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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

weaning my very sicky baby

17 replies

ames · 25/08/2003 20:04

I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice on the best way to wean my very sicky 4.5 month old ds. He has 5 6oz bottles per day (with gaviscon which has little effect) He rarely finishes them and brings a great deal of what he does take back up. His weight gain has slowed and he is dropping down the centiles but he won't/ can't take any more milk. At the moment he has a baby packet cereal for breakfast mixed with formula, he is hardly sick after this so logically it seems best to increase the number of meals per day. My concerns are that I may be rushing the introduction of food, also that he will not be getting enough milk and how it will affect his weight gain if I do this. I know that milk should be the main part of his diet but it really doesn't seem to agree with him. My hv is a bit vague and only really quotes health authority guidlines at me. Any thoughts?

OP posts:

LIZS · 25/08/2003 20:29

Can you ask the dr to prescribe a thickener for the milk rather than just using the Gaviscon. The one we had for dd who had reflux was "Thick and Easy" which is apparently used in UK hospitals, for premature babies for example, and works similarly to cornflour. Try using the variable teats in order to get a constant flow. At least this way you would not be rushing weaning itself.

hth

SofiaAmes · 25/08/2003 21:16

ames, get your gp to presribe Enfamil AR. It is a special staydown formula with rice starch. My american paediatrician recommended it and I got my gp here to prescribe it. I was bfing, but my dd had terrible reflux, so when she was 4 months old I added one bottle a day instead of breast milk. It worked wonders. And it meant that I didn't have to start solids until 6 months.
In any case, there is no reason why you shouldn't start giving some solids at 4.5 months.

twiglett · 25/08/2003 21:23

message withdrawn

twiglett · 25/08/2003 21:23

message withdrawn

gingernut · 25/08/2003 21:53

ames, if you do decide to increase his solids and you're worried about his intake of dairy products, you could try the Danone fromage frais with fruit puree which is labelled as being suitable from 4 months. Also, you could mix pureed fruit and veg with baby rice mixed with formula. HTH.

SofiaAmes · 25/08/2003 22:55

Original poster

ames · 25/08/2003 23:48

Thanks for the advice, will dig out my annabel karmel book and toake a look and had forgotton about the baby danone fromage frais - dd loved them when she was tiny.
SofiaAmes - is Enfamil AR the same sort of thing as the new(ish) SMA staydown? My doctor insists that there is nothing else that he could have and the hv said that there wasn't any other type of formula that could help (although she didn't really seem to know a lot about formula!) I did bf for 10 weeks but he was even worse and it was horrible as he was sick all over me.

OP posts:

Lil · 26/08/2003 10:43

Ames, I just can't understand where your doc and HV are coming from. I have been down this route myself and thanks to a fantastic GP and HV my dd was put on Enfamil AR. It is prescription only, so PLEASE just TELL your GP to prescribe it for you. It is not expensive and will help your ds. The whole point of measuring your babies centile weight is to act on it when something is clearly wrong. Your HV should be more proactive. My dd wasn't at the losing weight stage but still my GP got me an appointment with a SALT (speech and language therapist) who got me a barium swallow test, which confirmed reflux. Reflux should be taken seriously as if it is ignored your child will lose weight and the acid that is refluxed up makes your child very uncomfortable.

Please don't rush into solids, your ds still will need milk for this first year, so you need a proper solution. Fromage Frais etc is not an answer!

LIZS · 26/08/2003 11:09

I agree with Lil. Insist upon a proper diagnosis and treatment. The stodgy rice may work now but we had problems throughout weaning as, when we tried to introduce raw fruit, for example, dd's reflux was so sensitive that she would vomit back loads at the slightest provocation, and I was told she did not have it badly. Also increased mobility made small amounts come back throughout the day which must have been quite uncomfortable.

