3 month old baby - weight now off the charts (bottom of the charts that is!!)

[ellie27]

My boy was born 6 lb 4oz, on the 9th centile line.

He dropped and has been in between the 2nd and 0.4 line up til 2 months old.

Now at 3 months old he is now under the 0.4 line - so off the actual chart!!

Any advice you can give would be appreciated. HV not too concerned and told me not to worry but it would be good if he had a little boost so as not to drop any more.

He is now 9 lb 14 oz at 3 months old today. I have taken him to get weighed every 2 weeks. He has gained 3.5-4 oz per week over the last month.

He pees plenty.

I never see any white in his mouth/around lips/ he has never spit anything up or ever been sick or had any dribbles. I never leak.

He feeds poorly during the day - I feel he just messes about. Not much swallowing going on. He then wants to be attached from 6pm-midnight - again just snacking then falling asleep then having another snack half an hour later then falling asleep....

He sleeps normally 12midnight - anytime between 5 and 7 am, has a feed then goes down another couple hours.

I dont express. I have a medela swing and have used it a few times at 8 am, couple times after he has slept til 7am and not taken a great feed I have expressed 1-2 oz. Should I do that every morning or middle of night?? If so, when would I offer that couple oz??

Anything I can do to give him a boost??? Give my supply a boost??

When feeding, if he has fed 15 mins of what I feel is a good feed and he is falling asleep or has stopped swallowing I do compressions to try get more and then switch sides - always.

HV suggested I wake him for a feed during the night and dont let him go more than 4 hours without a feed.

I often hear folk expressing while LO feeds other side? Should I do this if I express??

So many questions! So much help needed!!

Thanks!

 

[heather91]

Only advice is NURSE NURSE NURSE. I never even get Blake weighed. He pees enough that's good enough for me. Your milk is PERFECT for your baby. Hes gaining the right amount of weight because you're feeding the way you should. You're doing a brilliant job, forget the charts, forget expressing. Do what you think is best xxx

 

[heather91]

Oh good ideas to boost supply, let baby comfort suck and also drink loads of water. Google foods that increase supply xxx

 

[ellie27]

Only advice is NURSE NURSE NURSE. I never even get Blake weighed. He pees enough that's good enough for me. Your milk is PERFECT for your baby. Hes gaining the right amount of weight because you're feeding the way you should. You're doing a brilliant job, forget the charts, forget expressing. Do what you think is best xxx

I know you are right but I just need to convince myself all really is fine!!

Up til he was 2 months old it was so difficult, I was in tears many times middle of night, so stressed out.

I felt things changed at 9 weeks and feel the last few weeks have gone well.....but his weight doesnt show that!!

 

[TennisGal]

Fenugreek is great for supply-you can get tablets in most hedlth shops

 

[moomin_troll]

Feed feed feed lol but some babies are just naturaly small so that's why I hate these charts. Long as he's happy feeding when he does and his nappy gets dirty I really wouldn't worry.

 

[patch2006uk]

Ok, he's smaller than average, but if he'd been born on 99th percentile and dropped to the 85th over the three months, would you be as concerned? He's wetting nappies, hitting milestones and growing. If you hadn't taken him to be weighed today, would you be worried about his health? It's actually not recommended any more to take babies to be weighed once they've regained their birthweight, because it causes undue worry and concern.

Weight is only a number. If the other indicators are all ok (nappies, milestones, growth generally - remember, he IS gaining), then why worry?

My LO is 25th percentile now - but he's bopped around between 9th and 32nd.

 

[TigerLady]

^^ Agreed!

Personally, if you feel everything is fine other than that stupid chart, and the HV agrees, I wouldn't worry. How would you feel if that chart didn't even exist? Would you still be worried? If not, then ignore the chart!

Teeny babies can be healthy teeny babies!

 

[ellie27]

I think dropping off the chart is quite different from dropping 99th to 85th

What are the milestones for a 3 months old?

He does seem content, have plenty wet nappies.

Had I not got him weighed today would I have been worried about his health?? Well yes, as I mentioned I dont ever see any milk anywhere - in his mouth/lips/no spills/drips/leaks/ I dont hear swallowing for very long at all each feed - a lot of time its like he is just chomping!

Arrgh!

 

[patch2006uk]

The very top of the chart is just as far from the average as the very bottom! Growth charts are more trouble than they're worth in most cases!

