5mo DD2 has a poo every 3/4 days and GP suggested she is not getting enough breastmilk and I should give her water??

[M78]

Went to GP today as DD2 (exclusively bf apart from the odd bottle of formula when I need to go out as for some reason I can't express anymore) has been not herself for a couple of days and, as we are supposed to go on holiday next week, I just wanted her to be check over to make sure she is ok. Anyway, the GP asked me if DD2 had a bowel movement today and I said that she didn't and that anyway she only has one every 3/4 days. She told me that obviously she is not getting enough fluids, suggesting that maybe my milk supply is not that great anymore and that I need to give her cooled boiled water every day now until she becomes more regular. What is she talking about? She is wrong isn't she? I told her that her weight gain is ok, but she said that that does not mean anything. Do I really need to give her water?

I was in a similar situation to you M78, my DS1 was breastfed with a few formula top ups, and only pooed every 3 or 4 days. The HV recommended cooled boiled water with a bit of fresh orange or prune juice in it (very diluted) and it did help him to become more regular.

Personally I think you'd be wise to listen to your GP, you may never know why your DD isn't going more often but it's worth a go. You sound very 'anti' giving her water, which seems a bit odd as it won't do her any harm, and if she was fully formula fed it would be a perfectly normal thing to do.

Worth saying - my DS used to clearly have stomach ache due to the constipation which was why I sought the advice of the HV. Is your DD showing any signs of tummy ache or other problems with constipation? If so, I'd give it a try - and even with a drop of strained prune juice in it, to get things moving if she's constipated. If not, and she seems OK, then maybe don't worry about it or seek a second opinion from your HV?

Bollocks.

Is she contented? Growing? Sleeping?

Breastfeeding seemingly remains a mystery to a lot of people...including doctors!! Unfortunately, they're not really taught much about it. If you and your baby are happy, carry on doing whatever you're doing

ooh sorry, bollocks aimed at the GP, not Snowtiger!

Except that it is perfectly within the realms of normal for a 5 month old exclusively breast fed child to only poo every 3/4 or even up to 14 days (note, not normal in the early weeks). It is not an indicator of constipation, and I'm afraid only an indicator that your GP does not understand breastfeeding.

If she's happy, not straining then there's unlikely to be a problem. The risk of water harming her is small, but strictly accurately any fluids or food other than breastmilk at this age is undermining breastfeeding which potentially could harm her.

If it's not broke, don't fix it

Only pooing every 3-4 days can be perfectly normal in a breastfed baby. I wouldn't give water myself unless the baby seemed uncomfortable and having hard/difficult to pass stools.

Depends a bit of how often the formula is being taken though, if it's ocassional meaning a few bottles a week then maybe water is a good idea, but if its once a week or once a fortnight then I can't see why it would be needed.

Every 3-4 days can be perfectly normal for a breastfed baby - breastmilk is so readily absorbed and nutritious they absorb almost all of it and there's not much left to come out the other end.

Unless your baby is showing signs of being actually constipated (sore hard tummy, straining, discomfort when passing poo etc) then there's probably nothing wrong at all. Water isn't necessary. How old is she by the way?

Surely if the doctor thinks your DD is not getting enough fluid and your supply is down then the best thing would be just to increase the number of feeds?
I was always under the impression that bf babies didn't need extra water- but maybe someone with more knowledge can clarify that.

yes, sshe is toitally wrong.

if your milk supply wasn't great (which it IS) then not pooing would be the least of your worries, and giving water wouldn't help at all anyway.

I do wish that HP's with no breastfeeding knowledge would stop giving advice to breastfeeding mothers

it is normal, your baby is fine, you don;'t need to give water

DD went down to just pooing every few days when she was about four months and was fine, though the tension when we got to about day seven with no poos and a swimming lesson looming added a certain frisson

Thanks for clearing that up sleepy, was ever so slightly affronted there for a second .

The only reason I'd say try the water is, as I say, if your DD is in pain / showing signs of discomfort when she does poo. If she seems fine, then don't worry about it.

