>I have seen this mom once when baby was 10 days old - he is now 4 mo old. I
>have talked to the mom  once or twice a month since, and things have always
>been a struggle with this baby. I will probably see this mom again later this
>week since she is at her wits end.<snip>

Robin,
I think you are on the right track with mum's diet. This sounds like
classic food intolerance to me. (Maureen M, where are you??) Does baby have
lots (ie normal or greater numbers) of wet and dirty nappies? This is
fairly typical, that they have lots of nappies which would indicate plenty
of milk going through, but show decreasing weight gain (and sometimes loss)
over time, plus other signs of intolerance/allergy - colic, fussy baby,
eczema, reflux. Remember if mum tries eliminating foods such as dairy, she
needs to give it at least 2 weeks, preferably longer, before she can expect
to see changes. And dairy would include cheese and all 'hidden dairy' in
other foods. It may be something other than dairy.

It sounds like the nipple shield may not be making much difference here -
baby obviously gets milk efficiently through it (provided the output is
high as I was asking about above).

If it is food intolerance, it might be interesting to see what
response/reactions baby has to the solids. Let us know what happens.

******************************************************************
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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