Worrying about not seeing milk isn't the same as worrying because he isn't hitting milestones. Honestly, try not to worry. If he's weeing, he must be drinking. If he's drinking milk, he'll be growing. If he's growing, he's doing fine.

I never saw any milk either really in the early days, and I could never hear drinking and swallowing like they say you will. Just had to trust that LO wouldn't let himself starve. If he was hungry, and wasn't getting milk, would he be pacified? Or would he scream and fuss and moan? If he's content, trust that he's had his fill

Here's some info on milestones https://www.babycentre.co.uk/baby/development/03mth/

 

[nickyXjayno]

Charts or not I'd be concerned if my baby was 9 pound odd at 3 months.
I don't think not leaking is an indication of supply as I've seen loads of ladies on here saying they don't leak, but I do find it odd you haven't seen any milk in his mouth etc and the fact you don't hear him swallowing a lot/for long.
Has he ever had a bottle?
If so how much does he drink from bottle?
He could have a small tummy and that's why he doesn't eat much and that's why he's satisfied with a small feed and isn't gaining weight.
My nephew was the same and was eating stupidly tiny amounts of formula and was tiny for years but has now had a bit of a growth spurt (is now 4 yrs old) and is quite tall now though still very skinny.

But if he's bright, alert and meeting all his milestones then he can't be under nourished.
xx

 

[patch2006uk]

Charts or not I'd be concerned if my baby was 9 pound odd at 3 months.
I don't think not leaking is an indication of supply as I've seen loads of ladies on here saying they don't leak, but I do find it odd you haven't seen any milk in his mouth etc and the fact you don't hear him swallowing a lot/for long.
Has he ever had a bottle?
If so how much does he drink from bottle?
He could have a small tummy and that's why he doesn't eat much and that's why he's satisfied with a small feed and isn't gaining weight.
My nephew was the same and was eating stupidly tiny amounts of formula and was tiny for years but has now had a bit of a growth spurt (is now 4 yrs old) and is quite tall now though still very skinny.

But if he's bright, alert and meeting all his milestones then he can't be under nourished.
xx

Why? Weight is only a number! As long as my LO was gaining and doing everything that was 'expected' of them, I wouldn't be concerned based on weight alone!

Also, just to throw this out there - all babies have small tummies. It's about the size of their fist. A breastfed baby probably only takes around 4oz at a feed maximum. Bottles override a baby's natural feeding technique, meaning they can drink much greater amounts than they could from a breast. Pretty much all babies will drink more from a bottle than they would otherwise, just because they can't not drink.

A human's stomach should be about fist size throughout life, but adults often overeat, meaning we get hungrier at the next meal, as the stomach stretches, and so we eat more, stretching the stomach more and making you hungrier overall. It's why obesity is a cycle that's hard to break. Slightly OT, but interesting in terms of diet and lifelong health.

A friend from my NCT group switched to formula as her LO was struggling to follow 0.4th percentile. She's still only that size on formula. Some babies are just small

 

[summer rain]

Charts or not I'd be concerned if my baby was 9 pound odd at 3 months.
I don't think not leaking is an indication of supply as I've seen loads of ladies on here saying they don't leak, but I do find it odd you haven't seen any milk in his mouth etc and the fact you don't hear him swallowing a lot/for long.
Has he ever had a bottle?
If so how much does he drink from bottle?
He could have a small tummy and that's why he doesn't eat much and that's why he's satisfied with a small feed and isn't gaining weight.
My nephew was the same and was eating stupidly tiny amounts of formula and was tiny for years but has now had a bit of a growth spurt (is now 4 yrs old) and is quite tall now though still very skinny.

But if he's bright, alert and meeting all his milestones then he can't be under nourished.
xx

I don't think this post is helpful . My eldest gained probably less than OPs baby in that time; but as he was born nearly 8lbs fell to only the 2nd centile from between the 25th and 50th, between 12 and 20 weeks he inexplicably started piling on at least 8oz every week but he still didn't climb up on the charts. My niece was born on around the 9th centile and fell completely off the charts at about 3 months old; she was just meant to be petite, also she was extremely active being able to roll both ways from birth and to bounce herself in a bouncy chair from only 3 or 4 weeks old, as a child now she is just very tall but slim. My sister closest in age to me was similar but she was very short as well-my mum switched to formula with her at 6 weeks because of her failure to gain weight and she still only gained a maximum of 2oz a week xx

 

[Celesse]

My LO was a slow gainer. Never saw any milk in her mouth, no vomit or leaking, would feed and feed all day with no break and she would still be unsettled. She started feeding better and gaining weight quicker after taking her for cranio-osteopathy. After her first session her sucking was visibly stronger. She was an emergency C-section baby and the osteopath said that the way her head had been squashed could have made it harder for her to suck properly and transfer the milk well enough.

