>An Egyptian woman who is here in this country with her husband (in school?)
>has a 2 month old, her first.   She was told after one week that she had to
>give formula because he was losing wt.   So, she nurses him first, then
>gives pumped brmilk, or formula, and so the day goes.  He, however, has
>been very colicky since the 2nd week, and she is getting so tired of not
>being able to keep him from crying.

The first thing that springs to my mind, Michelle, is food intolerance.
Adding to this possibility is that this mum may not be eating the sort of
diet she (ie her body) is used to, being in a new country, increasing the
chances of problems with foods. Or it could be the formula. This could
explain the colic.

Have you been able to judge her supply by the baby's output? It is possible
to have adequate supply (shown by normal or more than normal numbers of
nappies - wet and dirty) and low weight gain, if the baby's gut is
irritated and not absorbing the food efficiently. It is common in these
instances for baby to have secondary lactose intolerance from gut damage.
This is not just low supply that needs boosting or supplementing to make
everything alright.

You mentioned that he has put on lots of weight now - perhaps he doesn't
need the formula or even all the expressed milk either. Is he being fed
frequently because he cries a lot? This is common in colicky babies,
because it is often the only thing that stops them crying, but the crying
is not usually hunger - it's pain. I would suggest getting a more complete
picture of what's going on here before assuming she needs suggestions to
increase her supply. It just might be *oversupply*.

******************************************************************
Joy Anderson B.Sc. Dip.Ed. Grad.Dip.Med.Tech. IBCLC
Nursing Mothers' Association of Australia Breastfeeding Counsellor
Perth, Western Australia.   mailto:[log in to unmask]
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