Baby losing Weight

[sammy89]

Hi, mu 4  month old daughter is losing weight. I am breast feeding her,but she wakes up hungry at night a lot. She usually feeds for about 5 minutes and refuses the breast after that, crying and detatching herself from me. I reallyy dont want to put her on formula, any ideas what I can do?

[AnnieBrooke]

Something isn't working for her, you need to figure out if it is the milk or the sucking.  But in the meantime, I would pump, and give her the mother's milk from a bottle with a Newborn style (slow flow) nipple.  At least you will be sure she is getting food.  

I would also call her pediatrician right away, and/or a lactation consultant.  The hospital where you had your baby will know one.  Your baby is at risk not just of weight loss but also dehydration if not getting enough milk.

[tam2girls]

I don't want to alarm you but I had the same problem with my daughter at that age and she also had enlarge lymph nodes but the paed assured me that she was just small and would put on weight if we started to give her solids. After trying solids and switching to formula she did begin to put on weight but not as much as she should have. When she was 18 months she began to get the same way with her food as well as getting recurrent ear infections. After 4 months straight on anti biotics I demanded a blood test and she came back positive for epstien barr virus(glandular fever) Aparently even if the mother has never had it it can be in your system and passed on through breast milk. It made her cranky and go off her food and they can date previous antibodies in the system so it turns out when she went off her breast feeds at 3 months that was why. If you suspect that there is something wrong with her then take my advice and demand action. My daughter was miserable for months and we didn't have a reason. I felt so bad for her when I found out how sick she was and that it was not just her bad temper. I wish I had have made someone listen earlier. Good Luck.

[tmv]

She could just be a sleepy baby or it could be that she isn't getting enough hind milk or you could need more calories in your diet. The "old timers" used to call it "your milk not being rich enough". They would quit bf or get a wet nurse. But nowadays we know that you can enrich it by feeding more often, eating and drinking better, or lastly pump and store milk expressed after your baby nurses for 3 or 4 weeks. This will strenthen your supply. Most generally if you wake your baby every two hours by changing diaper or wet washcloth to the face they will eat more aggressively. At this age she should be nursing about 10- 5 minutes on each breast. If she isn't then she's not getting the bulk of the hind milk. You don't need to pump and feed the milk in a bottle, this will just lead to nipple confusion and you sound like you want to keep up the bf. I'm a true supporter and successful bf'r myself.I know how important it is. You've been through the worse part in the first 2 weeks, hang in there. There is also a supplement that you can get at a health food store if all other of the suggestions don't work. It helps richen your milk. Congrats on making it this far and good luck!

[tmv]

OOps, I just assumed that she'd been ok and checked out by pediatrician since a lot of people don't have scales to weigh the baby on. Yes, make sure everything is ok with her first. Another thing is possibly giving her mylicon (simethicone) drops before nursing or trying to notice if you've eaten anything different of gassy for you, it can be for her. Although my dd never had a problem with anything other than when I ate eggs. It cramped her bad. Best wishes.

[mommabean]

Oh and Tmv's post reminded me to tell you that by baby wasn't diagnosed with Acid reflux right away. I didn't assume that you haven't been taking your little one to the pediatritian :) We went to the doctor a couple times before the doctor knew that she was having reflux. Usually only formula fed babies have reflux. I knew there was something wrong and was I pretty persistant. Sure enough, the antiacid worked like a charm! My daughter still occasionally spits up at 2. I'm not saying that this is what your little one has, but there are many things that can cause a baby to lose interest in eating. I only wish that my DD was treated earlier so that she didn't have to suffer for as long as she did. Take care, and hope that little girl is filling up and sleeping well soon.

[mommabean]

I agree with Tam to  contact your pediatritian. My daughter stopped wanting to breastfeed at 4 months and it ended up that she had acid reflux. (Babies who have this will spit up frequently too and be fussy.) Once she was treated for it she gained her weight back and was much happier. While it could be your milk supply that causes your daughter to lose interest in eating she could also have a health problem that needs to be treated. Pump in the mean time and I hope all turns out well.

[kris123]

I have a hypothyorid and take meds for it.  I plan to breastfeed and my dr. told me that once the baby is born my thyorid med may be to much and make me hyperthyorid - where you lose lots of weight.  She told me sometimes women's thyorid change and they become hyperthyorid it can cause the baby to lose weight also.  Maybe you could get your blood taken and see - It is just a thought.  If you haven't had a history of thyorid problems that may not be it but anyone can become hypo or hyperthyorid at any time in life.  My dr told me to watch out for baby weight lose if I am breastfeeding.

[lovefamily]

I guess what we need to know from sammy is if her baby has acid reflux....is she spitting up or throwing up a lot.  I never saw anything about that in the original post.  tmv had a lot of great suggestions.  I agree that it sounded like the baby isn't getting enough hind milk.  Is the baby fussy and pulling away at night because your milk isn't letting down fast enough??  Are you eating a good diet and drinking a lot of water.  Don't give up.  A call to your pediatrician would be a good idea for reassurance and making sure everything is okay.  A quick check up will give you the peace of mind that you need right now.

[AndiJ78]

Almost all babies spit up, so I wouldn't be so quick to jump on that. In aiddition, those qho do spit up frequently tend to outgrow it by 6-7 months without meds. As a first tiem mom I was panicked when ym first spit up all the time, I mean ALL the time, I ran to the pedi, got the zantac and reglan, and was admittedly flaky about giving it. I guess deep down part of me knoew it wasn't necessary. Sure enough, right around 6 months it wetn away. Same thing with my next two. both spitting up copious amounts with every feeding and I just watched and waited, sure enough by 6-7 months it went away.

I will agree 100% with TMV's original post. Look at mom's diet and feeding patterns. Vary positions to empty the breast fully. Running all this past the pedi is a good idea, just to rule our other things like ear infections and such. Also, get together with a lactation consultant and see if they can offer some tips on feeding. Also, 4 months is a pretty tough growth spurt, at least it was with all three of mine. It would take a day or two for my supply to catch up with the demand, so that could also be part of it. There is a delay in letdown when the demand is that high and they tend to get frustrated

Feed on demand, hourly if necessary. Make sure you are intaking the recommended 2500 calories a day, keep hydrated, but don't over hydrate, and make sure you haven't cut out too much fat from your diet. Also, watch any meds, some can be drying and wreak havoc on your milk supply as well.

[mommabean]

Gastroesophageal Reflux (GER) or Acid Reflux in infants is a medical condition that is different than just spitting up. It involves stomach acid to go up the esophagus and is painful for babies, and excessive spit up is a symptom. This is why my little one rejected feedings. Just wanted to share my situation as my daughter acted similarly at that age, only eating for short spans yet obvoiusly still hungry. It very well may be something else, and I agree that it is quite possibly be a milk production issue. I wasn't trying to counter anyone's comment,  just wanted to clarify mine :).

[mum2beagain]

I had problems with baby not gaining at first, he was however having plenty wet diapers, seemed satisfied and was going 4 hours between feeds at night. My mistake was to switch breasts 1/2 way through, he was getting the fore milk off both breasts but none of the calorie laden hind milk. I changed to feeding from one breast per feed, also if he fed for only a few minutes but then was wanting to feed again 1/2 an hour or an hour later I fed from the same side again, that way he drained the breast and got the hind milk nad then switched to the next side at the next feed a couple of hors later. Once I started doing this he started to gain weight and is now a hefty 17lbs at 5 months!