Not sure if this will be the answer for you, but its a suggestion of something you could research if haven't already done.

 

[tommyg]

I wouldn't worry about the charts either. However have you checked where you and DH are on the adult charts?

If you're both small then why would LO be any diffrent?

DH and I are both around the 9th percentile and so is LO.

 

[Maggs]

I just looked back in my red book, and 11 days before my lo was 3 months old, he was weighed and was 9 lbs 13 oz. And he was only 7 lbs 3.5 oz at birth! So he hadn't even gained 3 pounds in 3 months. If you're happy, he's happy and developing great, then try not to fret. I know it's easier said than done. I still worry a bit about my little man but he's so cheery and can practically sit up on his own and he's not even 4.5 months old! I'm only 5'3" and until I was 21/22, I weighed barely 110lbs

Edited--at his 16 week check up he was 11 lbs 9 oz. So in 5 weeks he'd gained nearly what he had in the first 3 months of his life. He sits usually between the 0.4th and 2th centile lines. I suppose if my lo all of a sudden dropped off the charts, I'd be worried too.

 

[ellie27]

I just looked back in my red book, and 11 days before my lo was 3 months old, he was weighed and was 9 lbs 13 oz. And he was only 7 lbs 3.5 oz at birth! So he hadn't even gained 3 pounds in 3 months. If you're happy, he's happy and developing great, then try not to fret. I know it's easier said than done. I still worry a bit about my little man but he's so cheery and can practically sit up on his own and he's not even 4.5 months old! I'm only 5'3" and until I was 21/22, I weighed barely 110lbs

Edited--at his 16 week check up he was 11 lbs 9 oz. So in 5 weeks he'd gained nearly what he had in the first 3 months of his life. He sits usually between the 0.4th and 2th centile lines. I suppose if my lo all of a sudden dropped off the charts, I'd be worried too.

Thanks!!

It is easy to say 'ignore the charts, all is fine' etc, but to hear that your LO was the same makes me feel better and its great to hear your LO is getting on so well!

 

[star_light]

ellie27 i can understand ur worries....hugsss

im in same position as u ,my lo will be 3 months old on 16 feb....he born with 6 lb and 4 oz .....on 1st day of his life he dropped his 10% birth weight...now at 2 months chekup he was 8 lbs...but still he is a skinny baby.....my doc said to combi fedding ..which helps a lot.....40 min on bf one time...6-7 feeds in 24 H ..and taking 120 ml of formula 2 times in 24 H........he has 5-6 wet nappies a day and and varies 1-6 dirty diapers a day..

 

[aley28]

My first baby dropped off the charts by 2 months... he was really, really skinny... I could see his ribs. He'd gained a pound or so ... birth weight of 6lb 4oz, was maybe 7.5lbs at his 2 month checkup. We switched him to formula and he put on almost 2lbs in 2 weeks, so he was up to 9-ish lbs and then he leveled off. At 4months, he was just under 10lbs. Even on formula and me feeding him like 32oz of milk per day, he didn't get back on the charts until he was almost 6 months old, when he finally came in at the 3% or something like that, and that's about where he's stayed. I don't even look at the chart anymore, because I just find it irrelevant.

Some babies are just small. Even at 2 years old, he was small for his age, and incredibly skinny... I can barely keep a normal pair of pants on him, they're too big around and just fall off. He's recently hit a growth spurt, so he's about as tall as an "average" 2.5 year old, and he's always been on time with his milestones (except talking), he's active and bright and healthy, so I've just learned not to worry about his weight. He's only 28lbs now... I have a friend with a 17 month old baby who is 25lbs.

It took a long time to learn not worry about his weight, though. I still feel defensive about it... my MIL will make snarky comments about how I don't feed him enough and stuff, and I just want to scream at her. He's just a naturally thin/small guy and will probably be that way until he hits puberty. I can't force feed him and make that change (and nor would I want to!)

 

[Blah11]

amelie was also born on the 9th and jumped about from 0.4th to 50th until she settled on 25th where she still is. id really try and not worry