HV says give water at night not milk

[tublet]

Got baby weighed again today, and again although she's gaining she's dropping down the centile despite waking up through the night again for an extra two bottles.

HV very strongly said baby MUST be eating solids by 6 months (at the moment we have lots of playing and sucking), and she thinks baby is in a bad habit and we need need to cut out the extra nighttime bottles and get her to go cold turkey with water to make her hungry and eat food

Thoughts? I've only given her a little water when we had a heat wave

 

[special_kala]

Formula has far more calories then milk!

I wouod be going above your HV and be complaining my ass off. That is terrible advice and one I know the feeding coordinators and HVs in my area would not be suggesting.

Babies need milk and withholding that imo is cruel.

Keep going as you are.

 

[Boothh]

I agree with pp, your HV sounds pretty misinformed!
There is nothing your baby could eat that would be as calorie or nutrient rich as milk gram for gram! I would personally never ever cut milk in favour of food at this age, your baby will cut the milk when she's ready xx

 

[tublet]

Thanks ladies exactly what I thought, and I haven't done it! I didn't like the pressure over the eating either, there is no way all babies will be eating food exactly at 6 months!

 

[Pearls18]

It genuinely scares me the utter crap some "health professionals" manage to come out with, how on earth do they get so confused about such a simple subject and yet we have to trust them to oversee the general health of our children. I wouldn't change a thing

 

[vegazbaby]

my son is 9 and half months and 23lb he has 3 meals a day and currently on 20oz a day in formula, hes at the top of 75th and started crawling 2 days ago, she told me to cut out his afternoon bottle, that puts him on 12 oz a day??? surely if im cutting anything shouldnt it be his food portions so confused and how do i explain to my baby that he cant have food as hes not conforming to a chart.

 

[randomrach]

What your health visitor is suggesting is putting a 5 month old on a diet, am I right?

I wouldn't substitute milk with water until they're fully weaned, as long as you don't overfeed they will thin out when they become more active, my DD was ranging between 75th and 98th centiles until she started crawling at 8 months and is now consistently around the 50th at 21 months. Like yours my daughter was born bigger at 9lb3 and my health visitors were not remotely bothered about trying to get her to drop down the centiles, I was advised to feed her when she wanted. My son was born around the 9th centile and has followed that for 5 months now. In my own health visitors eyes, as long as baby is following a line without rapid gain or loss they're doing fine I think your hv is wrong and you should just follow your instincts.

If you were concerned about her weight imo it would be better to just make the night bottles smaller than to give water instead.