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Infant feeding

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

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Original poster

DS (11 weeks) has gone off the top of the growth charts - what happens now?

37 replies

whomovedmychocolate · 06/10/2008 21:18

Took him to the docs today for something else (he's getting really constipated) and the doc said 'my he's big'. I happened to mention his weight and he paled and asked when he'd last had a HV check.

Three weeks ago as it happens. He's asked me to go back tomorrow to get him properly weighed (he doesn't trust his scales) and if it's what we think it is, he needs to refer him because 'it could be indicative of medical problems'.

But he totally failed to tell me what medical problems and I was trying to calm a screaming baby and tot so didn't get to ask. Anyone got any ideas? DD was always at the very top of but not off the charts for her age.

Oh and DS was born above the height percentile and has grown since so he's definitely a tall baby as well as a heavy one.

Have I bred a rugger bugger by accident?

OP posts:

tiktok · 06/10/2008 23:48

The chances are that your baby is just physiologically big - no idea what the GP might be concerned about, as true metabolic disorders or other conditions have other symptoms alongside extra large size. Maybe GP is worried you are doing something bizarre with the baby's diet????

I do think anyone scaring mothers about their babies' weight ought to make sure that any scales they use are accurate and not leave them to come in again to be weighed because the scales are not to be trusted

MoonlightMcKenzie · 06/10/2008 23:54

My friend had this same issue. Junior doctor told her not to feed him so much . Luckily registrar had a bit more sense. However, they did keep asking her 'Are you SURE you're not giving him formula?

She has to keep going back to the hospital for weighing but is refusing invasive tests until they tell her WHAT they think they are looking for. So far all they've managed to say is 'a rare disease' but not explain any further!

Her baby is 3 weeks old

themildmannneredjanitor · 06/10/2008 23:56

ignore

ds was always off the charts.
always. and he still is now.
he's just a tall lad with tall parents and a tall extended family.

lisad123 · 06/10/2008 23:58

agggrrr what a PITA. I wouldnt worry too much, i know easier said than done. I have to take dd2 to be weighed tomorrow as she started on2nd percentile and now above 75th!
while your LO is being weighed make sure they do his height too. He may just be that size.without sounding rude are you and his dad big people?

Original poster

whomovedmychocolate · 07/10/2008 09:44

Actually we are quite a petite family and I'm a little concerned because it does seem a bit odd to me that a child who was premature at 11 weeks is in 9-12 month clothes and straining the seams.

Funny thing is, he's not fat, he's just big in every sense.

We do have some genetic stuff in our background which could cause faults on (I think it's HDN21) the genes. We did have a massively high result on the triple test and went for amnio but he came out clear for downs but now I'm wondering if perhaps there is something going on that perhaps it'd be best we knew about (some genetic conditions increase the likelihood for childhood cancer for example so it's worth knowing so you can look out for the signs).

He's purely breastfed and only eats every four hours round the clock - so it's nothing I'm doing. Unless his little sister is secretly buying and feeding him lard of course

But I don't know what aside from monitoring they can do. I wouldn't counternance reducing or limiting his feeds anyway.

OP posts:

suwoohoohoooooooo · 07/10/2008 09:50

Gosh, why do they panic us so much! I stopped taking DS to be weighed when they started going on about him being small particularly his head which is on the 0.2 centile IIRC. My DS is nearly 2 and in the same size clothes as yours whomovedmychoc

MoonlightMcKenzie · 07/10/2008 09:55

Mine too suwoohoohooooo and he's on the 75th percentile

EachPeachPearMum · 07/10/2008 10:23

Wasn't your DD also at the top of the charts though?
How prem was he wmmc? I am assuming his legs are down to the bottom of the sleepsuits, rather than straining widthways....

suwoohoohoooooooo · 07/10/2008 11:09

Moonlight, think DS is on around the 25th percentile, he weighs 21lb (clothed with nappy) I think it is his little legs that keep him in 9-12. He is also quite skinny.

jammi · 07/10/2008 11:17

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

lisad123 · 07/10/2008 12:36

well mine has now hit the 91th centile, and she started on the 2nd. We went though what she was eating, but HV just said we will see how it goes. How did you get on?

