Help! LO dropping centiles

[Babydo22]

My 11 week old has been putting wait on slowly. He was 8lb 13oz when he was born which put him above the 92nd centile and he gained weight rather than losing at every weigh in during his first two weeks. He ended up with an infection when he was two weeks old and was hospitalised and after that, he's dropped down the centiles at each weigh in. His last visit with the hv was almost three weeks ago and he was on the 50th centile line. Since then, hes been on formula for a cow's milk protein allergy which he is refusing to take. Today for example he has only had 420ml over 7 feeds. The health visitor is out again on Tuesday to weigh him but I had him on my scales today and he's only put on 7oz since his last weigh in and is now just above the 25th centile. I have honestly tried everything to get him to take more milk and nothing seems to work 😭 Does anyone have any experience with their baby dropping 3 centiles and if so, what happens next?

The concern starts once they cross two percentile lines. But that may just mean a pediatric referral for a doctor to check him over and say he's fine. It might mean checking him over and a diagnosis of some kind.

The positive is that he continues to gain weight, albeit slowly. More worrying if he was losing weight.

I can’t remember time frames but my 3 last babies always caught down the centiles. When first born they were 9lbs 3ozs the next two 8lb 5ozs. The gained quickly at first then slowed right down, by 6 months they were right dish the centiles and definitely by a year. DD2 went from the 90th to the 9th I just have skinny children. You should see them now. What I’m saying is not to worry too much if he’s still gaining done weight just keep an eye on it and ask your HV or GP for advice

All 4 of mine dropped centiles but then they all started off the charts. By 9 months they were tracking were they were supposed to be. Dc2,3 and 4 dropped from the 100th to the 25th whilst still gaining weight HV not worried as they were eating, drinking, toileting well and were meeting age related milestones.

Is the formula completely DF or is it hydrolysed?

If he won't take it, try adding vanilla essence to make it more palatable.

Is he on meds for reflux as well?

Mine were big babies who then dropped right down the chart - DD1 was 10lb, and then went down to 25th centile. Tall and skinny. I did have quite a lot of grief from the HVs, who at one point were weighing her twice a week. Really unhelpful and made me anxious. She did have reflux, but was otherwise healthy, just slim.

I heard somewhere that their birth weight can come from factors to do with you/pregnancy - eg, gestational diabetes would lead to a big baby - but they then find the right weight for their own build in the long-term. DD has stayed slim throughout childhood. I wish I hadn’t had so much anxiety about her weight for all those early months.

Thank you all so much! You have reassured me massively!

@PritiPatelsMaker yeah he's on puramino. The doctor also gave him gaviscon for reflux but that was making him worse because he then became very constipated and was so uncomfortable. He's not shown many signs of having reflux other than slow weight gain. Thanks very much for the vanilla essence tip. I tried it out yesterday and he drank an extra 20ml each feed which is massive when's he's not drinking too much!

I would be wary of relying on the HV here and would see the GP - HVs cn give quite wacky advice and vary wildly. If you have concerns about weight loss just see your GP and get a proper check. Many babies drop through lines and have no issues but it can be a cause for concern.

Can really second what Ian says. Our HV gave out whacky advice and sometimes her feeding advice was completely dangerous.

He really needs to be under a Paediatrician.