If demand fed babies regulate their own appetite based on need.....

[StarlightMcKenzie]

Why is my 9 week old so greedy and fat?

Growth spurt on the way?
I've nannied for several demand fed babies who have appeared enormous but 'normalised' by the time they are two. Please don't worry. The baby is not being gready- they really are just taking what they need x

Doh. Greedy. Sorry

Had this conversation with my mum yesterday. My eldest was demand fed, and he demanded constantly. He was like a round cannon ball.

But he's SO fat and greedy! He's almost doubled his birth weight!!!!!

I hope he slims down at some point. Scared of getting him weighed!

Well is it possible that he was small at birth because perhaps that's what your body could birth and then he's eating now to catch up where he 'should' be, iyswim? Like, both of my children were born approx 25th percentile but doubled their birth weights before/at 3mo and are 75th for weight and 90th for height. All of the men on my side of the family are over 6ft and 18-20 stone (muscular) but I'm relatively short and relatively petite so no way could I birth a 9+lb baby!

Don't panic. As I said, DS1 was a cannon ball, but went from his 50th centile to his 91st in three months. He gas stuck there ever since, and the rest of him caught up. He's 8 years now, and tall, strong, but slim.

my 8 weeker is known as the Hippo baby for similar reasons.

he looks like my brother who is 6'2 (who also doubled his weight by 6 weeks, and fed like a demon)

so maybe he just has a long long way to grow. there's nothing wrong with obscene weight gain if that's whats in their DNA.

and he started as 9'10 so not a small one to begin with. IIRC your baby was small for you though, so he's probably catching up, rather than catching down.

some babies are going to be 98% centile adults so have to get there as babies.

he will slim down.
my dc1 was similar, doubled his (already good) birthweight in 3 months and stayed podgey until around 6 months. then started to stretch out. is now a skinny 5yo with legs like a stick insect I can get my fingers round.

He looks like Humpty Dumpty!

Don't worry. I was looking at pictures of my DD last night when she was that age and DH and I both thought that that was when she was at her "fattest". They lengthen up pretty soonish!

mine is 18 weeks and v chubby, but he was only a just over 7lb baby!

He's quite long too, so I guess just going to be bigger than his brother.

They do seem to get less chubby when on the move, don't worry!

Starlight, fat babies are fab. Enjoy the cute chubbiness while it lasts. I know a few major infant chubsters who turned into waifs by the time they were 3.

But I want him to be small and cute coz he's my last, not a hippopotamus!

My DS was demand fed (formula/ BM mix at start), he was really heavy, the HV actually tried to force me to give him water and spin feeds out, I refused and my GP gave her into trouble because she was actually trying to fool me into saying he would end up in hospital from dehydration if I didn't stop feeding him when he wanted and give him water! He was actually perfectly healthy.

He eats when he wants now (11 months) which isn't that much, still heavy in comparison to his birth weight which he quadrupled by 6 months btw but very healthy and the weight is now very much evening out. :)

Was your baby small? DS was only 6,1 when he was born, the MW and GP told me normally the smallest ones end up putting the most weight on.

8lb 15oz. Big, but not scarily so (Cept I'm only 5ft 2)

One of mine was 10lb 2oz at birth and a week later was 10lb 10oz

Ive got 3, all bf, none of them lost weight after birth

All massive chunks (Humpty Dumpty apt description) but 2 are now of the skinny lanky type and the other I reckon is going to head that way too

my ds was like this. started out as a big 9lber and always looked a few months older than he was. by 2 he was 'normal' and now he's on the small side of average. hoping dd2 will slow down eventually as shes a chunky 7 monther!

my little chunk was born 7lb1 by 19 weeks he was 21lb
when he had his first birthday he was 22lb it was like he stored it all up!

aw i don't want mine to be huge either. i was when he was born smaller than my first, but being little didn't last long when putting on a pound a week!

he's not even 5 months old and I'm having to put him in 6-9 month stuff and put the tiny clothes away. :(

My DD was practically spherical by the time she was 8mo. Both mine were born small (21st centile) and then just piled on the weight - DD was 98th centile by 3mo. DS actually split his skin a week after the birth - it literally just peeled off him all over like a snake shedding its skin.

DD's height has caught up with her weight now and she's 80th centile for both, DS is well on the way to joining her.