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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Unhelpful things you have heard health professionals say...

58 replies

FeelLikeTweedleDee · 09/10/2010 18:22

What unhelpful/misguided things have you heard so-called 'health professionals' say regarding breastfeeding/formula feeding?

Here's a few from my experience:

Midwife: "There's no nutritional benefit to BFing after 6 months. Mothers who chose to BF after that time are doing so just for bonding".

Breastfeeding counsellor: (after only getting 5mls out of my left breast with the pump) "Your left breast has completely dried up. You must pump at least every 3 hours. We'll try to bring the supply back".

Above breastfeeding counsellor: "Breastfeeding isn't the end of the world anyway".

A different breastfeeding counsellor: "I wouldn't bother using your hands to express after pumping. The pump should get all the milk out".

GP: "Formula is more nutritious." (don't get me started on this particular GP).

OP posts:
chibi · 09/10/2010 18:30

This will kick off

Original poster
FeelLikeTweedleDee · 09/10/2010 18:32

In that case...

puts on flame shield

carry on

OP posts:
wastingaway · 09/10/2010 19:00

Why will this kick off? Confused

Doctor at Paediatrics telling me I'd need to pump to see how much milk I was producing.

chibi · 09/10/2010 19:05

This will kick off because someone will read it and project their issues all over it, and every post will be interpreted as making life hell for ffers and smug to boot

wastingaway · 09/10/2010 19:08

Ah, I see.

chibi · 09/10/2010 19:10

The first rule of bf

Is don't talk about bf

Apparently

Woodlands · 09/10/2010 19:10

when ds was 3 days old and we were readmitted to hospital because of jaundice/wweight loss/dehydration, the nurse told me expressing was more efficient than a baby so if i couldn't pump much, the baby was getting even less.

arsesandoldlace · 09/10/2010 19:13

HV refused to believe DD was EBF and despite my insistence kept writing "partially BF" in her red book. Makes me annoyed each time I look at it now.

Was a naive first timer back then, I wouldn't brook such nonsense now!

wastingaway · 09/10/2010 19:15

arses, that's so strange! I wonder why she thought that?!

"The first rule of bf

Is don't talk about bf"

Grin
ItWasADarkAndStormyNight · 09/10/2010 19:16

GP told me that I should give ds a bottle as bfing was making him too windy and that bfing is too hard for babies Confused
I really hope this doesn't kick off, bad feeding advice is not unique to bfers!

llareggub · 09/10/2010 19:17

When telling MW is was tandem-feeding newborn and toddler, she told me that I should keep one side for the newborn and one side for the toddler to make sure that they each got the right sort of milk. She was also convinced that my newborn wouldn't get colustrum for this reason.

DanceInTheDark · 09/10/2010 19:21

MW told me not to bother to bf DC1 as i was too young Hmm

mrsissue · 09/10/2010 19:22

My sil has been told by HV if she doesn?t wean her 4month old dd soon she will have delayed speech! My sil also FF?s because she was told because she lost 2 pints of blood during labour her milk will never come in so don?t bother trying!

I was told by HV that most people who manage to BF are breast feeding Nazi?s that bully those that cant, comparing BFers to Nazi?s really annoys me.

I was also told by a MW that if I gave my dd BM in a bottle she will never be able to go on the breast again and not to bother trying her on the breast again.

arsesandoldlace · 09/10/2010 19:22

llareggub, were the breasts supposed to make one type of milk each then? Confused

Don't know why my HV thought that, she was actually really nice! perhaps she thought I was secretly giving bottles but embarrassed to admit it.

nemofish · 09/10/2010 19:25

HV writing in dd's litte red book that she was exclusive FF. Fecking hell I pumped like crazy for 6 weeks until it brought tears to my eyes and she puts 'not breastfed at all.' Pfft.

And the HV who said 'ooh you know how those tomato and pasta jar foods stain plastic bowls, just imagine the harm they must do to your lo's tummy.' Erm that would be the effect that tomato colourings and some spices have naturally, doesn't mean it's radioactive. much

And at dd's 10 month check, as she was walking and talking, 'are you sure she's only 10 months old?' Hmmm yes I'm pretty sure. Grin

mrsissue · 09/10/2010 19:31

Just remembered my best friend started weaning her ds at 8 weeks because HV told her that milk alone wasn?t enough to satisfy him so told her to give him baby rice.

jemjabella · 09/10/2010 19:33

GP on my daughter's nursing strike... "just give her fruit juice instead" (this at just under 11mo) Hmm

wasabipeanut · 09/10/2010 19:36

My HV told me that babies have recieved "all they will ever get" from bfing by 6 months and continuing it beyond that point was for my needs only. I know this also happenned to the OP but wanted to post to show it wasn't an isolated incident!

Cheers love.

JustKeepSwimming · 09/10/2010 19:37

When I mentioned to my (horrid) HV that DS1 was feeding every 2 hours and i was tired (naive 1st timer!), she said that "he didn't need feeding every 2 hours, just like if i had a cup of tea at 11, i wouldn't want one at 1" Confused & Hmm

PS i officially complained about her and she has since 'left the profession' :)

lifeas3plus1 · 09/10/2010 19:42

arses. That hv sounds like the first one I had with ds1 who asked if I was giving him formula yet (he was 3weeks old). When I said No, she asked if I was sure then wrote "mixed fed" in his little red book. Hmm

Nothing to do with feeding but the same health visitor asked me what I did for a living and when I told her I was going to be a SAHM she wrote 'Unqualified' under occupation in the little red book.

That really annoyed me although I'm unsure why. Probably because I'm not 'unqualified' I have qualifications, I'm just lucky enough to have a Dp who is happy for me to be a SAHM for a while.

My gp said I'd have to top ds1 up with formula as he never lost any birth weight at all and obviously needed more than I could give him.

Luckily, now I'm on ds2 I know a lot more (thanks to mumsnet Grin ) so know she was talking shit.

wastingaway · 09/10/2010 19:46

Well done JKS! We really must try and complain more.

BrigitBigKnickers · 09/10/2010 19:50

"Make sure she has lots of milky drinks and eat yogurts."

This was the advice from my GP when I took DD2 to him with a tummy bug that didn't seem to want to clear up.

A week later we took her to another doctor who said DD had become temporarily lactose intolerant and that this was very common after having had a tummy bug.

We were told to keep her off all dairy for a week and it cleared up.

BrigitBigKnickers · 09/10/2010 19:51

Oh sorry- didn't read the first post properly- thought it was just general bad medical advice! Blush

JustKeepSwimming · 09/10/2010 19:51

Lol Wasting! have to confess i was a bit timid about it and wasn't going to officially 'rock the boat' but the chief HV talked me into it - guess there had been other rumbles about her.

Any HV that has seen me since has been somewhat timid around me - can't think why?!

Am seriously worried about some of the so-called advice given out though.

nickytwotimes · 09/10/2010 20:16

i've had

'give cool boiled water in a bottle' (to 4 day old who was well) midwife

feed 3 hrly or his colic will be worse and give camomile tea in a bottle' paed registrar

' give him a top up of formula' when he was gainig weight and screaming from reflux pain, not hunger. GP

Angry