FWIW, my experience of it with DS was that when he was exclusively BF he pooed very happily two or three times a day.

Once I started topping him up with a bit of formula (because my milk supply dropped, thanks to a poorly-prescribed mini pill, but don't get me started on that!) he instantly changed to only going twice a week and was clearly experiencing discomfort. My HV told me that even a tiny bit of formula in their diet can make a big difference to how well they digest their food and how easily it moves through their system, so it could be that those few bottles here and there are behind the change.

That's what I thought, I am quite confident I do have enough milk, but are comment like this one that I think make mothers feel insecure about their ability to breastfeed. It would have been different if she had said that the odd bottle of formula could be making her constipated, but she actually implied that she is not getting enough milk from me ( she actually suggested I should give her some watered down formula, but when I told her that I intend to keep on breastfeeding, she then recommended boiled water) Anyway, DD2 is quite happy, she is growing well and does not seem to be in any discomfort, so I'll keep doing what I have been doing!

That sounds like very bad advice - firstly, it's well known that breast fed babies can have long gaps between poos - see here. dd's longest was 10 days! Secondly, I thought that it was a bad idea to water down formula. And if she's gaining weight ok and only drinking milk, then surely she is getting d=fluids, or how is she getting enough to put on weight? How old is this GP?

Sounds exactly like my DD, minus the formula. She all of a sudden started pooing less frequently and the HV told me to get some cool boiled water down her, and a load of other stuff to boot. To be fair this was after a week. However, DD must have heard as she (explosively) filled her nappy within 5 minutes of the phonecall.

If her BMs are hard when she does pass them, then she may need it, but if they're normal BM poos, then surely she doesn't? I do find that HCPs don't know much about new BFing guidelines though.

Oh, gosh, that sounds like awful advice! It is utterly normal for breastfed babies to only poo that often at that age (I remember it fondly, now that I have a meat-eating toddler). Watered down formula is never a good idea. Your daughter isn't in discomfort so it's not constipation.

I'd say ignore her, and if possible find another GP for paediatric advice.

Very very similar here, my DS is 5.5 months and about a month ago he went from regular daily pooing to every other day, and now sometimes 2-3 days pass without a poo. He's not constipated, doesn't seem to be in pain, and when he does poo it's the same loose BF baby poo as before (just in larger quantity!).

Frequency of poos isn't how you judge if a baby is constipated - it's consistency of poos that matters. (FWIW, the same rule applies to adults.) Baby poo should be loose, and formless.

The GP sounds like she's talking rubbish.

I got the opposite advice... I had a GP who reckoned that sometimes breastfed babies pooed rarely because the milk they were getting was such good quality, they digested most of it and there wasn't any waste Anyway, she said perfectly normal for a breastfed baby to go quite a long time without a poo.

That's exactly why BF babies (sometimes) poo so rarely - breast milk is made exactly for them, there's very little waste.

DD used to poo once every 7 days at one point during her early weeks. I would carry on as normal if your baby is happy, producing wet nappies regularly and is gaining weight.

glad this is normal...DD has gone froma twice a day girl to every other or third day
Dita, lol at swimming lesson, I think I'd have chickened out

I asked the HV about this when my then 6 week old DD was only pooing every 2-3 days. She said the same as others on here - breast milk is a perfect food and therefore very little is wasted so it's perfectly normal for an exclusively breastfed baby to go for days without a poo. She said anything up to 10 days was fine.

Not sure if the formula would make a difference though as obviously that should cause more waste...

After the first few weeks, breastfed babies vary - they can go a few times a day (DS was one of these, unluckily for me!) anything up to once every few days.

DS2 poos every 3-4 days too, started at around 4 months. As long as it's not hard and dry, like others have said, there's no problem.

How is it that GPs don't know this stuff?!

Babies who poo less than once a day after the first month are not a cause for concern. If it happens in the first few weeks, then it might be a sign of insufficient breastmilk. (It might of course also be a sign of 'babies are weird little buggers'.)

You have amazing bm which can put weight on your baby but not adequately hydrate her?

Does your GP think your bm is somehow solid?