids. Are you and the father big people? If not, she may just take after you. I'm quite small, and my husband is tall but thin, and our daughter is teensy tiny. She grew slowly, and at 3, she's the fastest, strongest kid I know. Being small isn't a problem for her at all, nor has it been for me.