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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

food affecting BFing

17 replies

DontShootTheDog · 31/07/2011 02:55

sorry - one handed, left handed typing in the dark, forgive me! i just wondered how much the food i eat can affect my 5 week old ebf baby. he can be really fussy in afternoons and evenings, by this i mean pulling back, crying, unsettled, in pain/discomfort. today was very bad - 7pm-11pm he was uncomfortable and unhappy, not screaming but very unsettled. i had a spicy 3 bean chilli for lunch, about 12.30 pm, could this have been why, question mark! would be interested to know as may need to change my diet, have also reduced dairy but not sure it has had much effect - not been able to completely stop as slightly dependent on chocolate...! any advice, question mark. hate to tink i am making him suffer. thanks.

OP posts:

WalterFlipschicks · 31/07/2011 03:53

Im sat here bf too! Zzzzzz
Some babies are affected more than others by what you eat. My twins feed almost constantly from six ish to about half eight nine at night, your milk is not as good quality in an eve and so many cluster feed.
It could be that or it could be the food, maybe a growth spurt... See how your baby is tomorrow i would suggest
Are your babies poos slightly greener? As thats a sign of wind...

WalterFlipschicks · 31/07/2011 03:54

Ps one handed typing too, sorry for any typos!

DoNotDisturb · 31/07/2011 04:04

Breastfeeding too. I think it's more to do with the time of day than necessarily what you eat.. By 12 weeks they are meant to get less fussy of an evening. I use the lower milk supply excuse as a reason to munch chocolate of an afternoon

My dd is three months now and the evening fussiness has really settled down.

Ps I eat lots of spicy food and she seems fine.

Original poster

DontShootTheDog · 31/07/2011 05:31

i'm back! thanks for the replies. he also wakes everynight around 4am with blocked nose, it really disturbs him and saline drops dont seem to help. he ends up completly waking up then being shattered by about 7, just when i have to get up with ds1! any suggestions gratefully received!

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RitaMorgan · 31/07/2011 07:20

I don't think there's any evidence really that things you eat affect your milk beyond possibly changing the taste slightly - only substances that get into your bloodstream like alcohol and caffeine get into the milk.

TimeWasting · 31/07/2011 07:36

DS got much better when I cut out caffeine and seriously reduced dairy.

Also, can you raise the head end of his bed? I got some cot blocks to put under the legs at the head end of the cot and this helped DS sleep when he was little.

Original poster

DontShootTheDog · 31/07/2011 07:47

Thanks, his cot is raised at head end (ds1 keeps removing the books as he is worried baby will tip out!). I will move cot next to open window tonight and maybe hoover/dust bedroom

Have had such little sleep due to this, it is so annoying as he isn't hungry and wants to sleep. Whay age do they breathe through their mouths?

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TimeWasting · 31/07/2011 08:11

Dairy can me mucous forming, so it might be worth persevering with that.

It's very normal for them to wake several times a night, 5/6 weeks is classic for this. Don't try and do anything other than looking after the baby during the day, rest as much as you can. I know that is tricky with an older one, I'm pg with DC2 and am forgetting I have to look after myself too already.

camdancer · 31/07/2011 08:21

I'm doing a total exclusion diet to see if I can stop DD2's reflux. After 2 weeks it doesn't seem to be having much affect at all. She is still very sick and refluxy. But she also has a cold so it might be that rather than food. This week I'm going to add foods back slowly to see if any have an effect on her. Apparently the worse culprits are dairy, gluten, soy and acid forming foods (although people don't seem to agree what these actually are!)

So I don't know yet if the food I eat affects her but hopefully in a couple of weeks I will!

TimeWasting · 31/07/2011 08:27

cam, you cut caffeine too right?

camdancer · 31/07/2011 09:00

The only caffeine I had was in chocolate, so not a huge amount. At the moment I'm only eating about 10 things and sadly chocolate isn't on the list. I did forget caffeine on my list of worst culprits though - it's probably number one really! Sorry.

TimeWasting · 31/07/2011 09:11

Just checking, wouldn't want you to be going through all that and missed a biggie.

Original poster

DontShootTheDog · 31/07/2011 12:45

I know the night waking is normal and I'm fine with that for feeding. It just seems a shame for both of us that he is waking because his nose is blocked in between feeds - he is shattered today! The saline drops don't seem to do anything and he obviously doesn't enjoy them. Worth persevering?

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EauRouge · 31/07/2011 14:53

Have you tried a room humidifier? It works well on both my DDs when they've got a cold.

camdancer · 31/07/2011 17:43

If you don't have a humidifier, a damp flannel over a radiator works the same. A bit of eucalyptus extract or olbas oil on the flannel can help as well.

orchidee · 31/07/2011 18:25

Dog
Have you looked at kellymom.com? It is great for reasuurance and info. My baby is now almost 3 months old so we're not much ahead of you. We had the classic afternoon and evening fussiness around then (and also the famous 6 week growth spurt was a fussy time.) I found that reducing dairy in my diet seems to have helped, though of course that could be coincidence - there are so many growth spurts and their digestive systems are still maturing. He also gets fussy at the breast when windy and it can take a few mins to get the burps out. Perseverance is required!

Also - if using any decongestants be sure to check age suitability. My pharmacist said the only thing we could use at 2 months were saline nasal drops. Other inhalant decongestants may not be suitable yet. I believe some of the common ingredients e.g. menthol can irritate their young respiratory systems.

Original poster

DontShootTheDog · 31/07/2011 20:43

Thanks so much everyone, I think it is a case of waiting it out - the newborn stage is so short isn't it. I remember loving it with DS1 but this time I am wishing it away a bit! Trying to take each day and night as it comes - today has been dreadful but he may be much more settled tomorrow (and tonight fingers crossed)

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