Oh dear, I apologise in advance, and those of you who know what I feel
about test weighing will not be surprised at my comments here!
>Unfortunately, the baby....now 2 1/2 weeks old....has gained 1 ounce in
>the past 5 days.
This could be normal - it is not great, but it could be normal for this
baby at this time. There is time for this baby to improve weight gain and
for milk supply and transfer to improve. Yes, the situation needs support
and observation, but active intervention by giving formula at every feed is
something else....
>I took my great scale to the visit today and mom
>transferred 1 ounce during the feed.....so she's supplementing with 1 oz
>formula after....so that the baby gets 2 oz/feed 9x/day to = 18
>ounces/24 hours (150cc/kg/day)
But all that a test weigh does is tell you (not always accurately either -
check archives for anecdotes about this!) what happened at that particular
feed. Babies are *designed* to take different amounts at every feed. We
know from good research (Woolridge, for a start) going back many years that
we cannot extrapolate what the baby is taking over 24 hours on one test
weigh. It could be 3 ounces next time, or half an ounce....or
nothing....or whatever. And for the baby to be getting 9 ounces of formula
a day could have very negative effects on the milk supply. That's a lot of
formula....
> feeding 15 minutes each breast every 2 1/2
>hours during the day and 1 (4) hour stretch at night to equal 9 feeds or
>4 1/2 hours breast stimulation.
Sorry, Janna - why the time table? This may not be enough for this baby at
this time....it may not be enough for this mother at this time to increase
her milk supply. Would it not be better for the baby to be in skin-to-skin
contact for much of the time, and to feed ad lib, even if that means time
on the breasts is not equal? I would be concernd about this strict timing
on each breast - it is fine for the baby to set the pace here, and this may
mean x mins on side one, and y mins on side two. That's fine - she should
probably aim to alternate the first side, if she can.
I know 'we do things differently here' and the culture is not to intervene
(and this can be taken too far, I know) - but to me, there is a question
mark over the benefits of the additional formula, based on a single test
weigh, which will work against bf - no matter how many herbs she takes.
I don't mean to be provocative, truly, and I welcome discussion. Is there
anyone who shares my questions?
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
|
