GP says five week old formula fed baby is being overfed

[Mybaby2027]

I really need some advice as my Husband and I have left the GP feeling confused. Baby girl is 5 weeks old, taking between 100-120ml of Aptamil every 2 hours, so 4-4.5oz. If we are out in the car or pram she will go longer. Once each night she goes 3 hours usually between 3-5am kind of time, I am guessing she must get into a deep sleep around then.

I had to take her to see the doctor yesterday about something and they came to the conclusion that she is big for her age and is overfed. She got out her calculator and calculated the amount of formula she should be having for her weight, which is 5.255kg. She said 65ml every 2 hours, and that I am way over feeding her. I have checked with my friends and family who all say their babies were on over 4oz at 5 weeks old and weighed the same roughly. The GP told me I must reduce her milk down to 65ml every 2 hours, she said she will scream, cry and hate you for it but you have to do it.

I obviously didn’t listen and I reduced it down a little bit, so yesterday after we got home she was having 90ml. She was crying and crying with her hands in her mouth constantly licking and sucking them. Today I have given in and put it back up to 120ml. Some of the bottles she’s sucked dry completely, some she only takes about 100ml. I am instead going to slowly try to extend the 2 hours and see if we can get her to go a bit longer instead, but keep offering her 120ml. My Mum is saying the advice is ridiculous and to feed the baby when she shows hunger signs and to let her have whatever amount I feel she needs right now, which is between 100-120ml.

The GP said she is greedy and is only drinking it because it is there… this logic makes no sense because when I make her up a 90ml bottle she is not satisfied at all… she is not burping a lot which is an issue we have been focusing on. We have been getting into all sorts of positions to get her to burp and I have noticed a big improvement after trying some tips my family gave me. But still… she wants the higher amount of formula so the theory about her being in discomfort because of wind and trying to sooth herself with the milk can’t be true in her case either.

She was 8.2 pounds at birth, now she is 11.5 pounds or 5.255kg. I pointed out that I have been asking every health professional since the day she was born that we have come into contact with, how much to feed? None would give me an answer and just said every baby is different and to follow their cues, like hands in mouth etc. but suddenly this lady comes out with a calculated answer. I don’t know what calculation she is using and where it is from or if recommended. She didn’t tell me which website she was referencing this info from. I don’t know what to believe.

Ignore the GP. Feeding on demand is the advice.

If baby is hungry, feed her.

If she is putting her fists in her mouth and hungry crying then feed her. Like you said nobody measures breast milk and babies are not greedy ffs.
24 years ago now but I remember being told my six month old son was on the obese line. He was an every 2,hour feeder too and this carried on until I weaned him.
He was a very cute chubby little baby, he’s 6ft 4 and being a marathon runner he doesn’t have an ounce of fat on him.

Do you do paced bottle feeding?

I am not the type to usually ignore medical advice, but I think you should tell your GP to fuck off

So I have started giving her a couple of breaks to burp, and wake her up and bit too as she gets sleepy during feeding. I always try to angle the bottle half way tipped a little as she’s a guzzler most of the time she makes loud sucking noises and her suction is very strong. The teats are mam size 0. I don’t know how to calculate her centile, I will google it now.

Breast milk is different to formula. The fore milk quenches thirst and the richer hind milk provides essential fats etc

My opinion after 2 kids is to sometimes ignore advice. You are the parent, the baby is hungry, you can feed her. She is getting formula not chocolate milk.
my second baby slept a lot and dropped on percentiles, I was immediately told to wake him in the night every 2 hours and feed him. I didn’t do this as I thought a sleeping baby is not hungry! He was chubby by 6 months! Is a healthy 4 year old now.

I had my children decades ago but I thought then the advice was that you can't overfeed a breastfed baby, but you can overfeed a formula fed baby. It's to do with the fact that babies have to work harder to get milk from the breast but with bottles it flows out easily.

There is such a huge problem with childhood obesity leading on to adult obesity, that may be why the GP was suggesting to reduce the amount given.

A lot of them aren't like that now. Most of the teats are designed to only let milk flow if a baby is actively sucking, and it's been that way for at least 9 years when I ff my first. You might get the odd drip of leakage, but not much.

Certainly my second found ff much harder work than breast (I did have a fast flow though).

