Is it an old wives tale that bf babies cannot be overfed - as my ds is an absolute bruiser!

[hotmama]

Bizarre that I'm posting this as I used to worry about babies not putting on weight as my dd's were very slow gainers.

Ds1 is 15 weeks and is 15lbs was 7lbs at birth. Is exclusively bf on demand - I assume that a bf can't be forced to feed - so if he is taking the milk it is because he is hungry.

Ds1 is a happy little soul so I have no worries but am I wrong (contrary to what I have read) that you can overfeed a bf baby (question mark!!!)

Any views gratefully taken.

Pistachio, that is like DS2, he was 10lb 10oz and nowhere near as guzzly as 2lbs lighter DS1, or as fast growing!
Last time I checked he was 91st Centile.

DS2 exclusively BF at 21 weeks and is on the 75th centile and is definately a chunky monkey with squishy thighs and chubby cheeks

He has cellulite on his bottom

at mmj! And they wonder why HVs are universally disliked/mistrusted.

DS was born at 7 lbs 7 oz. Exclusively breast-fed.
8 lbs 4 oz at 2 weeks, after dropping to 6 lbs 10 oz in hospital.

Nearly 12 lbs at 6 weeks.

Nearly 15 lbs at 11 weeks.

I have a picture of him at 4 1/2 months in which he is so fat it's embarrassing. Rolls upon rolls upon rolls.

My twat of a MW said that it was possible to overfeed a BF baby. I in her face and quoted research at her.
She didn't like it.

Oh, and he's now 13 1/2 months, still about 80% breastfed (he's slowly getting into solids), and weighs 24 pounds. Tall and sturdy, but no longer fat.

I had two bruisers too.

DS1 didn't start out that way - 9th centile at birth (6lb 10oz) and described as 'scrawny' by the HV and she was right. Quickly drank himself up the centiles and doubled his weight in 9 weeks, trebled it in 8mths (it's supposed to take an average of a year). He was putting on a lb a week for a short while. He was tall and slim for a until recently although has got a bit too chunky of late but he is 8 now so not the fault of bf!

DS2 was a 9lbs to begin with and happily rested on 91st centile after a few weeks. Built like a prop forward so I am told and destined to play rugby for England. Well covered but no fat tummy and the family thighs (big and chunky!). He is 5 now and tall too.

If they aren't hungry they bring it back up again. You can't force bm into a child who doesn't want or need it.

Lots of lovely images being conjured up of scrummy babies.

Ooh gorgeous thread

DS is a lovely chubby little thing - only about 60th centile I think - 20lbs at 8 months - but he's got lovely chunky fat thighs and a little roll that comes down over each wrist.

My DS wasn't as big as most of yours but was born on the 50th, shot up to the 75th where he stayed till around 8 months, then creeping back to the 50th again, and now at 14mo, back at the 75th. He averaged half a pound a week for a the first few months and I used to get all the "that must be double cream" comments. Of course it was nothing to do with the fact that he spent literally hours at a time at the breast

I've had 4 very chubby BF babies; the DSs slim down into tall and solid by about 3, DD who was such a chubbster is now tallish and slim.

What is this overfeeding rubbish? If BF they get used to only taking the quantity they feel like.

Alibaba- LOL at the wrist rolls, i love them combined with the dimply little knuckles, i could just eat him up sometimes

I've had 2 on the 98th centile, ex bf.

Scrumptious.

As soon as she started walking, dd skinnied right down. Now nearly 3 and not remotely chubby.

Ds not walking yet and still has rolls on his rolls on his thighs.

Interestingly, there is a large Filipino community where I live and I often get approached by Filipina women who demand to know if my baby is breastfed. When I say he is, they laugh and say that's why he's so fat. It seems to be a compliment though.

DS2 was described as 'one of the fattest breastfed babies I've ever seen' by the GP doing his 6 week check!

He was 8lb 13oz at birth and (I've just looked it up in his little red book) 15lb 8oz at 11 weeks - despite being hospitalised for 5 days with bronchiolitis at 9.5 weeks. The doctor who admitted him said "I thought you said he was only 9 weeks old?" He pretty much tracked the 98th percentile until 6 months (which is the last time I got him weighed.) He was on the 75th for height.

He was chunky and solid until 3 or 4, though not fat after about 18 months. Now at 7 he is slim and has visible ribs - in fact, on holiday recently without my glasses on I didn't recognise that tall, slim boy across the pool as DS2 [sad and nostalgic emoticon].

DS1 has always been small and super-skinny (underweight by the Y6 weigh-ins) and I was obscurely proud of my enormous second baby.

