My child's growth…

Three mums explain why their baby's growth became an issue and how it was resolved

• 'My toddler's just dinky'
• 'Slow weight gain was the first sign of serious problems'
• 'My baby had lactose intolerance'
• How does your baby grow?

'My toddler's just dinky'
Kirstie Lee, 31, a radio broadcast journalist from Hereford, is mum to Brianne, 19 months old
'When I went into labour, the midwife said my baby would be quite chunky but Brianne turned out to be only 4lb 9oz at birth! Ever since then, she's put on weight very slowly and, consequently, is off the bottom of the weight centile chart - my target is to get her onto that bottom line - although her height is fairly average for her age. Because of her problems putting on weight and other symptoms including griping stomach pains, reflux and a low immune system, Brianne was referred to a specialist in Birmingham who's done every non-intrusive test possible but can't find anything wrong. When I'm out and about with Brianne, people do think she's younger than she is and I tell them that she's just dinky! She's a happy, healthy baby in all other respects so I'm not too concerned.'

'Slow weight gain was the first sign of serious problems'
Melanie Denning, 38, from Gloucestershire, mum to Owain, two and a half 'Owain was born big, at 9lb 2oz, but struggled to put on weight right from the word go. I took him to be weighed regularly and got very frustrated that he kept dropping down the centile chart. He went down from the 91st to the 50th centile in weight and his length gain tailed off a bit too. After a few months and lots of discussions with the health visitor, we asked to be referred to our local hospital. They ran some tests and found out that Owain has cystic fibrosis, a serious inherited condition which affects the lungs and the digestive system which is why he'd struggled to put on weight. Once he was put on pancreatic enzymes to help him digest his milk properly, he started gaining steadily again and today is around the 75th centile for weight and the 50th for height!'

'My baby had lactose intolerance'
Kate Best, 35, is a part-time teacher, from Fownhope in Herefordshire, and mum to Ed, who's four and Immie, two 'At 5lb 7oz, Immie was small right from the word go and she hovered around 5lbs for quite some weeks and was very colicky. Tests showed she was intolerant to lactose so I had to stop breastfeeding her and give her special formula instead. The health visitor monitored Immie's weight and height closely, partly because she had this lactose intolerance and a hernia. Also, she'd been on the 50th centile for length at birth but quickly dropped back to the 2nd centile where she's stayed ever since (for weight too). Guy is 6ft 2" and I'm 5ft 5" so the health visitor worked out that Immie should be taller than she is. In the end I got so fed up with all the check-ups that I stopped going. I know that Immie is okay…she's reached all her developmental milestones at the right time or even earlier so I don't feel guilty simply for having a small child.'

• Return to our How does your baby grow? feature
• If you are concerned your baby isn't getting the right nutrients, read our guide to vitamin supplements
• We've got information on everything from feeding your baby to potty training - check it out!
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