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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

How much weight should a 7wk old breast fed baby be putting on per week? (hv giving me a hard time)

66 replies

damewashalot · 17/07/2008 19:08

Quick run down as i may not get long on here.

DS4 was born 3wks early at 6lb 10oz wasn't gaining weight due to trouble feeding caused by tongue tie, went slowly down to 6lb but started gaining as soon as it was snipped plus very sore nipples stopped hurting.
The last 3 wks he has put on 8oz, 5 1/2oz and 4 1/2oz now weighs 7lb8oz at 7wks. He feeds a lot, some days it feels constant but I feel he is making up for lost time, I have successfully breast fed 3 babies so think I know pretty much what I'm doing. He is alert, smiles and seems fine to me.
HV is very concerned about his slow weight gain and wants me to top up because she says I can't have enough milk if he feeds this much and isn't gaining lots.

So, is 4 1/2oz in a week that bad? If I gave him formula how would my milk supply ever catch up with his needs?

She has managed to fill me with self doubt and now I'm wondering if I'm just being stroppy and stubborn because I don't want to give formula, I want to do what's best for him but I really believe that my milk is best for him.

So basiclly, help please

Sorry that was a bit of a waffle, trying to think and deal with my big boys doesn't work too well and sorry if my spelling is bad, need to go feed no time to read and check.

OP posts:

tiktok · 18/07/2008 10:08

Dame - tell them at the cafe how poor the support and info was from the HV. This could be a local training issue for the service in your area.

Original poster

damewashalot · 18/07/2008 13:29

Just had a good chat with nct counsellor wo was really positive and encouraged me to trust my instincts

OP posts:

Jas · 18/07/2008 13:34

Caz10 · 18/07/2008 13:36

hi! NOT that your LO is little, i would be well chuffed with that weight gain, but just for support have a look here:

LackaDAISYcal · 18/07/2008 13:36

that's great damewashalot

you both sound like you are doing well!

...now how to break it to your HV!

sophiebbb · 18/07/2008 13:53

I am breastfeeding a 11 week old (DD2) and just don't bother now getting her weighed. She looks healthy, is generally very contented, sleeps well and therefore I don't need an 'average' chart to tell me that she is OK.

Trust your instincts on this one - you have 3 other babies. You seem happy that DS4 is happy. Breastfeeding is always best and simply carrying on feeding on demand when he is hungry to stimulate your milk supply. Let nature do its work!!!

Original poster

damewashalot · 18/07/2008 16:23

I must admit that he has already been weighed more times than ds3 has ever and he was 2 in march. I've only been getting it done because he was losing at first so I wanted to know that it was now going on.

OP posts:

PeachyBAHons · 20/07/2008 13:40

You have to tailor your usage to your worries don't you? I ahrdly ever had ds3 weighed after Paed confirmed he was OK just small, but as he ahs a high chance of SN (ds4, ds3 does have SN) I feel I need to stay on good terms with HV.

Even though it ahs turned out I am higher qualified than she is in BF LOL (Note: TikTok knows more than me, i'm nbot that highly qual'd)

tori32 · 20/07/2008 14:05

The gain seems ok to me. I think you just need to keep feeding often and increasing supply. Perhaps if you are worried you could try expressing to see how much he will take from a bottle?
I don't think you should top up though. This will trash your supply. Keep going and see how he goes. He is effectively only 4wks old in weight terms and although he is on the lower centile, he isn't below the chart bottom line. If it continues to plateau I would have a rethink perhaps.

tiktok · 20/07/2008 18:00

tori: "Perhaps if you are worried you could try expressing to see how much he will take from a bottle? "

How would this help???

Neenztwinz · 20/07/2008 21:19

My DS only gained 8oz in her first four weeks and HV kept telling me to use formula - silly cow. She is gaining 7-8oz per week now. Just keep doing what you are doing - your body knows what to do! Ignore the charts. Gaining 4-7oz per week is normal for BF baby.

Neenztwinz · 20/07/2008 21:24

Tiktok - when my DS was not gaining my HV suggested expressing to see how much she drinks - not sure why. Maybe cos putting baby to breast does not neccessarily mean she is drinking? Whereas with bottle you know she definitely is. I did it and she drank it but I did think it only tells me what she is drinking at that time not any other time. She starting gaining well anyway, not cos of ebm, cos I let her feed and feed and feed and she got stronger and stronger at it.

BTW I give ebm to my twins at both 6pm and 10pm feeds now just so I know they have had a good feed - this has not made their weight gain any better, but is has settled them better in the evenings. Before they were just feeding and feeding and feeding...

foxythesnowfox · 20/07/2008 21:32

Pah! Blardy HVs.

My LO was 'failing to thrive'. I refused to top up with formula, and she 'washed her hands of me'. Luckily I had a supportive GP.