Lawks - has a similar experience which shocked the sh*t out of me at first but I later found the funny side...
My son at about 11 months was looking through my handbag and two Filipina's were passing, one turned to her friend and said in a very loud voice "Ohh, look at the chubby one! You think he's looking for foood?!" My chin dropped and my friend nearly wet herself laughing

Ref the thread though, I was determined not to mix feed with my daughter (four weeks old now), as my son who was breast and bottle (due to thrush ruining my nips) was a real chunk. I put it down to formula, but then my newborn who is exclusively breast fed was 6ls 3oz at birth and by three weeks she was 7lbs 12.5oz! She is such a scoffer and now feels to me to be waaay more, I'll find out on Thursday at weigh in but I'm thinking around 9lbs - if so that would be 3lbs odd in one month!
I am constantly told "you can't overfeed a breastfed baby" but her gain is making me wonder too...

Dh used to call the rolls meeting at Jackbaby's wrists his "fat bracelets", LOL.

another chubbalicious bf baby here too, went from 75th to 98th centile within a few weeks and hit 20lb at 4 months.
now is 7 months and pretty sure she's not gained much since then. i have lovely toned arm muscles

Another chunky monkey here! He had rolls on his rolls and the most gorgeous chops ever. Slimming off now he is walking. Ex bfed until 6 months. I actually started a thread a while back because I was so concerned about his weight-gain (started on 50th shot up to 98th and stayed there) but my HV was fab and said that he was still average just at the top end of average and that he was healthy and beautiful and just to enjoy him. I have never had such toned arms!

I've posted on this subject a couple of times. My ds has been above the 100th centile since just after birth- he was only 9lb 8 at birth but was over 14lb at 5 weeks. At 7 months he weighed nearly the same as my dd did at her 2 year check(almost 28lb). People always commented on his size, even dd's friends who were fascinated by his chubby cheeks and chins! He's now 13 months and is about thth centile, still breastfed as well as a healthy diet so it is clear to me that he is just a big robust boy. Keep it up!

DS 1 was 8lb2 at birth. At 4 day MW check he'd put on 14oz! We kept checking the scales.
The little glutton did feed for 2 hours as soon as he was born. I don't remember my milk "coming in" as such,it always seemed to be there. Not much colostrum IYSWIM.
He's still a big boy who loves his grub. He nearly eats the same as our 6yo, and he's 14 months old.

My DD was 6lb 15oz born, quickly guzzled her way to above the top line on the centiles chart for weight, while remaining on the 50th centile for height. So yes, chubby, a bit of bum cellulite too, and the fattest knees I've ever seen. Now 1 year old, (still breastfed, with solids), and I think beginning to slim down. As at long last, am I. Wouldn't it be great if you lost all the weight they gained?

DS born 8lb 10oz, by 7 weeks 13lb, thats after losing weight initially. For a few weeks he put on a pound a week.
He has gone from 50th to 92nd centiles, and stayed there, 75th for height (length).
He was in 3-6mo sleepsuits by 4 weeks.
He is way, way bigger than dd was, but even she had excellent weight gain in first few months for a bf baby. She is a very slender 3yo now.

yes, another cheery breastfed chubbermugger here - DS is 5 months but has been in 6-9mth clothes since about 4 months and people tend to assume hes older than he really is.

He was on the 50th centile when born but jumped to the on 97th centile by 2 weeks. Ive given up weighing him, height and head all seem in proportion and I dont see the point in worrying about the numbers when he seems to be thriving and developing normally.

I have noticed as hes getting more active - now rolling and scootching along the floor (with immense effort and much joy) that hes looking a little less like an oven ready butterball

To be honest Id rather have a well padded baby: in my experience they have a bit more reserve if they get ill in the first year - and they are so cute!

DS was born a bit early at about 7lbs. He's now six pounds less than his two and a half year old sister at 27ish pounds (at last count). Eight months old, has a little bit of solids but mostly it's milk - he was well over 24lbs at six months on just milk. Again GP suggested tests for giantism and we laughed at him and pointed to DD who was exactly the same!!!! She's now a regular size although she's still nursing too!

My DS is exclusively bf and weighs 13lb 5oz at 8 weeks! He's in some 3-6 month clothes already! He's got a head like a potato.

A cute one though.

BabyG is 21 weeks old (yesterday) and was weighed this morning at 24lbs 5oz

V long boy. 9-12 clothes. HV doesn't bat an eyelid. Haven't a clue what centile he'd be on, he's 1.5 cms above 99.6th if htat helps

Don't think I can beat that, MamaG. That's some serious Gold Top you're making!

DD1 9lb 6oz - went down to 8lb (long story) but got back up to 98th percentile pretty rapidly. Still have photos of her spherical self just before her baptism .

DD2 8lb 13oz, down to 8lb and now shadowing her big sister by being exactly 6oz behind where she was each week (born a week earlier so effectively the same size). Currently 4 months old in 6-9 month clothes.

Chunky chubsters but oh-so-gorgeous (pics on profile).

Yummy baby and little girl Verso!
Very munchy, just gorgeous

I am NOT broody, Oh no, not me!