Iron supplement?

[Azreial]

My twins were born at 34wks 6days. A came home after 11 days in the nicu. They day after he came home D was put on iron and vitamins. The nurses said A should be put on it too. The homeopathic physicans assistant that we've seen hasn't mentioned iron or vitamins. The nicu nurses also said that preemies need iron for the 1st year.
Is this true? Anyone else's preemie take iron? Poor A has been constpated and I would hate to add iron to his diet if he doesn't need it...

[boscopup]

I didn't give an iron supplement, but at 9 months, I asked my ped to test his iron levels, and he was *very* anemic. She told me to use Fer-In-Sol, which made his tummy hurt horribly, so I stopped after 5 days. I then called my midwife who owns an herb shop, and got her recommendation: Tri-Iron - just 2 drops a day (I dropped each drop onto a spoonful of cereal), and in 6 weeks, he had greatly improved levels, and then 6 weeks later, he was not at all anemic - not even borderline.

If I have a preemie again, I will still not give that nasty ferrous sulfate supplement. Herbs work SO much better!

(btw, if you get the Tri-Iron, make sure you call the manufacturer for dosage level for your child! I forget what DS weighed at 9 months, but my midwife had called the manufacturer to get the dosage level for him)

[mimid]

My NICU recommended vites and the ped said just iron. I was also told that after 3 months most babes don't need it and I haven't bought a new bottle since we ran out.

[sweetpeasmom]

Yeah I was told to give her supplements when we got home, i never did. Her iron has always been fine, even without the cereal that I was told she needed for the iron that i never feed her. Basically in the third trimester is where the infant gets all the iron stores, so thats where there thinking is. I'd say it's up to you and for you do do what you feel is right.

[boscopup]

Another thing to mention... the detriment of being anemic doesn't really kick in until well after a year, I believe (and someone please correct me if I'm wrong!). So if baby is low on iron in the beginning, but you correct the problem after solids are started, that should be ok. That's exactly what I did. My ped usually checks iron on all babies at 1 year, and I requested it earlier because of his preemieness (29w4d). The problem was corrected, and I don't think he lost any brain cells. He can read the entire alphabet and all his numbers, and is starting on a few words. He's 25 months, and should be 22.5 months. So the lack of iron in the first 9 months obviously didn't hurt him long term.

[BethLS]

DD is on it....

From the beginning my dd was, and still is on the liquid iron. Only .16 every 24 hours, though. She takes it with a little bit of formula (I am a pumping drop out ) and she's never experienced a belly ache.

lol I remember when I first got her prescription filled for it...I opened the bottle and was like, "hubby, this iron smells like a really common smell...what is it?" He took one whiff, and said, "Mouthwash."

[Azreial]

thanks. I'm going to stick with the iron for now, since anemia runs in my family and I was anemic during the pregnancy. We're seeing the homeo-dr next week and I'm going to talk to him about it and take it from there. I know that on Dominic's discharge sheet it said he was on iron for anemia so they may have done a blood test in the nicu. The whole thing is such a blur and my dh handeled most of the dr's so I'm not sure if they did :

[tanyaandallie]

Our nicu recommended iron supplements for my 34 weeker. I was really good about it in the begining but slacked off once he was ebf b/c I hated dealing with the bottle. I worried when I didn't give it.

From what I have read, ft babes don't need iron supplements b/c they have plenty of iron stored in their bodies. However, the majority of the iron is transfered from mom to baby in the last weeks of pregnancy. So, when you miss those last weeks, your babe is missing the iron.

Luckily my ds was never anemic despite my not so deligent iron giving efforts!

[Azreial]

Update:
We talked to the dr today and D was mildly anemic but A was not. So we're sticking with the iron for D and checking him again in a couple of months