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.

This reminds me of Wen the health visitor years ago told me that my baby was underweight she was entirely breasted, it wasn’t till years later that it came out that all the figures that the Health and Doctors were using were only based on formula fed babies which do tend to run to fat. I would speak to a health visitor but also. Baby shouldn’t look really fat so much we see on social media really fat overstaffed babies you know if your babies is the right weight or not sure.

I have found all of the advice here really comforting and reassuring! Thank you 🙏 🌺

Well not exactly. Breast milk isn’t the same as formula and formula babies tend to gain more weight especially in the first few months than breastfed babies. While they may be similar calorie wise, proteins etc make them different in terms of weight gain.

Babies also want to comfort suck so it isn’t always hunger when hands are in mouths.

I think it maybe sounds like too much formula early on and baby is now drinking too much.

Weight gain of 3lbs is on the higher side of average and it’s easy to overfeed a bottle fed baby.

I think the doctor probably very poorly was trying to say this to you and suggest you don’t overfeed.

Gp here. Not read the full thread.

Did you go to the GP about reflux?

Babies need 150ml per 1kg weight over 24 hours.
So baby needs 150ml x 5.255 = 788.25ml over 24 hours, or 26 ounces in 24 hours
If you feed every 4 hours, that would mean baby needs roughly 6 ounces. If it's every 2 hours then it's roughly 3 ounces.

Any more than that and baby is being over fed. They will throw up the extra as they can't digest it, so will vomit, have 'reflux'

Some babies are 'greedy' in that they are always hungry but can't physically digest that much milk. Or parents interpret every cry as hunger and stick a bottle in their mouth, when they actually just want to be held etc. Some grandparents are 'against' a baby having needs and encourage them to be overfed so they are quiet and not needing to be held all the time.

Greedy? What a fucking quack.

Don't listen to her.

If your baby is taking 100-120ml aptimil every 2 hours that is

1200- 1440mls in 24 hours. Which is around 229-275mls per kg per day. Which means yes you are overfeeding the baby.

Which goes to show why you should listen to your GP and not randoms on the internet.

It's easy to do, you are doing a good job. Just reduce the amount of milk a bit. baby doesn't need so much milk and might be crying because they want you to hold them. Book in with the HV and discuss it with them

You should be ashamed of yourself. You are advising a vulnerable new Mum to ignore accurate and correct advice from a health professional which may cause harm to her baby.

Think before you post!

Are you paced bottle feeding? Holding her slightly upright, keeping the bottle almost horizontal so that she has to actively suck to get milk, not tipping her back and holding the bottle at a 45° angle so the teat is always full of milk. Babies are not greedy, but they do feed for comfort as well as hunger, and if you aren’t paced feeding it’s very easy to over feed. A dummy is also useful to make sure she’s not getting milk when she actually just wants a cuddle and to suck for comfort. Following feeding cues is important, but again it’s important to give her chance to comfort suck, not always have a 4oz bottle of milk.

Has she shot up the centiles? Or is her weight gain following a steady curve? Bear in mind her stomach is actually only tiny, which is why babies feed often, and a 4oz bottle is a lot to give every two hours.

No water before 6 months, for the first 6 months baby should only have breastmilk or correctly prepared formula.

Babies tracking along a higher percentile have an inceased weight, that's why they are a higher centile. So will be 5kg, rather than 4kg. That's why the formula guide is per kg. A 5 kg baby needs more than a 4kg baby, but they both need 150mls/kg/day

No boiled water under one is the advice now I think but stand to be corrected. Fed until full ,the GP is mad using terms like greedy ,wtf?!

The GP gave the correct advice. Where's your medical degree from? Advising someone to complain about the correct medical advice given and to ignore it and overfeed the baby is awful

Water is ok from 6 months and can be given without being boiled from then.

Yes! I tried to dream feed ds once and I still remember he wasn't having any of it. He was prem and I just fed on demand.

