>In New England area (New Hampshire), I seldom get a call for
>oxytocin spray.  But recently I have a woman who had a previous baby
>whom she always had to supplement.  Now she has a 4 wk old who was a
>35 wk gestation and she is also supplementing.   At my visit it
>seemed that this 5# baby has a small mouth, does the best she can,
>but then gets a bottle of 1-2 oz formula after each feed, so she
>does not get better with bf because she always is supplemented.

That's got to be a major part of this story, I agree, Michelle.

This is a massive amount of supp for a 5 pound baby . Let's say she
is feeding 8 times a day (and it may be more of course).  That means
12 ounces of formula a day if the supp averages out at one and a half
ounces (and again it may be more).  The old rule of thumb for formula
is 2 and a half ounces per pound of body weight in a day...or 12 and
a half ounces in a five pound baby. On this rough sum, the baby won't
really have room in her stomach for much breastmilk, or, as you
suggest, the need to take more from the breast.

The challenge will be to help the mother reduce the supplements while
working on increasing supply.


Heather Welford Neil
NCT bfc Newcastle upon Tyne UK

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html