We are taught here in Norway that babies are normally born with a surplus of
fluid precisely to be able to deal with the meager amounts they get at the
breast during the first couple of days.  We call this fluid excess their
'sack lunch', actually.
Also, if a baby is weighed in conflict with the guidelines for Baby-Friendly
care, it may be before the first meconium is expelled.  Obviously a baby who
is weighed the instant it appears on the scene will seem to have lost more
than a baby who is weighed after some time skin to skin with mother, esp if
baby latched and then expelled meconium afterwards.
If I see a baby who has lost more than 10 per cent of birthweight on day 3,
which is when we normally weigh them for the second time, I am not worried
unless the baby is drowsy, not waking from hunger and clearly wanting to
fee, or jaundiced.  If a baby is active, alert and doing what it can to get
milk, I prefer more conservative management, like having mother contact me
if there are no stools of any kind in the next 48 hours, or sooned if she
feels concerned for any reason.
What I want to say is, the numbers tell us something important, but not
everything important.  You need more knowledge to be able to say, just keep
feeding the baby, or keep coming for weight checks, than you do to freak out
at a 10 per cent weight loss.
Rachel Myr
Kristiansand S
Norway

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