Forum Index
»
Infants, Toddlers, & Preschoolers
Do breastfed babies get sick (in 1st year)
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
|
I was unable to bf. Tried very, very hard. Pumped for 3 weeks until I was dry. Switched to formula. Baby NEVER got sick until she turned 10 months. She had a fever for 2 days. It went away and then she got sick again when she was 11.5 months (diarrea for about 4 days). Now she is one year old and has a small cold. She is not in daycare, but she is around other people relatively often.
My mom is convinced that dd is ALWAYS sick because I did not BF. I want to "prove" to her that breast fed babies get sick, too. Also, is 3 illnesses in one year alot? |
Anonymous
|
Yes, of course! All babies get sick. Breast feeding is NOT magic. Three illnesses in one year is NOT a lot.
Sorry your mom is giving you such a hard time! |
Anonymous
| 3 illnesses in a year is not a lot. It's very little. I breastfed until my baby was 10 months. She had 4 ear infections before she turned 1. She had 2 pneumonias, several colds... I can't even remember what else she had. She is in home daycare with only a few babies though. You are very lucky that your baby hasn't been sick that much. You are right. Your mom is wrong. I'm so tired of the guilt laid on moms about breastfeeding. I'm sure you are a good mom. Don't even worry yourself about this. You are obviously doing something right to have such a healthy baby. Keep up the good work!! |
Meconbear
Member Offline
Member Offline
| Tell your mom it isn't true. My DS had the stomach flu and a cold while BFing (the doc said that both illnesses weren't as bad as they could be b/c the BFing suppressed the illnesses but you don't have to tell your mom that!!!!) |
Anonymous
Wow - your Mom is a little scary! Your DD is NOT "always" sick. Babies and kids get between 6 and 10 colds a year - this is on babycenter and also per my ped. Exposure is much more significant of a factor than formula/breast milk. Anecdotally I can tell no difference between formula and breast fed kids if the other stuff is the same (daycare vs sahm or nanny, etc). And even kids in daycare - the colds might be more at first but the sahm/nanny kids will catch up. 
|
Anonymous
|
i breastfed my last baby for a year and she was always sick. The culprit was her big sisters bringing home all sorts of junk from school. My first babies were mostly formula fed and they were not sick as much because they just weren't out and about as much.
|
Anonymous
|
OP here. Thanks for your responses and for alleviating my worries that 3 illnesses aren't alot in one year (and that I am not a bad mom!). But since my dd is not in daycare (or around a lot of little kids), does that make a difference in the amount of illnesses. And here is one more......
my mom swears that you can catch a cold if you are outside in cold weather. As much as I tell her that cold weather doesn't cause sickness, it is viruses and bacteria, she is so convincing that I am starting to believe it myself. |
Anonymous
|
I couldn't breastfeed either because I had breast reduction surgery right after college. I have two children. The first was never, ever sick during the first year. It was amazing. The second was sick just once during the first year.
So, you just never know!. Please don't let her beat you up if you can't do it. I let the lactation specialists in the hospital bring me to tears after my first pregnancy. Then I realized that if you can't do it, you can't do it. No big deal. There are lots of other ways I'm sure I'll make mistakes raising my children - I'm not going to let anyone make me feel guilty for this, something beyond my control. Good luck with your mom! |
maynie
Site Admin Offline
Site Admin Offline
Sounds like my mom. She was always going on about 'Pneumonia weather'. I thought it was nonsense when I was a kid and still do. Maybe it's a generational thing. I don't know. I only hear it from older family members. |
Anonymous
| My BF baby didn't get sick at all the first year, but she did get really sick about 2 days after her first birthday! BF is not a cure all, childcare situation is definitely far more indicative of how often kids get sick. |
Anonymous
| You do not get sick by being outside. In fact, i think it's better than being inside touching all the germs. Don't let your mom make you feel badly! |
Anonymous
|
I was a nanny to a breastfed boy and his older brother. They went to the grocery store with their mother over the weekend and had the rota virus on Monday. (In case anyone does not know what that is - it is a horrible stomach virus that can last 2+ weeks). Their vomiting started about 15 minutes apart.
I contracted the same virus from my first nanny job, so I stayed well. Their parents got the virus a few days after the kids. Breastfeeding is great, but certainly not enough to keep a child from ever getting sick. |
Anonymous
|
To the OP:
Get ready for everything else your mom will be sharing about your parenting style and choices. Or getting advice that is really not needed. My mom will call when it is hot out - to remind me not to take my child outside during peak heat / and of course when it is cold to put a hat on him. She will have questions for me for his dr - and want to know the answers. This last week - really got me when she told me that I needed to call my Father in Law to make him aware that a gift he sent for Easter arrived. (Note: I am the only one of my siblings who actually sends thank you notes so I am not the 1 she should be talking to) I try and do my best and say thank you for your concern and move on from there. When she really pisses me off, I ,might mention some of her great parenting moments
Don't worry - I am sure you are doing great! |
Anonymous
Sounds like your mom and my mom should form a club. She once told me that if you get cancer you shouldn't remove the tumor because that will make more of them grow back even bigger! Should we get them together so they can exchange medical advice?  I wish my baby would only get sick 3 times in the first year! Geez.
|
Anonymous
| I am so sorry your mom is trying to give you a guilt trip. I exclusively breastfed until 11 months and baby got RSV toward the end of that time, so YES breastfed babies do get sick. You are fine! |