Also if left untreated your ds could be more prone to ear and throat infections as the bacteria from one are more "mobile" and can reach the other more easily. Remember so far it has been summer but the first winter with all those colds and coughs in just around the corner. Presumably you are already doing the raised cot head, sit upright in car seat/rocker especially after feeding etc.

hth

Original poster

ames · 26/08/2003 13:30

I think you have just confirmed what I was already feeling. Unfortunatly there was no baby clinic today so could not get him weighed but I need some more gaviscon so instead of getting a repeat prescription I think I will take him back to the doctor tomorrow. Oddly enough he is significantly less sick after his 11pm feed, I'm not sure if this is because he is not very awake or what. After each feed he is sick as soon as I sit him up at all, however gently or slowly I do it. In fact siting up seems to increase the amount and violence of the vomiting so I'm not sure that when he can sit up unaided that we will see any improvement. He is also very sick when he has a kick about on his mat even if its been a long time since his feed, it seems that any movement makes it worse for him.
I think perhaps I'm not being taken seriously as he is a very happy, smiling litle boy, who looks very healthy. I'm telling he doctor or hv how sick he is and how awfull it is for him and me and ds is cooing and smiling at them!
I shall attempt to weigh him this evenning so I've got a rough idea and make an appointment tomorrow to see what they say and I'll write Enfamil AR and mumsnet on the back of my hand so I can blurt them out if all else fails!
Thanks

OP posts:

Lil · 26/08/2003 14:06

Ames, although reflux is common in babies, it is worth noting that it has been found to be more common in boys.

This is a good website..reflux info

the more informed you are, the better you'll be prepared to discuss treatments with your GP..

good luck

Lil · 26/08/2003 14:11

aaah forget that ames, that was not the link I meant to put in...that's for severe cases!!!sorry!!!

Lil · 26/08/2003 14:24

That's the first and last time I put in a link!!! I'll leave you to search yourself...I don't want to worry anyone!!!

Original poster

ames · 26/08/2003 23:14

Am slightly more confused now. Have done a quick search for info on reflux, after checking out your scary link Lil! - thanks for trying to help I believe dd had silent reflux (no sickness, she was also prescribed gaviscon but symptons settled at 4 months ) but have been thinking a lot about ds and have realised that the only symptom is the sickness, he used to arch his back and was very difficult to feed but this is no longer the situation. He is a very happy, contented baby. He laughs almost constantly, so perhaps I am just going to have to accept that he is a very sicky baby unless his weight gain continues to slow dramatically.
Going to get some sleep and think about again in the moning!

OP posts:

misdee · 26/08/2003 23:21

oh the joys of dicky babies. my dd2 has always been very sicky, my carpets are trashed thro sick stains, and i have finally been referred to the hospital about this (she is 1yr next week). all i kept getting told is she will frow out of it, but at 1year old almost she is still being sick (woke up the other morning to find sick all over the cot again,) wish someone had taken me seriously when it had 1st started (2days after birth, she was throwing up her breast milk feeds). i felt like i was an overanxious mother, it was only the other week when i saw a new doctor at thew surgery about it that he said it wasnt right and has referred us to the hospital. i rejoice in non-sick days, and can now hear her retching b4 she is actually sick. i hate to think about how painful this has been for her, just so glad it is no hopefully being dealt with. i hope u get better responses for your child than what i did.

misdee · 26/08/2003 23:22

opps, sicky babies. should preview messages b4 posting.

SofiaAmes · 27/08/2003 00:03

Actually you can get Enfamil AR without a prescription( it's just free if you get it prescribed). Just ask your chemist to order it in (they rarely keep it in stock). I found it once in stock at a chemists, but it was kept behind the counter, not with the other formulas, and it took them a while to realize that they had it.

Enfamil AR has rice starch to thicken it, while I think the SMA staydown has corn starch.

My dd had the kind of reflux where nothing actually came out, but she was clearly in lots of pain. In retrospect, I think my ds had reflux too, (he sicked up large amounts after every feed), but it didn't seem to bother him in the least and he gained weight rapidly, so I didn't worry about it...though I did have to change him (and me) 5 times a day until we started solids.

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