Sudden weight loss at 10 weeks

[milkmummy1]

DD was 8lb10 at birth and was nicely following the 91st-95th centile. she is now 14lb. Last week at weigh-in clinic, HV went mental and sent me to GP as DD had suddenly lost over an ounce in 2 weeks. GP checked her and shes fine, though we are waiting for results of urine test for poss infection. GP also mentioned having to supplement her with formulas if she hasnt gained at next clinic. I really want to exclusively BF and not use formula. Both my children thrived and got v big on my milk and ive never experienced them losing weight. I dont know why its happened with DD now when she had been consistently putting on so much. she certainly feels heavier and overall she is a great size. The only thing I can think is last week i had a horrible stomach bug and was very sick. DD also vomited but just the once. could this be linked? Im worried that my milk has been affected. the other thing is that she has been sleeping through most of night recently so perhaps she is taking less I am producing less? any advice?

Hello,

It may be that as you were ill you were producing less or DD was not taking as much. Or she may have had a slight stomach bug the same as you so not wanting to take as much. If she is sleeping through more then she is not taking as much. However, breastfed babies weight gain does slow and does not follow the traditional growth charts as these were developed for bottle fed babies. Also what time of day did you weigh her? It could have been that she had just been to the toilet.

A loss of weight is something to consider but it is not something to immediately start supplementing for. If the weight loss continues then by all means supplement but you do not need to do this right now. Try to increase your DDs feeds during the day and offer the breast a bit more frequently.

In the grand scheme of things 1oz over 2 weeks in a 14lb otherwise healthy baby is not a major cause for concern. Keep a close eye on your DD and if you are worried then speak to your doctor. It may be worth trying to find a HV with experience of BF as it sounds as though your HV was too quick to dismiss your BF requirements and supplement.

Sorry for ramble. Pregnancy brain.

I am puzzled - an ounce loss in a healthy baby beyond the newborn period over two weeks would not normally be considered grounds for concern. An ounce loss is hardly registerable on scales with any degree of confidence...babies wobble, they wee, they poo, straight after and immediately before the weighing and all of this could affect the reading.

You might expect a larger baby to start to level out a bit now, anyway.

If you are concerned - and honestly I can't see a reason for it - offer more bfs

Is there any other reason the HV was worried apart from this? I cant see why she would be so panicked...

Thanks for advice. Tiktok, HV was purelyconcerned re the weight loss as she said losing weight normally indicates an illness. She was surprised as knows that both my children put on loads of weight with my milk. Just checked red book and it was 2 ounces she lost when before she was following 91st centile. Am getting her weighed again next week so will see then. she seems abs fine so im not really worried.