Slow weight gain

[kellysomer]

My HV is concerning me by her lack of worry about Morgans weight gain. He was born on the 75th centile as he was a big 8lb 12oz. He took 4 weeks to get back to his birth weight and since then has put on a pathetic amount of weight per week (3oz average) and then one week 11oz (i think we weighed him wrong) he is now nearly 9 weeks old and only weighs 10lb 15, he is below the 25th centile.

When he was weighed yesterday he had put on 1 and a half ounces in 8 days, the thing is he was crying in the cue and i bf him to keep him happy while we waited to be weighed, i think he would have taken about 4oz of milk by the feel of boobs, so that means if i hadnt fed him for the sake of it he would have lost over 2oz since last weigh in, is this normal, it doesnt seem right to me that a baby born big should have a practically striaght line on his chart?

Am i going mad or fussing? HV says he's just small like his parents... we're not small tho, we are both tall and hubby is very stocky???

 

[andreag]

My friend was exactly the same, and although her son was putting on weight, he was falling down the percentile charts. It was nothing to worry about though - he is now a happy and healthy 11 month old. Still lighter than my 9 month old, but some babies are just leaner. I was reading in the health visitor magazine this week that the percentile charts are possibly out of date and might be leading to childhood obesity, so I really wouldn't worry.

Also, if he had a feed before he was weighed, he probably emptied his bladder as well, so I wouldn't assume he has lost weight. I know HV can sometimes appear very vague, but if he is content and they are not worried, I would try not to worry.

 

[lisa&alex]

as long as he is gaining you dont need to be worrying.. edward hadnt gained an oz in over 4 weeks.. then he gained 2 oz then lost 4.. they were gonna do tests on him if i didnt put him on formula and he didnt gain.. so we are half n half bf with formula now and hes gained a lot over the last few days.. try not to worry breast fed babys usually go on a steady slope line rather than follow the high centile charts of formula fed babies.

 

[kellysomer]

His nappy was dry when he was weighed which is what worried, i know that he hadnt justb wee'ed it all out. His chart is pretty much a straight line but i guess hes just light. He looks big, just doesnt weigh enough.

 

[lisa&alex]

edwards only 12lb7 and hes much older than your baby.. he was 11lb 8 for a month.. and was also born heavy..8lb 7 did you bf ur daughter?

 

[kellysomer]

For a while and then she went onto bottles.

 

[kellie80]

My 2 year old was 8lb 11oz born, gained weight for the 1st month then that was it really. She gained weight really slowly, 1 or 2oz a week sometimes and regularly lost weight. She dropped to between the 9th and the 25 centile and has stayed there. I'm guessing its just her body size and thats how shes going to be. My other 2 kids are a LOT bigger than her and my 1 years old is a good 4lb heavier than her. As long as he is gaining some weight no matter how small I wouldn't worry to much.

 

[Magic Monkey]

Ella hasn't been putting on that much weight until this week, about 3 -5 oz a week and she is bottle fed, she has dropped from the 50th to the 25th centile. This is despite the fact that she takes plenty of formula for her weight.

But you need to bear in mind that the growth charts are for formula fed babies, so a breast fed baby isn't going to sit on the same lines. I think this is increasingly common as more mums now bf (there was a whole thing on the radio about it when I was pregnant) and they are bringing out new charts for bf babies.

 

[lisa&alex]

that sounds like edward.. his in the 9th centile now.. when he lost weight at the beginning of the week he went down to the 2nd centile.

i know its alittle worrying when you cant see them gaining.. but some babies dont gain as much on breast milk some kinda follow a straighter line rather than the high centile lines of the formula fed baby charts.i seriously wouldnt worry as ling as he is gaining you have absolutly nothing to worry about.

 

[Rosieroo]

I just want to reiterate what everyone else has said, some breastfed babies put on weight very slowly but there is nothing wrong with that. As long as he's happy, alert and weeing/pooing then just have faith in your milk Formula is based on cows milk which obviously is meant to bulk up calves, so babies on it are bound to put on more weight (hence the different charts for breastfed and formula fed babies). Please don't worry too much, you're doing great