Help, DS lost a bit of weight and worrying about it!

[MrsDickie]

DS is 8 months mid September and is a jolly, active little charmer who is (apart from your average colds picked up at nursery) generally in good health...and is 17lb 11oz so not exactly fading away. Problem is that today I got a bit of a shock when I took him up to the baby clinic to get weighed as he's lost a couple of oz's from when I got him weighed at the beginning of August. Fortunately I'd forgotten the book. (not wishing to experience a stampede of well-meaning medical professionals to my door).

Particularly as (admittedly) my experiences are rather coloured by what felt like an HV intervention when my milk started to die off in April, and I know that weaning really doesn't help with weight gain even though he'd gone onto formula, i was wondering if there was something I could do about this. He seems to eat enough to satisfy his appetite and no more, even though he has been wholly on the devils work sorry, formula since late May.

DS has also only just clicked as to what to do with finger foods - so it's been purees to start with because he was genuinely hungry but would be in a right old soup of frustration and hunger before he could get enough into himself to take the edge off. He was very ready but up until recently hunger seemed to "grab" him at the last minute so 1 minute you'd be "Ooh, lovely happy baby" and then it's 42 kinds of hell all at once...

I've got to be honest, 2 colds in the last month, teething and a complete inability to not roll terrifying distances at light speed (or attempt to crawl - he's now almost permanently on his hands and knees - and rolls when he want's to be somewhere quickly) I actually don't know how to get enough calories into him. He's eating about 600ml of formula (Hipp First) and having 3 puree/finger food meals a day so technically he's certainly eating plenty (though clearly not enough for a baby of his size and level of activity.

I can get him to eat fruit and veg stuff, porridge/breakfast stuff and pasta - but meat and cheese (Even in innocous babyfood form) are verboten at the moment, and having a demanding full-time job, a nasty back injury and a flat the size of a postage stamp means I don't have the hours (or enough plastic sheets) to spare to dedicate to full-on BLW and would appreciate the input of some MN's who've been through a similar experience. His digestion is fine, his moods are great, it's just I don't want to miss something - change formula? change foods? Not panicking..yet

I think you are panicking over nothing MrsDickle. A couple of ounces is very little and as you say, he has become much more active now.

Is he bright and alert at times? Are you getting enough wet and dirty nappies? Is he waking often for milk in the night? If he's not getting enough going in, you won't get enough coming out .

If you can try to concentrate on how much he is having and when. 600ml is the recommended amount from 6 months to 12 months, so there aren't many worries there although if you could get some extra in that may be good, but don't force it, let him set his own pace. Also are you giving him his milk an hour before solids, so that he gets enough?

I had the same thing once and they eventually admitted that the scales had been wrong.

Try to relax and take him back when you can to get him weighed again.

Scales in baby clinics cannot be expected to be super accurate. 2 oz is nothing in the context of a baby (or anything else :)) weighing almost 18 pounds. He's clearly healthy and thriving. He may have lost 2 oz, he may have stayed the same, he may have gained 2 oz. Without lab-quality scales, you can't know! Or maybe the weight last time was a bit out. Honestly, with a baby who is clearly active and developing just fine, I can't see the problem.

There is no need to weigh babies over six months more often than once every 2 mths - tops. This is standard guidance.

I think it sounds like you have an ongoing anxiety about the intervention in April and this has affected your confidence. Check with your HV, but don't let her make you feel this is all a problem.

Thanks (I've had a name change too BTW) I feel so much better. The Hungry baby/BF going breasts aloft thing did freak me out horribly and though I really genuinely do like my HV, I really don't want to go through that again. Er, cheers...

PS the hour between milk feed and food feed thing is also working a treat.

Thanks x