ive got a biiig baby...

[spillyobeans]

Just some advice please from others who have maybe experienced similar...

Baby ds is 6 months, breastfed and gets a formula bottle once or twice a week when grandma looks after him for a couple of hours once a week. When he was born he lost a very small amount, but since has been putting on loads of weight, he began on 75th centile, but over the last 2 weigh ins (17 weeks and 23 weeks) he has gone up to 98th centile. He weighs 20lbs/9kg and is about 60ish cm long. Hv said to me "well apparently you cant overfeed breastfed babies...but i dont think he needed some of those feeds. We will have to watch he doesnt jump up too much more".

Now im a bit worried. Ive allways breastfed on demand, but even at 6 month he still wants to feed every 3-4 hours. Sometimes he will go longer if hes been sleeping. If he needs settled i have been trying everything else before offering boob as im scared im overfeeding him, but sometimes all he wants is boob. He also doesnt sleep very well at all - dont know if thats got anything to do with it!

Now im just worried that im going to have problems concerning his weight? (Although as i write this it does seem rediculus as hes just a 6month old, surely if he wants boob i should just do it?)

[wetsnow]

I had the same.
Breastfed my daughter but she was massive and off the charts. I hated going to the health visitors, they always acted suspicious like I was blending McDonald's.

Even when she started weaning she was still huge. At her one year check I was given diet advice, I think they thought I was feeding her crap but I really wasn't! She never gets chocolate or sweets. I was also told to stop breastfeeding and give her semi skimmed. I ignored them.
I continued breastfeeding feeding till 15 months and fed her a healthy diet. She's 2 in February and I've never been back... she's active and in the right aged clothes for the first time ever so she definitely fine now. No idea about her weight.

I think some babies are big! You know he has a healthy diet with your nutritious milk... so don't worry.

[spillyobeans]

Yes well i fid think that if all hes getting is breastmilk hes obviously healthy and just starting to introduce solids which will only be healthy food!

[wetsnow]

They seem to panic if they jump 2 centlies either way... my dd was born on 75th the was off the chart by 4 months with only bf. I was made to feel awful like I was doing something wrong... I cried one visit on the way home.


I will have a thicker skin next time.

[Booboostwo]

My DD was born on the 50th percentile but within months she was off the top of the weight chart. She was 12kgs at 1yo despite being ebf for 6 months and then having only home cooked meals and no sugar.

She is 4.5yo now and her weight has really dropped but her height which grew more slowly is at the 97th percentile. Her BMI is in the middle of the normal range now so I think the early weight gain was feeling the height gain.

[mugginsalert]

My son was nearly 12 lbs born, and bigger than yours at the same age (23 lbs at 19 weeks!), and I seem to remember he was also really hungry between about 5 and 7 months - I've read that's pretty normal. He's nearly 5 now, still the tallest in his nursery and now school class and in size 6-7 clothes, but not overweight at all and very fit and strong. Some children just are bigger than others. Fortunately my health visitor and GP are lovely and always said there was absolutely nothing to worry about (yes I did ask!).

I think your baby is so young, if he's asking for feeds he's doing it because he is hungry, 3-4 hours is actually quite a long gap between breastfeeds. If it was me I'd just feed him and enjoy it!

[spillyobeans]

Thanks that is reasurring , pil keep harping on at me that my breastmilk isnt enough, although mil never bf so dont think she really has a clue! Yes i did think he must just be hungry and im not going to deny my baby !

[Rinceoir]

Well if he's 9kg at 6 months he has obviously been getting enough breastmilk. Kids are all different- DD is 19 months and about the same weight as your son. She's perfectly healthy. My friends 14 month old is 13kg!

[TheGreenNinja]

My DS was born on 25th centile, whizzed up to 91st and stayed there as a baby. Now he's like a beanpole and we struggle to get him to put weight on! Nobody ever mentioned anything about him going up the centile lines, he was fully breastfed and very long. I just figured his birth weight was too low for him and he was meant to be bigger.

[Tigresswoods]

DS was born right smack on the 50 the 50th centile.

I EBF him & he got huge, right up to 98th in a couple of months.

He's almost 6 now & is a slim average sized child.

You know best.

[spillyobeans]

Just grated on me how she said it as well " well apparently you cant overfeed breastfed babies" really exaggerated - like id done something wrong!

[spillyobeans]

No, im just introducing solids, he seems to be taking to baby ruce with breastmilk, not liking anything else yet though!

[Doublebubblebubble]

My ds is 6weeks on the 98th centile (was 13lb 8 when I had him weighed last Tuesday and- was 10lb 1 oz at birth. According to the paediatricians I saw when my son was being investigated for Piloric stenosis - (he was basically vomiting everywhere a lot!)
you CAN overfeed breastfed babies or they are just greedy imho he sounds fine x do what's comfortable for you. Xx