Baby gaining too much weight

[Imtootired]

My baby is eight weeks now and since he was about one or two weeks he has been gaining 500g per week. At first I thought it was just a growth spurt and it would even out but it’s still happening and he’s jumping up percentile lines. I’m breastfeeding him. I think I’ve definitely been over feeding him at night during his “witching hour” when he’s probably been showing signs of being overtired and needing to burp but I’ve been feeding him to try and settle him. It’s really hard when you’re breastfeeding and they cry and you just want to give that comfort. If he was on formula at least I would have known how much he should be having and if he was having too much. I just got him some dummies so hopefully that will help settle him and I download an app to track how many feeds we actually do. I was maybe too relaxed thinking I’ll just go with the flow in the “fourth trimester”. I haven’t been eating heaps and I’m slim/average weight but haven’t lost all weight from pregnancy so it’s not like he’s getting all my calories. If it’s still happening in two weeks the child health nurse will refer us to a paediatrician for tests. I don’t know what it could be. Hopefully I’ve just been over feeding him and it’s not a medical issue. He’s now eight weeks and almost 7kg. The child health nurse said he’s the size of a four month old and he is double the size of my older son at his age. He’s in the third size for clothes and nappies. He’s not actually really chubby he’s getting longer too. Has anyone had this experience????? I thought you couldn’t over feed a breastfed baby

How many percentiles has your child increased?

My breastfed DD went from just under 50th at birth to 98th, which also coincided with her height jumping from about 20th percentile at birth up to 95th! Do you know his height percentile?

Also if he's happy and healthy and feeding well and meeting milestones then I wouldn't be worried. Weight is such a nebulous thing at this age.

I dont think you can I overfeed a breastfed baby. You certainly dont put an 8 week old on a diet. What was his birth weight?

I'm assuming you arent in the UK but nhs says this:

Don't worry about feeding your baby whenever either of you wants. You can't overfeed a breastfed baby, and your baby won't become spoilt or demanding if you feed them whenever they're hungry or need comfort.

Don't cut down on his feeds. Wait to see if he does need referral to a paediatrician and then see what the paediatrician says. How many centile lines has he crossed?

I think this is fairly normal isn't it for breastfed babies.
My first went from 9th percentile to 50th and second went from 25th to 75th, I think.
My second was wearing 3-6months clothes by the time he was 2months old.

Thanks everyone. He was 3.6 at birth. He’s gone from around average to being 97th percentile for height and 85th for weight and head circumference at six week checkup. I didn’t get him length done today but he’s still gaining around 500g per week so he’s probably past the 97th percentile now. I’m average height and his dad is around six feet so not incredibly tall.

This is a growth chart with dots for his weight on it

My lb went from 9th percentile to 75th, then he stayed at 75th and is still there now (12 months old) i think they only worry if its ongoing at 99th centile

You cannot overfeed a breastfed baby. Stop worrying about it if he's otherwise healthy and feed on demand.

Wouldn’t worry about those jumps at all OP

It sounds like he's just large all over. My DD has been 98th percentile for ages and no one has even commented on it, other than to note she is also tall as I asked them to measure her recently for car seat purposes. Definitely don't change your feeding schedule or anything like that. Breastfed babies are meant to feed on demand as breastmilk is digested a lot more quickly than formula.

Mine jumped up a lot when small and breastfeed but then later on settled out and did actually drop a bit. You can't over feed an exclusively breastfed Baby.just keep going youre doung fine

Sorry I don’t think my post about his length percentile made any sense. I meant he’s definitely above 85th for weight now. But he’s always getting bigger and doesn’t look too chubby so it’s probably in relation to his height, which might be more than 97th percentile now. And from the graph I posted it looks like he’s in the top percentile for weight. Thanks everyone for saying not to worry. I’ve been feeling so grateful that he’s so healthy and everything has been going so well for us, but was starting to get a bit worried about this after talking to the child health nurse today. Hopefully everything is good.

I dont think you can over feed a breastfed baby. Does he have any formula at all?
If he seems happy and healthy, i wouldn't reduce his number of feeds. He's only 8 weeks old.

Op
My DD2 went from 9th percentile to 99th in under 4 months.... ! Same for height.
I was also EBF but also expressed and noticed she was having a lot. I'm small at 5' 2" and DH is 5'11".
We went to a specialist and he said: the weight at birth is related to the mums size; mum is clearly very small (his words). Since then baby is achieving her genetic potential, her height was also in line with her weight gain. Anyway, she's a very tall child...same size as her sister. It's nothing to worry about.
Also, you can't put a bf baby on a diet. Or any other kind of fed baby. I did wean early at 5.5 months when she was looking longingly at dd1 cereal and then grabbed it and put her face straight in it....

I’m not planning to actually reduce feeds during the day like when he wakes up from a nap for example. I’m just going to keep track of them with an app. And when he’s unsettled and overtired at night I’ll try rocking him and patting his bum instead of always just putting him on the breast. He sometimes doesn’t sleep from around 6-12 , maybe because that’s when I’m making dinner getting my older son off to bed and then after all that he’s overtired and in a bad routine. Tonight I was doing it again. He was crying so I was feeding him and he was getting more upset but then I burped him and he spat up a bit of milk and then I patted him off to sleep. I need to be a bit better at reading his cues I think.

My breastfed baby once put 18 oz on in a week!

He was huge, lovely baby rolls! I was so proud of my body for feeding him!

He's 4 now and on 25th centile for weight and 50th for height!

You can't over feed a breastfed baby.

I am another who gave birth to a 9th percentile baby for both height and weight. She then steadily climbed in a nice straight line eventually hitting the bottom of the 75th percentile for weight and the top of it for height, at that point it levelled off and she has remained there.

Thanks it’s great to hear everyone’s stories about their big babies being fine. I’m just hoping it starts to slow down soon because 500g is around 18 ounces and he’s gaining that every week, which is more than double the average. Maybe I should have had twins

Apparently breastfed babies can put on weight faster than formula fed babies in the 1st 4 months but then it slows down

That's interesting @RobinHobb as I'm 5'2 and DP 6ft.
My two have stayed on the percentile they got to by 3months, so shot up percentiles and then stayed there.

Googling suggests breastfed babies put on faster in first 3 months and then it tapers off and then formula fed babies then put on faster at that point

My son used to put a pound a week on and the Hv used to suck her teeth and ask what he was being fed.
He's just a big lad. Hes 19 now and 6 foot 7!