1. Hi Folks
My son is approaching 11 years of age, and is very skinny. If you look at his bare body, you can see his bones easily sticking out through his skin – it is as though he is malnourished. He is however asthmatic, but he can control this and does not cause major problems.
We have seen the school nurse who said it is just normal, that it is just the way his bone structure would remain, he will just grow to be a tall slim/skinny man and that there is nothing to worry about. By the way, he is 5 foot at the moment.
However, a few friends of ours have suggested that we should have a second opinion and that the nurse may not have given us an accurate response, since in some cases, some medical staff do tend to ‘fob off’ the parents.
So do you think we should indeed get a second opinion? If so, who could we go to in order to get a second or even third opinion? Or, do you think we should just keep the same diet (we are an Indian family and mostly give him Indian food – curries/vegetables) for him, and take the response from the first nurse as being an accurate response, and that it is just his bone structure and that he is just going to grow up being a slim/skinny man?
Any advice would be greatly appreciated since my wife is losing sleep over this.
Hi there and welcome 🙂
I dont think the nurse would just fob you off, but if you are in doubt it wouldn't hurt to go and see your GP and share your concerns with them. You could ask for a referral to a Nutritionist.
How is his appetite? Does he eat good portions and is his diet varied...I'm sure it is! Again if you are in doubt perhaps you might think of starting a food diary and keep a record of his intake....I wouldnt make too much of a big thing about this to your son though as you dont want to transfer your worry onto him.
My grandson is the same, although he is only 5, but you can see his spine bones! He is a fussy eater but we have been assured that he is getting enough and is growing normally for his age....hes just got a slight frame.
Once your sons teenage hormones start kicking, in it wouldnt surprise me if he filled out, and in a few years time you will be wondering what you were worried about! He sounds tall for his age and this will make him look slimmer. My middle son used to grow in spurts and he would grow upwards and then outwards, if that makes sense! 🙂
geek84,
If you are at all worried - speak to your GP. if it's a real concern then you're not wasting their time.
Personally I wouldn't worry, I remember way back in the distant past (eons ago) when I was a school plenty of my school mates were very very skinny.
He hasn't got to the age where he will build any serious muscle mass or weight gain. I wouldn't be too concerned.
Seriously speak to your GP - even if it's just to get told this is 'normal'.
Gooner