If baby is hungry, fed baby is what I'd suggest. If baby is being sick a lot then maybe it's eating too much, but whether breast or bottle, most babies self regulate IMO and stop when they are full.

Here you go OP, these should be in your red book too. Maybe worth checking she's been plotted correctly and the GP wasn't basing what she was saying on a mistake if you took the red book with you to the appt?

I would understand if the advice was consistent but she is the first person to mention this to us in 5 weeks. The nicu nurses were giving her 45ml through her nose tube as she was there for 2 days. That’s a whole other story, so we just went from there and as she has got bigger the amount has had to increase as time goes on. She’s satisfied, full and having a nice nap now bless her. Managed to go 2.5 and then 3 hours this afternoon between feeds with 120ml.

For formula fed babies, advised amount at that age is 150ml/kg/day. So about 26oz in 24 hours. So that honestly does sound like over feeding.

Your go is deluded and honestly dangerous ! Not only would I ignore that ignorant creature but I would out in a formal complaint for dangerous advice regarding a infant

DC1 was 7lb at birth and I had to constantly wake for feeds every 4 hours, but was on 4oz by 5-6 weeks. However did turn out to have silent reflux and CMPA.
DC2 was 6lb at birth, small and fed every 3 hours, no waking required. Turned into an absolute Michelin baby by 8 weeks! Was also on 4oz at that age and had no reflux or CMPA.

It does depend on the baby but that doesn't seem like an alarming amount and they do go through a growth spurt between 5-6 weeks (this is based off their corrected age not actually birth, you mention NICU was she early?) it's normal for them to increase as they go through growth spurts too.

Your GP needs reporting for being so shaming in language towards a new mum and a newborn baby! They need training on the latest guidelines and how to talk to a new mum properly.

I would ignore any GP that calls a 5 week old baby greedy…
You should have a weight plotting section in her red book (if you’re in the uk) you plot their weight/height and make a dot where they join. If you can get to a baby weigh in clinic they’ll be able to do it for you.
I bottle fed my first 2, breast fed my last. My first and second were super hungry babies 1st one was 8lbs 2oz the second one was 9lbs 1oz, they were both on the 91st centile for their weight and 75th for their height.
I would continue as you are personally, with our youngest I didn’t have clue how much he was drinking but like his brothers he was a chubby little soul.
You wouldn’t know it now to look at any of them, especially the 2 that were the chubbiest babies, they are super lean!

@Iknowthatfeeling she was 41 weeks but inhaled meconium which gave us both an infection, long labour with little progression, which ended in emergency c section. She was in nicu for 2 days then we both went to a special ward where they had nicu nurses for her and midwives for me. They were feeding her through the tube in her nose for at least 3 days then it was removed. Tried breastfeeding and formula mixed as my milk production couldn’t keep up with the amount she was used to having but breastfeeding didn’t work out. I couldn’t produce anywhere near enough for her, and all advice given was different me and my husband were going insane not knowing what to follow.

If you were in NICU are you under a consultant still, or can you ask the NICU team?

The language your GP used is very unusual, it would be good to get a more specialist opinion.

You could ask for a second GP opinion if nothing else.

@concertinacornflake no both discharged she is only under health visitor but they always say to contact her GP whenever I ask them questions.

Can you switch to a formula for hungry babies?

Just a thought, could she be thirsty, it is very hot.
Try a little boiled water.

Don’t go back to that GP. Newborns aren’t greedy.

Did she take into account the heat that the UK has had recently? Baby will have needed extra fluids to cope with the heat.

Formula fed babies should be fed on demand at that age.

No. She needs formula not water. She’s far too little and too young for water.

Don't do this! Babies under 6 months old don't need water and giving them water can be dangerous. This baby is only 5 weeks old. If they are thirsty because it's hot, then more breastmilk or formula is the appropriate response.

Above all, continue with your instinct, it will serve you well. Professionals get it wrong so many times

I was a mother many moons ago and more recently a grandmother so I admit I'm out of date. As well as what everyone else has said, I echo slower teat, but also wonder about thirst. We've had such hot weather and I think I'm right in saying formula doesn't quench thirst so well. I was definitely told to offer my babies cool boiled water in the heat as well. Also- not being patronising - are you sure you're making the bottles up accurately? The amount of formula to water is crucial. (I'm sure you are, but...)