Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Original poster

Breastfeeding and poor weight gain

13 replies

LadyCressida · 08/07/2010 17:11

My 7 wk old baby is exclusively breastfed, (8 times a day on average) but is dropping off the weight curves - only put on 1 oz last week. HV said that if there isn't improvement by next week I will need to top up with formula. I don't understand what is wrong because I eat well and she seems to feed well and produces lots of dirty nappies.

Does anyone have any advice on anything I can try to get it working better this week?

Thanks!

OP posts:
ticklebug74 · 08/07/2010 17:23

Hi just to share my story, my little one took 5 weeks to get back to his birth weight (and even lost weight sometimes) but as he was my second I was a bit more relaxed and did not feel the need to top up with formula. He is now a healthy strapping 18 month old on the 75% percentile.

I did the topping up with my first and found it became a steady slide into giving up BF as my supply dropped.

If you wish to continue breast feeding I would contact your local NCT Breastfeeding Counsellors for support if you can and try if you are able to express some milk, then if you find you need to top up then at least you can use breast milk if you want.

But at the end of the day, your baby is your priority and there is no shame in needing to top up with formula. Don't put too much pressure on yourself. And if you are really worried I would go and see your GP.

Take care and hope things improve.

crikeybadger · 08/07/2010 19:01

What weight was your baby born at? how much does she weigh now?

Can you squeeze another feed in to your day/night?

Have you tried 'switch nursing'? (Feeding from one side then offering the second side and then even back to the first one again if needs be).

It could just be that this week was a blip and if she seems happy and has plenty of wet and dirty nappies like you suggest then there's probably nothing wrong.

If a baby needs to increase weight gain, they need more milk, so why not just offer more breast milk instead of resorting straight to formula. (which is likely to affect your supply even more)

Like ticklebug says, try a breastfeeding helpline for more advice.

good luck with it all and don't feel pressurised by your HV to go down a route that you're not happy with.

MumNWLondon · 08/07/2010 19:36

How long is each feed for, do you feed from both sides on each feed?
Does she seem content between feeds? Do you seem to have enough milk?

My advice is to have a week were you try and take things really easy, and have a weeks "feedathon".

DS2 has dropped down the percentile charts now down to 25th at 8 weeks, was on 50th at 4 weeks, so I bet that in some of those weeks the weight gain was small...

crikeybadger · 08/07/2010 19:48

Oh and just forgot to say ...

"I don't understand what is wrong because I eat well"...

What you eat doesn't affect your milk supply. It's a myth. (and my personal mission it to dispel it!)

Original poster
LadyCressida · 08/07/2010 23:00

Thanks very much for the advice so far!

She was born 7lb 5oz and is now 9lb. Most weeks have been a 5oz gain, which the HV was still not that happy with because she was on the 50% percentile, and dropped to 25% but this week's has put her down to the 9th. I wasn't really worried until now because 5oz still sounds like a lot to me, but 1oz is obviously not good. Most of the time she seems happy enough but she does cry a bit and bring her legs up sometimes like she has tummyache.

I have only been feeding one side each time, generally every 2-3 hours in the day, and she goes for at least 20 mins until coming off voluntarily. I think I have a reasonable milk supply but I can't really tell how much she is taking - when expressing I normally get just over 2oz in 10 mins. I will try and see if offering the other side afterwards makes a difference though, good advice cheers!

(Oh I did have a blocked duct issue this week, maybe that could have affected her supply?)

Interesting what you say crikeybadger, the HV also advised I have a can of guiness a day and a big stodgy bit of cake mid afternoon! Whether that actually helps or not I'm not going to argue with the advice though

Thanks again though, all!

OP posts:
tiktok · 08/07/2010 23:47

LadyCressida - I agree that the first and easiest thing to do is to offer both sides - at least - at every feed. This alone will increase your baby's intake and weight gain.

Sometimes mothers are told to deliberately only feed on one side at a time - quite mistakenly. And an HV who suggests guinness and cake instead of the wholly obvious thing about feeding on both/more sides is certainly giving her lack of knowledge away. Neither guiness or cake will make any difference to the milk quality or quantity and she is in some urgent need of an update if she is saying these things

ClimberChick · 09/07/2010 04:49

blimey, mine has never put on more than 3oz a week and once only put on 1oz in a fortnight and I've never had a problem with hv's.

If your doing you all to maximise feeding opportunities and not trying to stretch time between feeds, etc. then just try to go with the flow, providing nappy output is good abd baby generally seems fine. I switch feed (or rather feed her till she won't feed no more). Maybe try and get a dream feed in there, mine always feeds better this way.

I never realised that when people say eat well, they meant eat loads, I just thought they meant eat healthily.

Also about the guinness advice. And remember she can't make you do anything. There is an old thread (search might oak acorn) showing lots of people in the same boat.

hth and good luck

Scarlett175 · 09/07/2010 10:32

Hi there

just to add, my DD is 11 weeks old, but I was in this position too, she took 5 weeks to regain birth weight and then the weight increase has been slow but steady and she is currently on the 25th percentile. I find having her weighed at our local BF clinic, run by HV much less stressful as they seem more aware of BFed babies and weight issues, and are always really positive with her gains, which are similar to your babies. If you are BF on demand and offering both sides, theres not much more you can do, I know for me I found the whole weight issue and constant threat of formula top ups really stressful- but this is your baby and you decide how she is fed.

x

Original poster
LadyCressida · 15/07/2010 20:46

Just had our weigh in today and the switch feeding has obviously done its magic because she put on 9oz!! much better than the pathetic 1oz last week.

thanks loads for the advice guys, it saved us!

OP posts:
crikeybadger · 15/07/2010 21:05

WOW! Great news LadyC- thanks for the update.

tiktok · 16/07/2010 00:36

Good news, LadyC.

Hope you tell your HV.

Remember - instead of giving you the very simple suggestion to switch feed, she told you that you'd need formula, and to eat cake and drink guinness.

I think that's a disgrace

crikeybadger · 16/07/2010 11:49

You're right tiktok, it's terrible that somebody got better advice from a talk board than a trained healthcare professional.

tiktok · 16/07/2010 13:48

Agree, badger....what an unusual thing to happen, that a trained HCP seems unable to give up to date, effective information about bf, and instead relies on myth. Hm.

New posts on this thread. Refresh page