Breastfeeding and slow weight gain, some advice needed please

[Monroe]

Hello, I am hoping some of you may have some experience or advice you can offer me.
DD is now 8 weeks old and has always been a snacker when it comes to feeding. She never feeds for more than 10 minutes at a time and more often than not it is closer to 5 minutes then she falls asleep so she is feeding little and often.
The problem I am having is that she is slowly dropping down the weight charts. She started on the 50th percentile and is now on the 25th.
I know I should look at the baby and not the chart and she does seem content and lots of wet nappies, I am just concerned she will continue to drop on the charts and there may be a problem.
Could it be an issue with the breastfeeding as in a poor latch? I found it very difficult at first but over the past weeks things seemed to be going much better.
Also I am a bit unsure which breast to offer at each feed as there is often only a short time between them.

TIA for any advice / info. We are off for our 8 week check up so will look in again later

It's normal for bf babies not to pile on huge amounts of weight. This is why some studies seem to show that obesity is less of a problem in people who were bf.

Has your dd lost weight at all? It's normal for a baby to 'catch down' on centiles - my dc did this spectacularly - ds was 75th percentile at birth, and at 18 months had totally fallen off the curves. he has now climbed back to the 9th centile.

That was a little worrying, but all my children have been fine and are just slim.

If your dd was losing weight, or not producing enough wet and dirty nappies, or not developing as expected, then that would be a cause for concern. But it doesn't seem as though that is the problem with your dd.

You can always get a bf counsellor to catch the latch, just to be sure.

check the latch I mean!

Monroe, the pattern of weight gain and feeding behaviour you describe is well within normal. A drop of up to two centile lines (and your dd has only dropped one) is within normal, and is not worth any thought or consideration at all (unless the baby had other symptoms, and these would be the ones provoking concern, not the weight). I take it she is continuing to gain weight.

It's the same as saying 'the problem I am having is that she is not sitting up yet and I am concerned she will never sit up and also her feet are not big enough for shoes' !!!! Which is just to say she is behaving in an age-appropriate way at 8 weeks and growing in a normal way which is not a problem.

Feeding little and often is fine.

Good practice is not to weigh healthy babies after they have regained their birthweight more often than once a month in the first 6 mths. More often than this is a waste of time and can be misleading.

It doesn't matter which breast you offer first. When things are going well, it's not important to get this 'right', at least not after the first week or so.

Hello and thanks for your responses.
We have just got back from the docs and her verdict was she is 'perfect' so I really should just stop worrying.
Yes she is continuing to gain weight and appears to be developing fine and they do not want to see or weigh her any more frequently than they are doing which is once a month as you have suggested tiktok.
I guess I just wanted reassurance that there did not appear to be any underlying issues which you have provided so thanks again

good!

Thanks quietlysuggests
I do try and rouse her once she nods off, usually as you say by doing a nappy change or lying her on her change mat which usually wakes her a bit. She will then feed for a little while longer, it is just very time consuming as it seems to take a long time to fill her up this way especially through the night!
Did you find she fed for longer as she got older?
And thanks also belgo, its good to know she isn't doing anything unusual and should be fine.
Where would I find a bf counsellor to check the latch? This is something I have struggled with and it certainly might be worth checking.