Too little?

[jamb]

I was just reading the thread on bub who polishes off 240ml every 2/3 hours and thought holy crap!! My bub (4 months) seems to be a really tiny eater. Formula tin says 900ml/dayand he gets no where close to this. Based on the 150ml per kg he should have 855ml/day. He has about 650ml a day.

Quantities each feed vary- 90ml to 180ml depending on time of day. So he is falling short by about 200ml/day.

He is a happy baby, only cries when he is hungry (drinks what he wants then returns to happy self). He smiles, is alert, developing good hand/eye co-ordination, good head control- so that said I wonder if he is just a small eater? But does the lack of intake affect development as a whole??

He has is immunisation this week so will ask dr but just wanted to see what others thought.

[mumofethan]

Hi Mummajack,

As long as your son is gaining weight i wouldnt worry about it, but if you are concerned speak to your doc and he can check that bubs is up to scratch with his development... i got worried that my son wouldnt eat enough per feed at one point compaired to the tin, but my doc told me not to worry because he was still gaining weight.

:D

Michelle

[sopolicha]

I thought the same thing about that bub, how lucky!

If he is happy and healthy and sleeping and growing, I don't think I would be too worried with the amount that he is getting. Everyone has different appetites. Ask anyway.

I have a friend who's younger daughter has to be tube fed (long, sad story) and she was told by the specialists that the nutrition goes towards the brain and it's developement first anyway.

Do you think that maybe the formula companies maybe tell you that you must feed your baby this much so you use more formula? Or am I just too cynical?

[jamb]

No not too cynical at all. I think most of what we get told to do with our babies relates to "negative" issues. I haven't often been told, hey look how well he smiles, laughs, holds his head, grabs with his hand, follows you round the room with his eyes etc etc. It is- he doesn't eat or sleep enough, you shouldn't go to them everytime they cry or he won't be able to settle himself, he hasn't gained enough weight blah blah blah.

Its hard because all bubs are different yet are supposed to conform to a general standard. If they don't you panic. You kinda miss the fact that 9/10 times you have a happy bub in front of you and there is no need to worry. I believe the mums instinct is a gift.

I probably shouldnt worry, he still has alot of wet nappies, poo a day and did not get the flu off me and hubby- thank god!!

[madvoice]

I wouldn't worry one little bit. If he's happy, healthy and gaining weight and developing normally I wouldn't worry. My daughter at 11 weeks devours around 200ml of expressed breast milk in a sitting. She's just a greedy pig LOL but she's still developing normally for her age and she's not piling on the weight. It has been a steady gain. All babies are different. Some of them like to stuff themselves full or have faster metabolisms and require more feeding and others are quite the opposite :)

[Tannie]

mummajack - I had similar concerns a few weeks ago but tried not to worry about it as I believe that if a baby is well and normal - he/she will know how much they want to drink - be it breast or formula.
Also, suddenly in the last few days - she's started gulping down 200mls in about 5 mins and looking for more :eek: She was taking about 40 mins to drink about 160mls before!!! Like the others said - she was alert, happy, content, meeting developmental milestones & obviously gaining wt........

I took her for 4 month vaccinations and checkup today and she's gaining as normal........I really think the 150ml / kg/ day is just a guide and like breastfeeding bubs, they'll go through periods of more and less - as long as they are happy and healthy and gaining wt in normal way - don't stress too much ;)

A dietitian once said to me - "no normal child has ever willingly starved themselves to death...." and so this is sort of how I think of feeding children overall - sometimes I think we adults worry about it all too much - as long as we provide good nutritional quality foods and offer a variety of foods - our kids will be fine! Babies are just little humans - I trust my bub knows what she wants, how much she wants and will let me know if she's hungry - she hasn't NOT done this so far!! LOL :)

Bye,
T

[jamb]

Thanks everyone. Tannie i really like what that dietician said, top marks!!

Since I started thinking about this thread the little bugger who used to aleep right through has started taking an extra feed- at 2am :( Beggars can't be choosers I guess :p

[Tannie]

ha ha ha :D Yes - just to surprise me, my bubby went to bed at 7.30pm and slept through until 6.30am this morning without waking for a feed too!!! So maybe she's over her feeding frenzy for a while and is going back to a more "normal" amount again too!
Oh - another one that I LOVE and repeat to myself frequently:
"babies are unpredictable.............." ;)

Pleased things are sorting out or that you are feeling a bit more relaxed about it - yep - instinct is a great thing and I was finding motherhood quite an overwhelming experience until one day I looked at her and thought "my god - I'm an idiot - she isn't just a 'baby' - she is a little person!! with feelings and emotions and needs and wants.......she's just like me really!! Just communicates a bit differently" somehow I had given her this mysterious "baby" tag which implied that she was some sort of alien :eek: LOL After that "lightbulb moment" - things really settled down here and I'm much more chilled out and happy and so is she.........

All the best,
T