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Infant feeding

overfeeding?

8 replies

Moulesfrites · 11/08/2011 19:45

I have posted this in weaning but seems v quiet over there....

My ds is nearly 7 months, we have been weaning for about 5 weeks. We started with just fruit and ved but have introduced some full fat dairy products recently and they have gone down well - babybel , fromage frais, yoghurt, rice pudding and porridge/cereal with cows milk etc. The HV said they can make up part of their milk intake with dairy products. However, ds has only dropped one milk feed at lunchtime so far (ebf). He still has 4 bfs during the day and 2/3 at night! Should I not be giving him so much dairy if he has not dropped the milk yet, or do I need to get him to have it in order for him to drop the milk? Not quite sure which way it works. He probably has 2/3 servings of dairy a day. Today he has been super hungry (after being off his food last week - linked to teething I think). He has had:

Breakfast -Weatabix with fruit and full fat cows milk.
Lunch - Cod with butternut squash, fromage frais with fruit
Dinner - carrot, parsnip and sweet potato, rice pudding with fruit.

Is this too much? My mil seems aghast that he is having this and still feeding as much from me, but it seems too soon to drop another bf - and I'm not sure if it is up to me to drop it or if I just wait until he refuses it?? I am also worried that if he drops any bfs during the day before he is ready he will just make up for it at night, and he already wakes up 2/3 times as it is!! Help, it was much more straightforward before we introduced solids!!

OP posts:
birdofthenorth · 11/08/2011 20:09

I've never been sure how much is too much but thought I'd let you know DD was the same, ie hardly dropped any milk feeds when she first started on solids. Then about 9 months she dropped a couple (& most night feeds) almost overnight.

I think over-feeding is more of a fear with formula? I'm no expert though!

kellieb7 · 11/08/2011 20:13

Hi, I am no expert but my DD is a similar age and also breastfed, she hasn't dropped any milk feeds despite having 3 meals a day. I just continue to feed on demand in regards to milk as I am working on the theory that food is supposed to be fun until they are 1. I would personally continue as you are and remember people (especially Mil's) will always have opinions about something but Mummy's know best [big grin]. HTH x

AngelDog · 11/08/2011 22:44

DS started solids with enthusiasm at 6 months and didn't really drop any feeds till 12 months, although he started having slightly shorter feeds at around 8 or 9 months. I'd just wait till your DS drops feeds on his own.

BaronessBomburst · 11/08/2011 22:59

DS is 18 months and still hasn't dropped any feeds (!), although they are much shorter now.

Your DS does seem to be having rather a lot of cows' milk, which if you're BF he won't really need. He'll still be getting calcium, fats, vitamins, proteins etc from your milk which is much easier to digest. It's recommended that babies shouldn't be given cows' milk to drink until they are a year old and I've always understood that to mean that it should be in more limited/ moderate amounts because their systems aren't able to fully cope with and digest it.

Maybe try skipping the milk at lunchtime and just give him fruit? Or use goats milk, or soya to avoid relying so heavily on one food group.

I went more with the baby-led weaning approach and just offered food which sometimes DS ate and sometimes not, and the food was to supplement the breastfeeding - not the other way round! Your MIL most likely weaned earlier and was used to feeding her DCs more food and getting them into a routine of three square meals a day, as that's how it was done a generation or so ago.

AngelDog · 11/08/2011 23:16

Baroness, DS re-started most of the dropped feeds once he started asking for milk at 16 months!

OP, a number of lactation consultants eg Kellymom recommend offering bf an hour before solids up till 12 months to ensure that solids don't replace breastmilk but are a complement to it.

You can give dairy products if you want to, but if your LO is having 3 or 4 bfs a day (or more), they don't need it, and they shouldn't have cows milk as a main drink until 12 months plus.

Moulesfrites · 12/08/2011 08:57

Ok, than you for the advice, maybe I will go easy on the dairy and just offer fruit as a pudding at lunch.

I do try and feed 1 hr before meals but he still takes everything he's offered.

The reason I am worrying about this is that I am going back to work full time at 11.5 months, so I have had it in my head that I need him to have dropped feeds by then, and if he was having sufficient dairy he might be able to go down to 2, maybe 3 feeds a day? I thought as I am having nearly a year off I would be able to get away without formula or expressing? Is this going to be possible?

OP posts:
Loopymumsy · 12/08/2011 09:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

TheFrozenMBJ · 12/08/2011 11:26

Loopy is right. Up until now you have trusted your baby to decide for himself how much is enough and when is enough. There is no need to change that at all. He is a much better judge as to his needs than your HV (or you). Offer him a wide variety if solids but go slowly as not to replace milk feeds too quickly and let him take the lead. Smile

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