what should I do re iron deficiency anemia in babies

[MamaChris]

the reports of the bmj article say iron deficiency anemia (ida) is a risk of ebf for 6 months. the response from pro-bf organisations eg baby milk action is that ida is associated with mother's anemia in pregnamcy and early cord clamping.

I was anemic in pregnancy (picked up in early blood tests, but I wasn't given iron tablets till much later due to a series of mix ups) and dt2's cord was cut immediately, not sure about dt1's. given that my babies do have risk factors for ida, what should I do about it - supplement them? me? (I am veggie, and have always tended to be borderline anemic even pre pregnancy)

abidec drops? smell like iodine

are the babies veggie, or going to be veggie i mean? not sure if it is suitablke for vegetarians

these? doesn't list iron as included. doesn't say if veggie, but that's not an issue - dp is not veggie, and ds has occasional meat, although he's not a big fan (love it when he says he likes cucumber better than hamburger :))

i thought they did....

Oh, ok they contain vitamin C which helps the absorption of iron which must be why HV recommended to me info here, the goverments 'healthy start' drops are the same but i could never find anywhere that stocked them

have the BMj but haven't read the article yet.

Although the levels of iron in BM are lower than Formula milk, iron in BM is more readily absorbed.

will have a look...........

This isn't so much about the article, although it has made me more aware of anemia. I understand that iron in breastmilk is more bio available, but that babies also rely on iron stores built up during pregnancy. I was anemic for most of pregnancy so presume my babies would have lower stores. apart from early weaning onto rare steak (joke!), what should I do to balance this?

Kellymom has some info as well as research links. She says that medical studies suggest it's unlikely to cause your baby a problem.

She recommends getting a doctor to check haemoglobin levels if you're worried.

How old are your dts? Are they showing any signs of anaemia (pale, tired, weak, lack of appetite)? Were they prem?

I think too much iron can be harmful too, so I wouldn't supplement a baby unless they had been confirmed anaemic by a blood test at the GPs - if you are concerned, then you could get that done. In the US all babies are tested.

they were born at 38 weeks, both 2.79kg, now 3.5 months. they do still seem pale (but my skin is too) and tired - unable to stay awake more than 1 hour at 3.5 months, but ds1 never slept, so I am comparing to a different extreme!

they feed regularly, appear to be growing well. perhaps I will take to gp.

my ds is prescribed iron, sodium federate or sytron alongside abidec. He was prem and its normal but was borderline anaemic for months. its a simple bolld prick test to get the iron reading even from a baby so take them to the gp if you are worried

blood prick.

I was told to ramp up iron rich meals ( chopped or pureed) at 6 months - but that was six years ago when we were advised up start solids at 4-6 months. Also vit C to help absorption - so dhal with tomato, lamb stew and some dilute orange juice.

Premature babies and those Of mothers who were anemic during are at higher risk of anemia. So in some cases weaning earlier than 6 months can be recommended in some cases. Best to discuss this with a real life professional in your situation.