How are you squeezing in the extra cals with mobile babies?

Rosebud2587 · August 2012

Just got back from DD's 9m check up. She's 27" and 15lbs 12oz. Apparently she dropped off the charts for weight and they are concerned so we need to come back in a month for a weight check. I was so upset when they told me she isn't getting enough calories and that I should start formula feeding cause apparently I'm starving my kid.

She nurses every 3-4 hrs during the day and every 1-2 hrs at night. She also eats 4-6oz of baby food mixed with cereal 3x/day and has finger foods/snacks about every hr during the day. My kid eats like a cow. Where am I supposed to squeeze in extra calories?

smilelari · August 2012

We had some of this with DS. Did she drop off of her own growth curve? Really they should only measure her against herself. I'd be tempted to back off on the solids and try to get her to nurse more frequently during the day. I'd also focus on calorie dense solids - dairy, avocado, meat

Rosebud2587 · August 2012

smilelari:
We had some of this with DS. Did she drop off of her own growth curve? Really they should only measure her against herself. I'd be tempted to back off on the solids and try to get her to nurse more frequently during the day. I'd also focus on calorie dense solids - dairy, avocado, meat

She went from 33% to 5% so I'm assuming her own curve but I don't know. The pedi told me to give her more solids and that maybe it's time to quit nursing and start formula feeding. That got me really upset. She already eat's a lot of meat and dairy but I'll start giving her avocado as well.

smilelari · August 2012

Rosebud2587:
smilelari:
We had some of this with DS. Did she drop off of her own growth curve? Really they should only measure her against herself. I'd be tempted to back off on the solids and try to get her to nurse more frequently during the day. I'd also focus on calorie dense solids - dairy, avocado, meat

She went from 33% to 5% so I'm assuming her own curve but I don't know. The pedi told me to give her more solids and that maybe it's time to quit nursing and start formula feeding. That got me really upset. She already eat's a lot of meat and dairy but I'll start giving her avocado as well.

The calorie content of formula should be similar to the calorie content of BM, so unless they have you mixing the formula thicker than normal, the only advantage is that you'll know how much she's consuming.

This is all very similar. DS fell from like the 32nd to the 2nd percentile on the CDC growth charts and fell off his own curve. We went for weight checks pretty frequently for a while. We were already formula feeding some at that point, so obviously that didn't help :P

My motto is, when in doubt, go for a second opinion

lkm2006 · August 2012

Before switching, I work pump and bottle feed for a couple of days so you can watch how much she is eating.

DS is FF so ignore if that sounds like terrible advice, I'm only thinking what I would want to do in that situation. It just seems silly switching to formula at this point. Especially bc unless it's a special formula, it wouldn't be much different than BM.

Also, I have no idea if this is for older babies or not, but could you offer a sippy cup of pedisure?

LittleMommaBlueHen · August 2012

lkm2006:
Before switching, I work pump and bottle feed for a couple of days so you can watch how much she is eating. DS is FF so ignore if that sounds like terrible advice, I'm only thinking what I would want to do in that situation. It just seems silly switching to formula at this point. Especially bc unless it's a special formula, it wouldn't be much different than BM. Also, I have no idea if this is for older babies or not, but could you offer a sippy cup of pedisure?

Don't do pediasure unless a pediatrician tells you to. It is grosser than gross. When I refused to give it to DS per recommendation of the pediatric dietician, my pediatrician backed me up and DS was FTT and wasn't even in a percentile. Do follow smilelari's advice about calorie dense food. Whole fat yogurt is a good one. The dietician had us add oils to DS's veggies (butter or olive oil)

I would try and nurse more often before supplementing. Also meeting with an IBCLC might be worth your while if your pediatrician isn't particularly BF friendly. Also, if you live near a children's hospital, many of them offer nutrition services free of charge with a referral.

NineTwentyOhEight · August 2012

I would not pump for a few days, it might mess with your supply and it won't tell you anything anyway. If the pedi is implying that your supply is tanking, I would also give that the side eye if you've never had supply issues and it sounds like LO is nursing well. See if you can rent or borrow a medical grade baby scale so you can do weighted nursings for a few days if that will reassure you that she's getting enough.