CarGirl · 07/10/2008 12:45

I'm tiny but dd2 didn't hit the height chart until she was nearly 6 months old so perhaps he is just going to be tall.

Original poster

whomovedmychocolate · 07/10/2008 13:17

He's already very tall - just under three foot long (yes, I do mean three feet. When he lies down he's as tall as DD is and she's two

OP posts:

CarGirl · 07/10/2008 13:24

Well tbh unless there is some history in either side of the family (not nec very recent) of very tall children I think they are being responsible to follow it up. Try not to worry.

EachPeachPearMum · 07/10/2008 13:30

erm- 3 feet??????
My 2 year old is just short of 3ft- 91cm Oh yes- so is yours!
How long was he at birth?

NorkyButNice · 07/10/2008 13:33

3 feet? Really?

DS is 12 months and 92 cm - he's off the charts and I can't imagine any 11 week old could be so tall.

Egg · 07/10/2008 13:47

THREE FOOT

I was all for not being concerned but I got my DS1 measured the other day when my DTs were getting their 8 month check and he was exactly three foot. He is 2yrs 7 months and seems to be about average for his age.

CuppaTeaJanice · 07/10/2008 13:48

I just checked the length chart in my red book. The 99.6th centile for an 11 week old is 65.5cm, so if he's eighty-something cm that's very tall indeed. What was his birth weight? And his weight now?

I hope he's ok. Please try not to worry, I'm sure the docs are just monitoring him as a precaution.

macaco · 07/10/2008 13:59

my cousin was born at 62 cm which must be way off the charts too. I was 60cm at birth and my mum was told I'd always be very very tall. I¡m now 5'7"

EachPeachPearMum · 07/10/2008 14:16

Sorry wmmc just realised all the s are probably not what you want right now, but I really have no experience of this.

He certainl doesn't sound like he's over-feeding- if anything keeping at every 4 hours is astonishing- if he's the same size as DD you'd think he'd want a lot more milk!

I knew a little boy similar age to DD who was very long, and his mum just had to bf almost constantly- every hour for sure, as he was always hungry- no fat though, just very tall.

DH was very tall, and starving all the time- can't check his growth charts at the moment, but he is pretty tall now, will look them out later on, to see how tall he was at this stage- he was weaned at 3 months- on Drs advice- he was bottle and breast, and still screaming for more.

Umlellala · 07/10/2008 14:19

Oh my! I thought my 11 week old was big at 66cm and 7.5kg!

How is he though? Is he happy, healthy?

Umlellala · 07/10/2008 14:20

(and yes, mine feeds -bf- a lot!)

Original poster

whomovedmychocolate · 07/10/2008 16:58

Right - he's just under twenty pounds and yes he's definitely very tall - DD is slightly taller than him at 2. Luckily he doesn't lie down flat a lot otherwise we'd trip over him!

HV reckons he's fine, just very tall (well duh!) She says we should weigh him once a month for three months and see how it goes as since we're breastfeeding, as she puts it 'it's all good growth'.

He was 7lb 5oz at birth and left hospital just under 7lbs. However I had pre-eclampsia and he was 2 weeks early so it may be that he should have been 12lbs to start with -given that he gained an estimated 2lbs in the week before he was born - I had a LOT of scans - they were worried they'd buggered them up though because his weight was so rapidly changing.

So, looks like I'm raising a heffer. Ho hum

OP posts:

Original poster

whomovedmychocolate · 07/10/2008 17:01

Oh and he's the happiest little chap you could ever meet. Very smiley and chuntering all the time. He does throw up a lot (so god knows what he'd weigh if he didn't) but apart from that and the size, he's your bog standard contented baby.

Folks in supermarkets keep stopping us to look at him though because he he looks a lot older than he is - they talk to him and expect him to reply LOL

OP posts:

Umlellala · 07/10/2008 20:30

Well, I think we should just enjoy our enormous sons! And how considerate too, as ds was an average 7lbs 4oz at birth rather than being huge as well

I have been known to say that re ds's throwing up, a woman at toddler group told me that in her culture, a sicky baby is seen as a healthy, big baby.

Congrats!

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