Baby is not yet a birth weight at 30 days old

amother

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 6:02 pm

Should I be concerned that my grandson is not at his birth weight at 30 days old (still a few ounces less). The doctor is not concerned because the baby gained 4 ounces in 2 weeks. Please let me know if this is standard care. I did not have this with any of my babies they gained around a pound every 2 and half weeks when they were newborns.

amother

Saddlebrown

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 6:04 pm

I'm a daughter of a over worried mother. I hope your just voicing your concerns here and not irl to your dd/Dil. I understand that your worried abt your grandson but if the babies pediatrician is not, don't either be and mind your own business.

amother

Emerald

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 6:17 pm

If you were his mother, I'd say to hire a lactation consultant and/or consider supplementing with formula.

I'm somewhat surprised the pediatrician did not recommend one or both of those things.

However, you are the grandmother, and this is your DIL, not your daughter. Stay out of it. If your son brings it up again of his own accord, you can offer (speaking to him only) to hire a lactation consultant. That's it.

amother

Honeydew

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 6:17 pm

My pediatrician likes to see a weight gain of an ounce a day... I agree that as a mil you need to take a step back... but perhaps watch for the signs mentioned above like being fussy after eating and very sleepy etc.. I’m not sure what to do but even a mil who has a good relationship with her dil- with post birth hormones etc it’s just not a food idea to comment on baby’s lack of weight gain..
Mazel Tov on the birth of your grandson! May you see much nachas from him!

amother

White

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 6:19 pm

All my babies took a long time to get back to birth weight. In retrospect a combination of factors, they were c sections so lost more weight, were all on the early side so tired easily etc.. with my first I was driven crazy about it. By my last I was confident enough to say, if the doctor's happy, the baby is thriving and meeting milestones "leave me alone".

Please do not say a word to your dd/dil or even her husband especially if this is her first. She has a pediatrician. Added stress and worry being dumped on her head isn't helpful. Believe me she is already worried and stressed about it.

(Although 2oz a week isn't so high, but presumably if the doctor was worried he would have her supplement).

ectomorph

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 6:44 pm

If there is no reason to think they are deliberately starving the baby (ie, your dil is not a crazy vegan type who would give a newborn soy milk instead of formula - in which case you should report them to CPS and not say a word to her) I wouldn't say anything. The baby is gaining so that's great.

renslet

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 7:21 pm

I'm going to disagree here, this is definitely cause for concern. Even the la leche book uses not regaining birth weight as a reason for supplementation.
Is it her first? Is the ped reliable? Is he going to monitor weight weekly or wait till two months old?
I had this, was a new mom and was so thankful for my ped who scared me, made me go for blood tests and immediately supplement.
I then read fedisbest.org - all the signs were there, ones I hadn't thought of heard of, she never cried, slept for hours at a time, I thought that was good. Unfortunately not.
I'm still traumatized.
I would check online for the signs of hunger and watch closely when they come. I would not have minded my mother in law suggesting I see a second opinion or mentioning a website.

SuperWify

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 7:24 pm

ectomorph wrote:

No MIL should call cps on her DIL until she is 100% there is neglect and abuse of which cannot be sorted.

amother

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 8:49 pm

yerushamama wrote:

How did he do the first two weeks? From my experience, when a baby loses a lot of weight at the beginning, the doctors calculate from lowest weight rather than birthweight.

Lost quite a bit.

amother

Wheat

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 9:21 pm

if baby is fussy in addition to not gaining it could be a sign of milk allergy (intolerance more than a real allergy) and babies don't gain. I would definately bring up to kids to ask if they mentioned to dr that baby is also fussy if it is.. I knwo its a DIL and I would say it in the least judgemental way poss but I would suggest they ask the dr or at least mention concerns

losingweight

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 9:24 pm

The weight gain a baby needs is to feed the brain to develop properly. I would be very concerned if a baby is gaining 2 oz a week. If the baby is sleeping too much, it may be a sign of weakness due to hunger. Any mother with a normal relationship with her son may suggest that maybe they should give a little formula after every feeding and see if it makes a difference.

amother

Slateblue

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 9:34 pm

Sorry, no this is not normal.

1. Why did the baby lose so much weight to begin with?
2. Why is baby gaining only 2 oz a week?

Is mom breastfeeding only? Some mothers don't realize it but they don't have enough supply, and their babies are starving.

I don't know what you can do, as the grandmother, but if you were the mother is definitely tell you to supplement. I really hope the doctor is having her come back for weekly weight checks.

amother

Khaki

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 9:46 pm

Anon since there’s a lot of personal info.
I had a full term baby who was very small. (2150 gram). She lost a lot of weight. I was at the pediatrician every other day for a weight check. Make sure the pediatrician is using the same scale to weigh him at every appointment. Supplement if needed. My daughter was in preemie diapers in the hospital and outgrew newborn diapers at 3 or 4 months. BH nothing was wrong with her but looking back I’m surprised I was so chilled. When she was a few weeks old someone told me she looked like a holocaust survivor - she was all bones and skin. BH now she’s a healthy teen. Luckily I was a preemie and my younger siblings were too so I thought it was normal for a baby to weigh 3.5 pounds and be home. When I went back to work six weeks after birth the babysitters kept saying that she was the smallest baby they had ever held. I thought she was monstrous at almost six pounds!
I had a lactation specialist come and she told me to give formula, and my pediatrician told me to supplement and nurse - he told me to never give up nursing.
How big is your grandson? There is a big difference if he’s 4 pounds or 6 pounds or 8 pounds or 10 pounds.
Let me know if I can help. IyH he will be fine.

amother

Burgundy

Tue, Aug 06 2019, 9:54 pm

My baby gained 1 pound a month which my pediatrician said is the absolute minimum he would let. And even then he told me to supplement with formula. It didnt help her gain more weight, so he told me its the absolute minimum and its ok. (Bh shes a healthy kid now) This baby is gaining half a pound in a month. Thats half of what my dr said is the minimum

I hate to get you nervous. But similar thing happened with my friends baby. Dr (different peditrician) said its ok, she wasn't gaining but he said dw. She was very very delayed and is in a school for special children now. No one knows what caused what. Did her failure to thrive cause her to be delayed or because she was born like this, did she not gain weight.

Honestly if I were you, I'd ask your son if he gives you permission to discuss this with the Dr (I honestly wonder if it's same Dr as my friend)