Lisa wrote:
>Yes, babies *do* increase their volume of intake. In fact, I believe that
>there are also studies of how mother's supplies increase to a peak around 6
>months, then plateau, then gradually decline as solids are introduced and
>begin to replace the milk.

Lisa, I always thought this too, but now I am wondering. Do you know of any
specific studies that show this?

 >It makes perfect sense to me! We know that a 6 lb
>baby is going to need less milk than a 12 lb baby.

Do we? We do know that a larger, over-one-year-old toddler needs less
calories than a fast-growing under-one-year-old. So could it be that the
fast-growing 6 lb baby needs as much as the 12 lb one? I don't know - but
it's possible.

>Also: it has been noted by some that Australian women complain more of
>"oversupply" problems while north American women complain more about
>"undersupply"; could this observation, which we have loosely tied to opposite
>hemispheres, be true more for one half of the world than the other? We need
>more research on these variations!

I have always thought that this may be more to do with general management
of early breastfeeding in the slightly different cultural settings. Things
like more common routine supplementation in US, more restricted feeding in
first few days, etc. Am I right in thinking that this goes on a lot in US?
It happens here too, but not as much, as far as I know.

Arly wrote:
>I don't get it.  The baby is bigger, but doesn't take in more kcal?  The
>baby is more active, but doesn't take in more kcal?
>
>Is there supposed to be something different about babies than other people?

I am glad some of you are questioning this, as I did. In general, though,
bigger people don't necessarily eat more food. A lot depends on their
metabolism, whether they are growing quickly, etc. You know, the sort of
person who gets fat at the whiff of a cream cake, compared to those who can
"eat like a horse" and never put on weight, and the skinny teenagers who
seem to have hollow legs!!

Anyway, the data Peter showed just had me puzzled, and being the
questioning sort, I would like to know what actually *is* happening. Do
babies stimulate an increase in milk supply at "appetite increases" or
"growth spurts" (as we have always believed) or is something else going on.
Peter's data implies the latter.
Don't you just love puzzles??!! (:-D)

Joy Anderson IBCLC, NMAA Breastfeeding Counsellor,
Perth, Western Australia
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