Pediatrician Baby Weight Issues

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Please do not mess around with this. Your pediatrician is an expert and telling you this for a reason. This is your first lesson in parenting the child you have, not the child you want. I would add more formula or switch to a higher calorie formula.

This 100%

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’m not sure why you or your husband think you know better than a pediatrician. They used their medical degree and experience to tell you the best thing to do to keep your baby healthy. Find a pediatrician you trust and then listen to them. You are literally first time parents thinking you know better. 🤦‍♀️

This is a terrible attitude! Doctors are not above being questioned. Always advocate for your kids!

Trust me lady, I have a medically fragile child and have done a lot more advocacy than you. There is literally no reason to push back on this.

Asking questions and seeking opinions is not pushing back, and it is always ok. You have no idea if this poster had a good pediatrician or one who was having a bad day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please do not mess around with this. Your pediatrician is an expert and telling you this for a reason. This is your first lesson in parenting the child you have, not the child you want. I would add more formula or switch to a higher calorie formula.

This 100%

Not sure how you’re getting this from the info the poster provided which makes it clear the ped was being lazy just looking at percentile and not the complete history of gain.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Please do not mess around with this. Your pediatrician is an expert and telling you this for a reason. This is your first lesson in parenting the child you have, not the child you want. I would add more formula or switch to a higher calorie formula.

This 100%

Plus to this as well my son was like this and when pediatrician said add more feeds, I did.
Will it kill you to add another bottle and see how it goes after a week? Babies are small they need to gain weight to meet milestones and …grow. I listen to my pediatricians y’all should too it’s not like they’re not trying to recommend what is best. P

[Anonymous]

Not sure if you should be concerned, but for comparison my daughter was born at 7 lbs 8 oz and was 8 pounds 4 oz at 2 weeks. I’m small (5’3 and 100 lbs) and my husband is tall and skinny (6’1 and 170). I wouldn’t listen too much to this one ped (based on what you wrote), but if you get this feedback from another ped then I’d take it seriously.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What’s the percentile curve look like?

Baby has dropped from 54th percentile at birth to 40th percentile at 8 weeks.

It’s not a huge drop, but it sounds like the ped is watching it. You can have a small baby or a huge baby. The key is not what they weigh, per se, but that they’re tracking on the growth curve. What you don’t want to see is a drop.

[Anonymous]

What is the ped's incentive to tell you this? Normally the complaint goes "my ped doesn't think this is a problem/isn't taking us seriously". Why would they tell you this is a problem when it isn't? They have seen it all. Listen to them.

[Anonymous]

Just try adding one more feed and see if that helps. I get that it is stressful. I felt harangued by my ped—my baby did not gain back birthweight until 3 weeks, I think? He gained but not “enough” for weeks after that. We had to come in for daily weight checks for awhile and I felt terrible. He is now 17 and in the 1% percentile for weight...so still crazily skinny and TBH it’s still a source of stress. If you can get more weight on your baby it is really good. It gives more margin if the baby gets sick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m a FTM and I have an 8 week old. We had his 8 week appointment today and the pediatrician told us we need to get his weight up. He was born full-term but didn’t gain much weight in the first two weeks due to low supply and hard to feed because he was sleepy ( no jaundice). He has been gaining weight but he is small for his age. He is combo fed ( 20oz of breastmilk, 8-12oz of formula) and eats 4oz 7-8 times a day. He has plenty of wet and dirty diapers. He is sleeping well, happy, and healthy. I’m worried and partially annoyed because I feel like we are doing all that we can. The pediatrician suggested adding in another feeding or switching to a higher calorie formula. My husband thinks we should keep doing what we’re doing and find a new pediatrician. Any experience with this situation? Should we get a second opinion?


Stats - Born 9/18/2021

BW- 7lbs 14, H - 20in
Day 3 - 7lbs 2oz
W2 - 7lbs 7oz
W3 - 7lbs 14oz
W4 - 8lbs 9oz
W8 - 10lbs 14oz, H - 22.5in

What makes you say this? He’s in the 40th percentile for weight right now. And why is your husband challenging this recommendation? Sounds like he’s taking it personally, as if the pediatrician is judging you. If the baby needs an extra feed, give it. I’m not understanding what the issue is with this pediatrician.

[Anonymous]

My chubby babies were eating more like 12x a day. Don't let your baby go more than 4 hours at night. Wake him up.

3lbs in 2 months sounds like nothing to me. Have you looked at a weight percentile chart? Is baby falling of their own chart?

If baby is falling asleep they may not be getting the fatty hindmilk

[Anonymous]

I'm wondering if you have lower milk fat and the pumping is not reaching the hind milk. Also, if baby is hungry at the breast s/he will work harder and get more hind milk

[Anonymous]

Interesting. My son was born at 8 lbs and was 12,6 at his 2m appt. My second son was 7,11 at birth and 12,5 at his 2m appt. Neither pediatrician (different practices) ever expressed concern.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Interesting. My son was born at 8 lbs and was 12,6 at his 2m appt. My second son was 7,11 at birth and 12,5 at his 2m appt. Neither pediatrician (different practices) ever expressed concern.

Ugh I am so sorry, I just read the OP and you said 10 lbs. I thought you said 12 lbs. Never mind!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t see the opposition to switching to a higher calorie formula. What’s the harm trying it out? Why assume your pediatrician is wrong?

Higher calorie formulas are harder to digest, leading to constipation and gas. They are not appropriate for babies who don’t need them.

This baby’s pediatrician thinks in this case higher calorie formula is appropriate. Will it kill OP to try? Most important is for the baby to grow. She’s going to be whining about how the kid is the runt and won’t get a sports scholarship later.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don’t see the opposition to switching to a higher calorie formula. What’s the harm trying it out? Why assume your pediatrician is wrong?

Higher calorie formulas are harder to digest, leading to constipation and gas. They are not appropriate for babies who don’t need them.

This baby’s pediatrician thinks in this case higher calorie formula is appropriate. Will it kill OP to try? Most important is for the baby to grow. She’s going to be whining about how the kid is the runt and won’t get a sports scholarship later.

I’d never use fortified formula without a GI diagnosis and plan. Even then I’d be very careful. The higher calorie formulas are for certain types of GI issues but will exacerbate others. having been there, I would never start one based on an under-explained suggestion from a ped I didn’t know and trust well. The “it can’t hurt” attitude rather than asking questions and doing research results in over treatment and possibly creating problems where there were none to begin with.

Many are suggesting extra feedings and extra work for the mom. It would be a lot quicker to get a second opinion before proceeding. Asking questions is fine.