HV says give vitamins if bf'ing to 6 months

[fruitful]

Our HV has told my friend that if she is going to exclusively breastfeed her baby to 6 months, then she should start giving him vitamin drops soon (he is 3 months).

Whats this about? Is it govt advice now that they are recommending weaning at 6 months - "don't wean till 6mo but oh, by the way, breastmilk isn't quite enough so give vitamins"?

Is it just the HV being daft or is it from the govt? And even if it is from the govt, is it bllcks?

My friend was told to give her baby iron and some vitamins (don't remember what) as her baby was a little small at birth - 5lbs. The hospital told her this. Maybe your friend's baby was quite small.

As an aside I feel that HVs seem to disregard the wean at 6 months guidance - mine told me to wean at 19 weeks (even though DS wasn't waking the night, showing signs) and told me it was important that DS have four fruit and four veg by six months. Which seems inconsistent with the guidance.

Didn't know you could give vits to under 6 mths.
Personally I just make sure that my diet is healthy-which it is on the whole apart for chocolate biscuits which I demolish in seconds. i am careful that I eat a balanced diet, not too much coffee, careful with certain fruits but didn't give vits. She should ask her doctor if there's something medically wrong otherwise i wouldn't bother

yes it's a load of bllcks. never ever take what a HV says as accurate. mostly they just don't know what they are talking about. all the recent advice is nothing but bf til 6 months if you can manage it.

I heard this advice long after ds was 6 mths and it concerned me too. I found a leaflet in Boots with the vitamin advice on it and queried it.

The thread is here

The advice was that it's really if your child doesn't get much sunlight. If not, then they should have a vitamin D supplement.

I bought a bottle of Abidec (orange pack/dropper vits) anyway cos I'm a paranoid mum, but it just made ds smell of marmite!!

I followed advice with my son and gave him vitamin supplements - which he turned out to be allergic to. As a result I have never given dd vitamin supplements, but took the supplements myself. The supplements certainly do me good, and whether or not they pass through the breastmilk I don't know, but dd doesn't seem to have suffered in any way!

If child doesn't get much sunlight as silly as this advice sounds put the baby in the/by the window (in moses basket if still using it)
baby'll get plenty of vit d that way. be careful though that the temperature's not too hot in the window. dd born end jan with jaundice. had to go on SCBU light box and midwife told me when I got home to put her in the window for part of the day just to get vit d. I did however find that even at that time of year it got quite hot in the window so I just used to put her there for 1/2 an hour at a time and it cleared her jaundice up in days
Breastmilk is normally ALL a baby needs though- unless doc or midwife tells you different

Apparently when bf a baby gets all the best of the vitamins etc from your body so will miss out on nothing, it's the mother who may miss out.

My nails keep breaking, it seems the baby is taking all my calcium supplies.

OK, guess we'll ignore the HV (again) then.

Some info here that may be useful.

I 2nd Fennel's comment about HVs....sorry if anyone is one out there but..... mine have been completely uninformed and yet v opinionated, enough to undermine anyone suffering from a bit of 1st time mother paranoia. If I ever mentioned that I'd bothered to read a book or 2 to back up the information I was discussing, I was cut dead and dismissed. I reported mine in the end, she was utterly useless.
Tell your friend to take the vits herself, fruitful, her baby will get all they need from her.

that is the biggest loads of bull dung I've ever heard
if anything give vits to the b/f mother..
stupid HV

Rubbish. The official advice is to give vitamin drops after 6 months but even that is being very cautious.

I must admit I fell for the official line and bought Abidec at 6 months - fiddled around with it for a month or so, dd loved the flavour so it was like giving a treat. But she was soon eating like a horse and by then it was the summertime and we were out every day.

I was told the same thing...so I trotted off to the chemist and bought some drops. DD hated them - they tasted gross & gave her constipation. They also (by the by) stained everything them came in contact with. She had them for 1 week before I put them in the bin.
Mother Nature designed breastmilk as a perfect food - so I felt very confident ignoring my paediatrician.
Just one more way for the formula companies to get their hands on your money - and to convince mummies that their breastmilk isn't good enough. Humph!
mit x

I read recently in the Telegraph there rickets are on the increase as mothers are so scared of skin cancer that they are keeping them out of the sun! And then there is the application of sun creams, but I don't know if that stops the production of Vit D?
Giving supplements to a baby who is getting the best - breast milk - sounds ludicrous unless very underweight, or ill, but sounds odd.

I fed both til 6/7 months but started weaning & 4 months (pre 6 month advice). When they get to close to a year & they start eating soil, sand etc.... does it really matter???? Ignore HV's they talk bllcks - go with what YOU feel is right. Both kids (3/5) healthy & happy...... what were you fed? Are you OK?