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.

The best way to check if a baby is growing healthily is to track their weight on a growth chart - your HV should’ve shown you how to do this. Is she tracking on the same centile line?

not sure if it’s helpful to compare bf babies eating as much as they’d like vs formula as breastfed babies can self regulate whereas with ff there is a risk of over feeding. Look at responsive feeding advice.

Is she following her centile line? My little boy was on 100ml bottles (expressed breast milk not formula but can't be that different for quantities surely) at 5 weeks and we put him up to 120ml at 6 weeks because he was hungry. We were under the infant feeding team until he was 6 weeks old because he lost a lot of weight at birth and took a long time to regain, they were happy with these amounts. He's followed his centile line perfectly ever since. Some babies are just hungrier, I'd just completely ignore the GP personally. A bit like the lectures you get if you admit you cosleep - sometimes it's just better to agree with them and carry on as you are!

Bf babies self regulate and come off breast when full. No need for parent to know the volume. Weight gain and wet and dirty nappies are your measures of healthy feeding.

I’ve just checked her chart and it seems to be tracking along the 91st percentile since birth.

With breastfeeding, the rate of milk varies throughout the feeding cycle as does composition, plus babies can flutter suck for comfort if they are ‘sucky’ babies, which doesn’t stimulate milk letdown the same way. With a bottle, the milk flow rate and composition is fixed and sucking will generally always result in milk, even comfort sucking.

OP I got this from NICU community team after a two week stay with a preemie baby who was tube fed. My HV was fantastic told us to ignore them, that you can’t over feed at that age and some babies are just hungry. Just ignore the GP and if they use the words ‘greedy’ again I’d be asking why they are ok using food shaming language for a tiny baby.

Yes, exactly. All of mine would comfort suck for bloody hours, long after the milk had stopped flowing.

I think the crux of the issue here is-
Is your baby having any problems relating to the feeds? Why did you go to the Gp? If shes fine then just carry on as you were. You cant let your baby go hungry.

Im a Paediatricic consultant. We are taught that formula fed babies can be over fed We do see some quite overweight babies. We also see babies who vomit after feeds and this can be over feeding. Neither of these sound like your baby.

At 5 weeks they can feed 150ml per kg of weight (i.e. x her weight) per 24 hours. Or 180mls/kg /day. Or 200ml/kg/day- this would be on tbe higher side. This is a very medicalised calculation based on when we need to work out how much infants need in terms of fluid and calories- its only needed when its needed if you see what I mean. For example if a baby is admired to hospital and we need to calculate how much milk to feed them.

If your baby has no issues then just ignore the advice. X

So OP is feeding far in excess of the upper guideline. There may not be any issues now but there are risks to over feeding.

Surely though if OP was over feeding, her baby would be constantly vomming after feeds which doesn't seem to be the case?

I also imagine that some babies will fall just outside the guidelines either way when it comes to formula because babies are all different.

Remember hands in mouth is part of a bsbiesdevelopment - not always a sighn of hunger. She sounds like she is doing well as are you. Dont always listen to the experts. You will become your own expert in your baby over time.

Well there you are then, if she’s tracking a line it’s fine and she can’t be overfed.
She’s a big baby so will need more milk than an average sized baby her age

I fed my son two hourly until he was six months, albeit breast fed. Had rolls of gorgeous chubbiness, fed on demand, all good. He's now 25, tall and slim and very healthy. Trust your gut but GPs are renowned for not knowing enough about new babies. Speak to the health visitor.

My baby was off the scale weight and height wise and was breastfed and I had one stupid Peadiatrician tell me he was overweight and eating too much but gp told me a baby isn’t greedy and if he ate too much he’d just throw it back up. He was the biggest toddler in nursery and now he’s 6ft 6 and built like a rugby player at 15 years old so clearly was always going to be tall 😂

Just feed your baby on demand. 5 weeks is still really young. How did it even come about with the GP? There's HV in the baby clinics for this type of thing and usually weigh.

so she was born around 75th percentile for weight and is continuing along her line by your figures.

Feed estimates are usually 150mls/kg/day = 788mls per day - based on 3 hourly feeds should be just under 100mls per feed.

If you went to the GP concerned she is vomiting back feeds, being unsettled or in discomfort after feeds then yes the GP is right she needs to be fed less.

Otherwise her weight tracking suggests she is being fed correctly as her weight is stable.

You know your child - having said that don’t dismiss your health professionals - overfed babies become overfed children become obese adults.

Obesity is real - it’s a real issue and most parents don’t see it coming and by the time they accept they have an obese child it’s very difficult to manage leaving children with the prospect of very serious health issues as they become teenagers/adults.

Tracking the 91st ce tile for weight is great. My DN tracked the 98th for weight and height and is slim and tall as an adult.

Definitely don’t deny her feeds and work in getting those calories in her during the daylight hours.

Do you know what height centile she was born on?

GPs are very knowledgeable about lots of health concerns. However, I wouldn't trust their word on feeding babies. Health Visitors and Midwives are the ones trained and qualified in this particular area. The advice seems off to me too, the GP is essentially saying your tiny baby is greedy and needs to go on a diet, she will scream with hunger but never mind.

When it’s hot babies need more fluids and drink more. It can throw off calculations meant for more average temperatures.

@UkeleleOrchestra that is exactly what I thought

We went to the doctors because she keeps getting a blue tinge above her top lip when feeding and also because she is difficult to burp. I had been told the two were related by my Mum, but then when I googled the blue colouring it said it could be concerning, and needs to be checked out. The doctor said it can happen sometimes around feeding issues. She is sick a tiny bit, but since we have really focused on burping her more, in all different positions the sick has stopped. It was only ever a tiny bit, more like spit up rather than sick. My worry was reflux but she said over feeding is the cause….

I am happy to reduce her milk a little bit and see how she gets on but there is no way I would go from 120 down to 65. That is irresponsible advice on her part. I will also try the paced feeding suggestions. Does anyone have any burping tricks? Again every health care worker I have asked has actually said not all babies need to burp. So who knows what to believe.

I would agree that not all babies need to burp - if you aren’t noticing discomfort after feeding I would consider that fine in one of mine.

the blue tinge sounds more worrying (I’m not a HCP) but if baby his hitting all other milestones and seems as content as the avg baby I wouldn’t panic. I think ‘over feeding’ doesn’t sound like a valid explanation either.

A baby that young hs no notion of being 'greedy'. Some take in more than others. Mine yanked the top off a bottle with over enthusiastic consumption when he was just a little older than yours! He did used to get awful wind as a result though. Apparently I was the same!

Listen to your mum
The GP is a prick
Feed your baby on demand