[ckmannel]

Ok, so my DS was born big (almost 10 lbs) and he is a chubby guy now (4 mo. 20+ lbs) but he is long too. He only gets breastmilk. We feed 5 times per day and he is really hungry when he eats so he feeds off both breasts every time

:. I pump in the morning because he doesn't completely finish off the second breast and his last feed of the day I don't make quite enough milk to satisfy him. So I supplement the last feed with a bottle otherwise he is still hungry. Up till now whenever someone said "OMG he is so fat!" I've just said "thanks, I know, breastmilk is great!" but now I am wondering if I am doing wrong by him. Even the Dr. (who I don't really love anyway) has mentioned his size.

 

[Cativari]

Sounds normal to me. You can't over breastfeed. Of course both of my babes have been "big". DD was 7lbs 1 oz at birth 21 inches, at 3.5-4 months she was 17lbs 11oz 24inches long at 6 months she was 25lbs...now at 2.5 she's 30-32lbs and 2 foot 10"-11". DS who's almost 1 was 6lbs 14oz at birth 19 inches long at his 4 month he was almost 16lbs...his 9 month he wieghted in at 25lbs Not sure of his weight now but I think he's only coulple of lbs shy of 30 and prolly won't gain much here on out but he will get taller.

Your babe's hieght will evenually catch up to his wieght. At about 4-5 months both of my kidos started gaining more slowly. DD actually lost a few pounds when she started moving (but gained them back).

You're doing a wonderful job!!! Keep it up.

 

[nummies]

My 4 month old was also 20 lbs. Normal for breastfed babies! They tend to gain a lot in the first 6 months and then they taper off. My 19 month old is only 25 lbs.

 

[jennert]

Mr. Pants was a chunk too. Always at the very top for weight. He started crawling and slimmed down, walking and slimmed again and recently started running and is now leaving all his pants behind!
Oh! And if you're only nursing 5 times a day, i'd say you're getting off easily!

 

[TanyaS]

No such thing as over-breastfeeding unless your baby has a medical issue like reflux. I had two very chunky girls (one was also born over 10 lbs), and they thinned out a good bit once they got mobile. My oldest dd did not gain weight between 12-18 months after she started walking. She would out-eat her older brother, and was still nursing, so I knew she was ok. She was growing taller and just burning the baby fat.

The great thing about breastfeeding and feeding on demand is that you know your little one is growing exactly how he/she should be growing. Every baby is different. My oldest was skinny as a baby compared to his sisters!

 

[alegna]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cativari Sounds normal to me. You can't over breastfeed. You're doing a wonderful job!!! Keep it up.

:

But stop the silliness with pumping and bottle feeding

Your supply will match what your baby needs if you let it. At that age I would really try to nurse MORE often than 5 times a day.

-Angela

 

[KristyDi]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ckmannel Ok, so my DS was born big (almost 10 lbs) and he is a chubby guy now (4 mo. 20+ lbs) but he is long too. He only gets breastmilk. We feed 5 times per day and he is really hungry when he eats so he feeds off both breasts every time :. I pump in the morning because he doesn't completely finish off the second breast and his last feed of the day I don't make quite enough milk to satisfy him. So I supplement the last feed with a bottle otherwise he is still hungry. Up till now whenever someone said "OMG he is so fat!" I've just said "thanks, I know, breastmilk is great!" but now I am wondering if I am doing wrong by him. Even the Dr. (who I don't really love anyway) has mentioned his size.

As others have said, you can't over breastfeed like you can over formula feed. Baby has to work much harder to get the milk out of the breast than out of a bottle.

On the part I bolded, every time you "empty" (you're never truly empty, even when it seems like it. You produce milk constantly) your breast you tell your body to make that amount of milk next time. The more you empty, the more milk your body makes. So if your DS keeps sucking, your body keeps making milk and knows to make more next time.

So if you keep emptying your breast in the am, then you're telling your body to keep making that much. If you stop pumping in the morning and at night if you let your DS suck as long as he wants then your body will regulate your supply to what he needs so you'll make less in the morning and more in the evening. It will take a few days, but it will happen. Just feed your DS as often and as long as he wants

 

[mommabear207]

nope - no such thing as over breastfeeding! babies know how much they need. my ds was born on the small size but after 2-3 months of breastfeeding he was such a chubby boy. even my drs said it was normal. it balances out in the end as they turn into tall active toddlers. plus if they ever get sick they have stores to draw from.
I would stop pumping and just nurse as often as he wants switching sides. your body will adjust.

 

[JamieCatheryn]

Yeah, the pumping and bottlefeeding is telling your breasts to make more milk in the morning and less at night, if you want to stop that try skipping it or doing less milk in the bottle gradually. And nursing 5 times a day for a 4 month old is VERY infrequent, if he wasn't gaining so well I'd think you were underfeeding him. He must drink a LOT at each feed, and you must have a big storage capacity! Also, BF babes often balloon up huge until 4-6 months then practically stop gaining for months to a year, just as a normal thing. So pack on those pounds and feed on demand.

 

[rivkah]

My ds was 20 lbs at 4 months too. Now (at 9 years), he is so skinny, we can't find pants to fit him. No such thing as over-BF!

 

[Mama Mko]

Yeah, I would just let the baby feed on demand as much as he wants.

 

[ShwarmaQueen]

Quote:

Originally Posted by alegna But stop the silliness with pumping and bottle feeding Your supply will match what your baby needs if you let it.

That's what I was thinking. The pumping is making your body think the baby is nursing then, so it keeps making that amount at that time of day. It's auto-adjusting. Then, by bottlefeeding him after your milk is emptied at night, your body is not getting the signals via continued stimulation of suckling that it needs to produce more milk. It may take a few days to adjust itself, but if you want to cut the bottle out completely, you can let your breast remain full after the morning feeding and let him continue sucking for a while after the evenign feeding.

And I agree with the rest, BF babies can never be too fat.

 

[rparker]

My daughter was in the 75th percentile for weight and the 50th for height at birth, but within two weeks she jumped above the 95th percentile for both and stayed there most of the first year. Now at 14th months she is back down to the 75th for both, probably because she is super active now that she can walk. You can't overfeed a breastfed baby

When she was younger I DID have to block feed her (offer only one breast per feeding, sometimes per SEVERAL feedings) because my supply was crazy and there was no way she could finish both breasts. If your supply is really good you may want to try that because after a few days the breasts get used to it and engorgement isn't as much of a problem...

 

[Pyrodjm]

Why are you only feeding 5 times a day? DD is four months and nurses at least twice each night and every couple of hours during the day. Are you feeding on demand? If not that may be causing your supply to drop.

He sound like a healthy breasfed babe, you can't overfeed a healthy ebf baby.

 

[ewe+lamb]

Quote:

Originally Posted by alegna : But stop the silliness with pumping and bottle feeding Your supply will match what your baby needs if you let it. At that age I would really try to nurse MORE often than 5 times a day. -Angela

I hear myself say this ALL the time to mothers, please have confidence in yourself, you can nurse your baby and give the baby everything that it needs from not only a nutritional POV but emotional, bottles are not a necessity, please believe in yourself and trust your body.