Overfeeding?

[firsttime83]

Do you ladies believe you really can't overfeed a breastfed baby? I feel like Sadie eats so much and is growing like a weed!

She is almost 7 weeks and getting weighed tomorrow, but I am guessing close to 12lbs at least!

Thoughts?

 

[fiffle]

has she followed the same centile line since she was born? that usually give you a good indicator as to whether the weight gain is too much or too little, and even then it can depend...

my son was big when he was born (8lb10oz) and then jumped up from the 75th percentile to the 91st when he was weighed at 4weeks (he'd gone up to 10lb 6oz) the health visitor told me big gains like that occasionally are perfectly fine. sure enough over the next few times he was weighed he slowly came back down onto 75th centile and has followed it quite steadily ever since. he's 6 months old now and still a big boy but he's right on track medically.

if you are feeding on demand i don't think you can really over feed them (even if they are comfort feeding every 20 minutes like mine both did haha) remember your milk isnt junk food it's a super food!

 

[CupcakeBaby]

Yes I believe you can't over feed them. Even if it feels like that sometimes!!

Clever milk and clever babies.

 

[daisy72]

Our pediatrician says so So yes, I believe

 

[babyface15]

I could have written this same post! My little girl got weighed on Tuesday to be 12 lbs 11.5 Oz at 7.5 Weeks, she's been gaining 12 oz. or so most weeks!! how big was she when she was born?

 

[MissCurly]

I dont know about overfeeding, but it is common for breastfed babies to put on A LOT of weight in the first 3 ish months, and then the weight gain slows down. It seems the opposite is true for ff babies.

Not to forget that breastmilk is very easily digestible.

 

[firsttime83]

She was 8lbs 4oz at birth. Going to the doctor this morning, so I will let you know how much she weighs today!

 

[CupcakeBaby]

Let us know.

DD was 7.8 at birth and 12.9 today at 12.5 weeks.

 

[Kellen]

My LO was born 8lb 8oz ad was 9lb 1oz at a week old, 10lb 14oz at two weeks and has continued to grow like a weed. We still feed on demand, but will be beginning BLW in two weeks once given the go ahead by the pediatrician at our 6 month check up. Right now she is wearing 9-12 and 12-18 clothes. She is still heavy, but has more height than anything.

So, to answer the question, no, I believe it is impossible to overfeed a BF baby.

 

[misspriss]

Mine went through a growth spurt where he easily gained 12+ oz per week (for about 2-3 weeks) then it went down to 10 oz per week, and he doesn't go back to the doctor until next week. I think his growth has probably slowed down considerably, it was just a huge growth spurt.

 

[firsttime83]

She is 11.5lbs in the 80th percentile the doctor said. I asked her if I could overfeed her and she said no, she will spit it up if she had too much.

Great check up otherwise, beside the fact Sadie decided to blow out her diaper and soak through her pants in the stroller

 

[Rachel_C]

I don't think it's possible to overfeed a BF baby because they have to work for their food so they're not going to bother to do it any more once they're full! It's possible to overfeed a FF baby because milk usually drips out of an upturned bottle, albeit slowly on the slower flow teats, so you can convince them to take just a little bit more even without realising you're doing it. Either way though, if it's not a normal thing baby will probably spit up the extra. If it's a regular thing, baby will get used to feeling over-full and come to believe they're not full unless they're stuffed to the gills... kind of like me and chocolate.

A baby could overeat if there was a medical problem like reflux possibly, as the milk might soothe the pain so they do have an incentive to eat too much. In a normal healthy baby though, not going to happen! Anybody who's struggled to feed a jaundiced/very sleepy newborn can attest to the fact that it's very difficult to force feed a BF baby

 

[misspriss]

Oh also, he occasionally spits up a tiny bit right after a feed. I have always thought he ate a teeny bit too much. Like no more than a half teaspoon. The only time he projectile vomited milk was one of the first times we bottle fed him and I guess we overfed him then. I think your baby would let you know if you overfed them.

 

[firsttime83]

Misspriss... we had the exact same thing happen. I went out for a bit and let OH give her a bottle and he must have encouraged her to finish it. She projectile vomited as well... and it was pretty nasty.

She also spits up maybe a tsp or so after some feedings. Does sound like they know when to stop when feeding directly from the breast. I just needed to explain to OH some cues she is done. It's all a learning experience for everyone

 

[JessinChi]

Stalking this post! Feel like mine does nothing but eat and is getting huge. Mom and DH think he is overeating but lacation people told me that is impossible? He's not vomiting or anything, just cluster feeding and peeing/pooping like crazy!

 

[firsttime83]

I read somewhere (might be this thread lol) that BF babies gain a lot the first 3 months in comparison to FF babies. I was starting to be ridiculous and trying to stretch out her eating to 3 hours and mark everything down. The last few days I'm back to feeding on demand. A lot less stressful on the both of us. As I've put in a bunch of other posts; we are doing EASY routine... Eat, Activity, Sleep, You time. If she sleeps for a little, I see if she hungry still, and if she eats for 2 minutes that's fine with me.


It's before 10pm and she's sound asleep in her bassinet! This is a big deal for us If the doctor said feed her as I was, then I will keep it up. She is healthy and happy, so need to stop being so paranoid.

 

[firsttime83]

Stalking this post! Feel like mine does nothing but eat and is getting huge. Mom and DH think he is overeating but lacation people told me that is impossible? He's not vomiting or anything, just cluster feeding and peeing/pooping like crazy!

Just noticed how young your lol is. It's an important time to start building up your milk supply, so let him cluster feed away!! Everyone has their opinions about everything... they're too big, they're too small, not enough clothes on... blah blah

 

[NoodleSnack]

I think it's how you define "overeating", when a person eats until he pukes, to me that's overeating and my son's done that loads of time, but with regards to weight, unless there's an underlying medical condition, I don't think we should be worried that they grow too big too fast, I don't see how it could harm them, I definitely would not restrict their intake for this reason.

 

[NoodleSnack]

I don't think it's possible to overfeed a BF baby because they have to work for their food so they're not going to bother to do it any more once they're full! It's possible to overfeed a FF baby because milk usually drips out of an upturned bottle, albeit slowly on the slower flow teats, so you can convince them to take just a little bit more even without realising you're doing it. Either way though, if it's not a normal thing baby will probably spit up the extra. If it's a regular thing, baby will get used to feeling over-full and come to believe they're not full unless they're stuffed to the gills... kind of like me and chocolate.

A baby could overeat if there was a medical problem like reflux possibly, as the milk might soothe the pain so they do have an incentive to eat too much. In a normal healthy baby though, not going to happen! Anybody who's struggled to feed a jaundiced/very sleepy newborn can attest to the fact that it's very difficult to force feed a BF baby

Not true, my baby eats until it pours right back out onto my breast. It's like his need to suck overcome that urge to stop.

 

[Athena]

I was wondering this also..My LG weighed 9 lb at birth, then dropped to 7lb 15 (eeek) then back up to 10lb 5 and at 4 weeks was 12lb 1 she's on the 91st percentile and HV said she was doing amazing and that my milk must be double top. She's 6 weeks now and not sure what she weighs but is in age 0-3 and looks very bonnie, I was worried I could be overfeeding her as she always seems to be looking around for boob!