DS has only put on 1lb in the past 6 weeks

[claireybee]

He has also dropped a centile. HV says it wouldn't normally be a cause for concern except his growth has been very erratic (born on 25th, up to 50th then just above 50th, back to 25th now on 9th).

I am not really worried, he certainly feeds often enough, and I seem to have plenty of milk but should I be? The HV seemed to think I should be slightly worried that he is jumping all over the place...

If anything I am a bit pissed off because in that time we have been through two what I thought were growth spurts, but if he hasn't grown then what were all those sleepness nights and days of being velcroed to my breast about?!

He is 19 weeks

Just thought I would offer some support and some advice (nicked off similar threads)

a) How consistent is the weighing? Is he always weighed naked using the same scales, approximately the same time every week? Are the scales permanently in place or are they moved around a lot?
b) Have you checked weights have been plotted correctly? I look at my last weighing and realised they have put him down as 17 weeks when he was only 15 weeks at his last weigh in!
c) Is he happy and content? Producing plenty of wet and dirty nappies?
d) Is the chart they are using for bfed babies?
Don't forget growth isn't always linear. Also I think rates of growth are different for Caucasian and African babies, and with your boy being mixed race, that might mean he won't follow a standard line, assuming that there are text book babies that do!
just remember - your ds sat up by himself at 16 weeks - hell of an achievement. Hopefully someone with more knowledge in these matters will agree with me and tell you not to worry about your lovely ds!

aw fanks

Will answer the questions to give more background info

a) Have hardly had him weighed, the last time was 6 weeks ago. Always naked, mostly same scales, scales taken from clinic to clinic and on home visits
b) They have been plotted correctly. I did wonder if they had converted it from kg inaccurately but it is correct
c)My ds doesn't know the meaning of either happy or content but yes, for him he hasn't been too bad! Certainly lots of wet and dirty nappies
d)Is the bog standard chart in the red book-think is based on a mixture of ff and bf babies?

I hadn't thought about the rates of growth being different, I know on the African chart he was 50th percentile born rather than 25th here but it didn't occur to me that the rates of growth could be different too.

Is he exclusively breastfed claireybee?

It is very common for exc bf babies' weight to plateau around this time. Between 16 and 22 weeks, my ds put on an average of 1oz a week despite feeding on demand, which felt like it was 24/7. My ds went up and down the centiles like a yo yo and he has turned into a perfectly proportioned toddler.

If your HV or anyone else starts muttering about solids then you may be best just to ignore!

HTH

claireybee, it's around this time that the standard UK growth charts really stop being appropriate for all babies - early on, there's not a lot of difference. From about 5-6 mths, the gaps begins to grow, and it's very clear that breastfed babies weigh 'lighter' than ff babies - by the time babies get to age 1 year, the gap is very striking.

Your baby may well already be on a higher centile on the bf charts.

In any case, erratic growth (and your baby's is not that erratic, anyway) can be totally physiological - charts 'iron out' the normal lumps and bumps of individual weights. The smooth curves of the chart are not actual babies, but come from data taken from the records of many different babies.

A gain of 1 lb is six weeks is well within normal limits, anyway.

Look at the 'whole baby', not the dots on the charts - and if the HV is even slightly worried she should explain why.

Thanks everyone.
Reassuring words from you as usual Tiktok

As for the HV when I said that ds' jump to the 50th percentile was probably due to me having had oversupply she said "Oh I didn't know you could have oversupply, most mums don't have enough milk"

So I don't pay much attention to her!

HVs....we love' em, really.