We do yogurt smoothies in straw cups and my DD loves them - I mix whole fat yogurt with some fruit/veggie puree and she has that with her meals.

Also, we do peanut butter, but I know that is controversial. And my daughter loves avocado.

I would second adding healthy fats to veggies like olive oil or other oils or butter.

If it makes you feel any better, my daughter was 30 inches and 16lbs 5 oz at her 9 month checkup, so she's little too...

smilelari · August 2012

NineTwentyOhEight:
I would not pump for a few days, it might mess with your supply and it won't tell you anything anyway. If the pedi is implying that your supply is tanking, I would also give that the side eye if you've never had supply issues and it sounds like LO is nursing well. See if you can rent or borrow a medical grade baby scale so you can do weighted nursings for a few days if that will reassure you that she's getting enough.
We do yogurt smoothies in straw cups and my DD loves them - I mix whole fat yogurt with some fruit/veggie puree and she has that with her meals.
Also, we do peanut butter, but I know that is controversial. And my daughter loves avocado.
I would second adding healthy fats to veggies like olive oil or other oils or butter.
If it makes you feel any better, my daughter was 30 inches and 16lbs 5 oz at her 9 month checkup, so she's little too...

Mine was 16.2 lbs (16 lb 3 oz) and 27.5"

LittleMommaBlueHen · August 2012

smilelari:
NineTwentyOhEight:
I would not pump for a few days, it might mess with your supply and it won't tell you anything anyway. If the pedi is implying that your supply is tanking, I would also give that the side eye if you've never had supply issues and it sounds like LO is nursing well. See if you can rent or borrow a medical grade baby scale so you can do weighted nursings for a few days if that will reassure you that she's getting enough.
We do yogurt smoothies in straw cups and my DD loves them - I mix whole fat yogurt with some fruit/veggie puree and she has that with her meals.
Also, we do peanut butter, but I know that is controversial. And my daughter loves avocado.
I would second adding healthy fats to veggies like olive oil or other oils or butter.
If it makes you feel any better, my daughter was 30 inches and 16lbs 5 oz at her 9 month checkup, so she's little too...
Mine was 16.2 lbs (16 lb 3 oz) and 27.5"

DD was just at 16 lbs when I called in her formula prescription. Looks like there a lot of small babies around.

magel050485 · August 2012

Honestly, if she is hitting all of her milestones and is happy I wouldn't worry too much. our pedi told us that between 6-9 months almost every baby falls off of their own curve because they become so mobile. DS went from the 50%-ile to the 20%-ile and the pedi said to expect him to drop even lower at his 12 month. He's happy and healthy. He eats a lot and has a well balanced diet. He just is on the move constantly. The same thing would happen to us if we went from a primarily sedentary lifestyle and then became very active.

Natty13umppo · August 2012

I was there a couple months ago.... DD barely gained (like 4-6oz?) from 4-6months and then lost all that from 6-7months (went from like 70% at 4 months to <10% at 7 months or something?).

My pedi never suggested stopping BFing....she did suggest supplementing with formula or cereal/fruit to get extra calories. Instead of cereal/fruit (which we did some of), I worked more on feeding her full fat yogurt (with fruit) and avocado and other food. Drizzling olive oil on food is also a good idea.

The other thing I would recommend (and I know another PP recommended) is to see a lactation consultant. I was sooooooooo freaked out that DD could lose weight while nursing on demand that I was worried something was wrong with my milk. With the LC we did a weighted feed and then the LC actually did a calorie count on my milk!!!! It was super cool. So based on that info, we averaged how many calories DD was getting based on her nursing habits alone. The LC also had me keep a food journal for DD for a week so we wrote down everything she ate and counted up those calories + average daily nursing calories. Little bits of high calorie food can add up quickly (which is a good thing).

DD starting solids was a little slow.....I couldn't make her eat. But now she eats a lot and her weight has improved a lot. (We had our 9 mo appt at 8 mo b/c of her weight issues and she was up to ~18%)

*hugs!* I know it's hard with baby weight issues. Keep nursing. Remember your LO is probably just super active right now and burning a lot of calories, too. Try adding some calorie rich solids - full fat yogurt, avocado, olive oil. Good luck!!

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