How to undermine a new mother! What an awful GP.
I breastfed on demand, much of it sicked up afterwards. Both were bonny babies. I can’t imagine what I’d say if a so-called health expert had criticised my routine.

Oh, hush.

Any doctor who advises "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" is a fool. This is a five-week-old baby.

Formula fed babies under 6 months of age may need small sips of cooled boiled water during hot weather as well as their usual milk feeds.

https://www.nhs.uk/baby/weaning-and-feeding/drinks-and-cups-for-babies-and-young-children/

Poor OP. On a thread about dealing with confusing/poor advice, people can't be bothered to check their facts before posting more shit advice.

65l is 2 ounces, which is the correct amount for the baby to get, as outlined above.

We only have what the op said happened. I imagine OP said something like: but if I only give that baby will be hungry and cry and hate me, and the GP said: they might be but you need to feed correctly and not overfeed.

Honestly reading these replies I despair. It's hard enough giving people advice they don't want to hear without silly internet armchair doctors advising they ignore safe advice and complain about it.

I didn’t say anything like that to the GP, the words I wrote were the words that came out of her mouth, she was talking 100 miles an hour so we didn’t really get time to interrupt. She told us to immediately cut down to 65ml, I knew in my mind I would try to cut it down a bit but not to 65ml! You are very rude in the way you are writing here, a perfect example of a GP with no bedside manner. I am wondering if you understand how to speak to patients and new Mums? Do they not train healthcare professionals in this anymore as the treatment and advice I have had has been shocking. If you have nothing helpful to add to the thread don’t comment. I know the calculations for formula now, but surely every baby is different, if you bothered to read the thread the nurses at the hospital were feeding her quite a lot of formula to begin with. I asked many times how to know how much to feed and no NHS staff would confirm, they just said every baby is different and follow their cues. I do cuddle my baby thank you, I am following her hunger cues and have got to know her quite well over the past 5 weeks, much better than you!

Sometimes it’s about realising every baby is different and also it is about how you say something. Some medical staff need more training on this. I work for the NHS myself and have done for 10 years. Telling parents to half a baby’s feed amount cold turkey is terrible and dangerous advice, especially in a heatwave, she could just be thirsty it’s been really hot since she was born too, so who knows.

They were telling you what the correct amount to feed your baby was. Which is in your babies best interest. You came to them for medical advice, they gave it, you are upset as they didn't tell you what you wanted to hear.

The reason I am annoyed is all the posters giving inappropriate advice and undermining your GP!

Anyway, I don't want to argue with a new Mum so feed your baby a bit less and enjoy them. Use your instincts and listen to what healthcare professionals are telling you, they almost always will want to give you the correct advice and for you both to be well and thrive

I would speak to your health visitor.

They should be able to give you some safe and detailed advice rather than this Google-it GP.

Your GP sounds like an idiot. Fancy calling a newborn greedy! I mean WTF? She is telling you she’s hungry - we demand fed ours and was told “if she drains 4oz, give her 5oz and if she drains that, give her 6oz”. Well she was on 8oz at 8 weeks, so about the same. (She actually has a malabsorption disorder so was and is still underweight at 15, but that’s a different kettle of fish).

Your GP is not a paediatrician or a Health Visitor so he (I’m assuming it was a male, probably ‘experienced’ - aka, older - doctor) can do one. She’s your daughter and you know her best.

You're doing a great job! It is hard being a first time mum, especially when so called “professionals” give you stupid advice.

All of mine were formula fed (oldest is 11) and the first two fed absolutely loads. And in all honesty they very very fat babies, up until about 12-18 months - to the point that strangers would comment on it! They are all now quite tall and broad for their age, but also very lean. However even if they weren’t, I’d still never regret not letting my young baby go hungry.

My oldest was in NICU due to similar complications and he was taking 60mls every 2 hours at 7 days. The nurses just told me to make his bottles to 80mls instead, as they said it was better that there was milk left after each feed instead of him still being hungry.

At his 6 week check the GP did say he was overweight and that we needed to monitor it, however I paid no attention and nothing about his weight was ever mentioned again.