The GP told me to express after a feed to build up a 'top-up' bottle of hind-milk for the evening when supplies were lower. Now, I've said this before on here and have had it contradicted, but it really helped us so I think it worth a mention. We were still referred to the paediatrician (who signed us off immediately ) and never looked back.

HVs with their poor advice and outdated information make me so . If you were a first time mother with no access to support like MN and didn't question the 'experts' you'd be reaching for the formula and feeling like a failure. I felt like a failure as it was (and I was also a fourth-time mum).

Our problem was that DC4 just wasn't a demanding baby, so I'd 'just' go and get the children's tea ready, or 'just' put a load of washing on. It was a real effort to sit and feed for the necessary length of time. I also had to look at my own nutrition and took an essential fatty acid supplement.

Babymooning is an excellent idea, and very, very lovely too

Good luck with it, there's lots of lovely people on here to support you as they did me.

tori32 · 20/07/2008 22:12

Tiktok from my own personal perspective I found giving a bottle for a dream feed invaluable because I know if she has less than a couple of oz she wakes in the night- not suggesting this is why she should try it, just that it might put her mind at rest if she knows she is taking a reasonable amount per feed. When you bf you don't have a clue how long it takes them to take a set amount so you can get paranoid that they aren't getting enough.
Why do you a;lways have to make specific references to what I say, especially as its not like I'm saying give formula and wean her at 7wks!

tori32 · 20/07/2008 22:17

I also found that expressing meant I got a better supply and because I was fuller babes got the milk out with less effort. Prem babies find it harder to suck at first than term babies.

tiktok · 20/07/2008 23:27

tori - don't be paranoid. I asked a reasonable question. You didn't explain why you thought expressing to give a bottle to 'see how much he will take from a bottle' might help, so I asked. Hafta say, I am still none the wiser The baby in question doesn't appear to be doing anything other than feed and grow perfectly normally, anyway.

Neenz - as you say, seeing how much a baby will drink from a bottle tells no one anything at all about what the baby might or might not drink at the breast...just as you figured out for yourself

StarlightMcKenzie · 20/07/2008 23:43

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

Original poster

damewashalot · 21/07/2008 10:02

I want to thank you all for your support, I didn't get on here yesterday and it was so nice to log on this morning and find more posts.

I realise everyone else seems to know this but tiktok, how did you become so wise?

OP posts:

tiktok · 21/07/2008 10:08

dame, I am an NCT breastfeeding counsellor.

Many of us are wise

Original poster

damewashalot · 21/07/2008 10:16

Ah, I wondered if that might be the reason.

OP posts:

foxythesnowfox · 21/07/2008 10:50

I think the value of expressing and feeding is in the mother's peace of mind. If you know that your baby is getting a good few ounces, you'll be a bit more relaxed about it.

After all, stress affects the milk supply, so its a catch 22. If you can eliminate some of that stress (and it is a huge stress) then that can only be a good thing.

foxythesnowfox · 21/07/2008 10:50

I think the value of expressing and feeding is in the mother's peace of mind. If you know that your baby is getting a good few ounces, you'll be a bit more relaxed about it.

After all, stress affects the milk supply, so its a catch 22. If you can eliminate some of that stress (and it is a huge stress) then that can only be a good thing.

tiktok · 21/07/2008 10:58

foxy, I can see why you think this, but if 'peace of mind' is based on a false understanding, it's not worth it.

Lets say you express 4 ounces. The baby glugs it back - and wants more. The baby may or may not need more milk. Maybe he just likes to suck. Who knows? So it gives you no useful info at all and if the object is to reduce stress (which does not affect milk supply, anyway) it has done the opposite

Stress - if it is very acute and powerful - may affect the let down, temporarily. It has no effect on the quantity of milk produced.

So on both those counts, expressing and giving the milk in a bottle just isn't going to help.

tiktok · 21/07/2008 11:00

Just to add - sometimes mothers cannot express very much at all. They then worry this reflects the baby's intake. It doesn't.

foxythesnowfox · 21/07/2008 11:09

Sorry Tiktok, I value your expertise, and you have helped me in the past, but I disagree. My 'false understanding' is based on my experience. If you give the baby a bottle of ebm you can then feed, but you have some peace of mind knowing your baby has fed and you are not failing to nourish your baby. (IME).

Having been in the same position I was beside myself with worry. Its not just an isolated problem, there are those pesky hormones flying around, feelings of inadequacy, and 3 other children to care for. Feeds get cut short because there's a bottom to wipe or a child to pick up or a fight to break up.

There has to be a practical and viable compromise to make. So in an ideal world, yes, babymoon, feed on demand for as long as the baby needs, rest, eat well, and relax. But what to do when you still have to get tea on table and there's no clean uniform for tomorrow?

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