Mad HV or just me??!!

[mamasunshine]

Sorry rant alert!!! I've just taken my 33 wk old ds to have weight and height checked. He's been exbf, we're now also on 3 meals a day. I bf him as and when he wants, prob about 4/5 times in the day, and he does have 2-3 night feeds (we co-sleep). He's a big, healthy, thriving boy and is between the 91st and 98th centile in red bk for weight. His height is between the 75th and 91st centile.

I asked my HV if I should begin to introduce snacks now as well, or just stick to bm? Her advice was to only bf him 2x a day, only give him water at all other times. And to not give any snacks, only 3 meals a day??? Also to cut out all night feeding, and again only offer water??!!! I'm sorry but I find this advice completely wrong...or is it just me? I was under the impression that milk was the main source for 1st year, and that if bf should be having 4 feeds a day until 1 yr then have 3?

Anyway I'm going to continue to feed him when he asks, and give him snacks 2 x a day. FGS he's 8 months old, how can you want to restrict a diet of a baby??!! for mis information!

Sorry rant over

Although I agree with you totally that you should continue bf as much as you want, he's your ds, why ask the HV about the snacks if you were going to give them anyway? She could only have answered yes give him snacks, or no don't, If you didn't want the answer why ask the question?

Why are you going to the hv? No need to.

HV told me to stop night feeds when DS was 6mo too (I'm ff, but still).
He's currently 15mo, and still feeds at night occasionally.
He won't go to high-school and still feed at night, rest assured. He'll stop when he doesn't need it anymore.

Do what feels right, if baby is thriving and seems all in all happy and content- trust your instincts. what she says about the snacks is bullocks- ask any nutritionist/baby dietician- babies need 3 meals and two snacks between meals a day. Just make sure that everything you give him is full fat, and go on doing what you're doing. (maybe she thought you meant chips or chocolate....)

hmmSleep - I didn't go to the clinic to ask particularly about snacks, I just wanted to check his weight as I haven't for 3 months. The snacks talk just came up in conversation i.e I said 'oh we'll start introducing snacks this week...; then I was shocked by her advising me not to introduce them at all.

We only saw the HV as I was interested to see how his weight had been over the previous 3 months, having introduced solids etc. Purely for me to 'know', although I won't be having either weighed again, unless I thought they were losing weight.

Ahh, that makes more sense, and like sayhitisntso posted, trust your instincts. Not that I'm the best to advise, my eldest dc is a terrible eater!

weigh at home, they are so much bigger now that any small discrepancies in home scales don't make such a difference

Did you really plan to introduce snacks tho?? with ours it just happened that that they became hungry before meals were due and were offered fruit or breadsticks or rice cakes or just a square of toast.

Nickschick - sad i know! OCD in planning!

maybe im just slack

She's an idiot.
Official

My ds2 is 13 months and i think my health visitor went to the same idiot school as yours...i was told i should stop breastfeeding at night and just feed morning and night even though feeding 4/5 times a day and 2/3 a night works fine for us and cows milk protein allergy and weight gain has been an issue....
I explained the WHO/ UNICEF /Dept of health guidelines to her then accused her of being anti-breatfeeding. She did a rather quick back track and offered that her sister breastfed until her child was 5...WTF did that have to do with anything??
So HV are full of crap, you know your child best, go with your instincts.