breast feeding confusion re 9 1/2 month old

[abbevillemum]

hi there.
should a 9 1/2 month old still be demand fed?

my little girl doesn't demand milk. she breast feeds 3 times a day but rarely for very long. she is a happy smiley little thing but her weight has been static for a few months. she was 50th centile, now 9th. should i be breast feeding her more? When I realised last week that her weight hadn't increased, I have been focussing on the food side. I'm not sure if this is the right way to go. Should I be trying to get her to breast feed more often? Hmmm. I think I had reduced the milk feeds because I had heard that too much milk was a mistake at this age - it would stop her taking enough solids. But now I'm not so sure - I think I may have also been influended by my friends who formula fed their babies 3 times a day. Does anyone know what the position is? Is there a recommended amount of times you should breast feed at this stage? Sorry for the twitter but a little concerned. Thanks

[hunkermunker]

DS2 is 8.5mo and bfeeds er...between five and nine times in a 24 hours period, I think. Depends whether we're at home all day or not - he tends to feed more when we are. He feeds at night a couple of times too.

He's bigger than DS1, who didn't bfeed as much at the same age and ate a bit more food. DS2 doesn't eat all that much food.

Milk should be the main part of their diet till they're one - food is tastes (in increasing quantities) till then.

What sort of food does she have? When do you bfeed her?

Weight gain can be a bit static at this age when they're getting more mobile and burning it off faster, IMO and IME.

[abbevillemum]

thanks
she b-feeds first thing in the morning, the afternoon and before she goes to bed. sometimes she feeds in late morning, sometimes during the night but not always. i worry that it is all so erratic that my supply could have reduced. don't want to express to check though because she won't take a bottle and i don't want her to miss out on milk when her weight gain is static.
she eats really well - everything from fruit and veg to yoghurt, chicken and mince.

[hunkermunker]

Expressing won't give you any clue how much she's getting anyway, so don't worry about it.

Try feeding her late morning - offer it and see what she does. It may be that she's just not an "asking" kind of baby when it comes to bfeeding - neither of mine are at this age (DS2 not quite there, but nearly!), particularly - more than happy to wait for it to be offered but v enthusiastic when it is iyswim.

[abbevillemum]

i agree - sounds sensible