Is he being overly cautious? update

Ema of 5

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:06 pm

scintilla wrote:

That was my reflux baby's issue also and he was dairy and soy intolerant, put him on neocate and his weight jumped plus he was so much happier. We went to a GI and they did a stool test, quickest way to know for sure what the issue is.

I wouldn't do cereal, it's empty calories and rice cereal is high in arsenic. Try avocado, it's full of healthy fats and easy on the stomach.

Thanks! I’m going to try avocado. I don’t want to do cereal for exactly the reason you mentioned.
Is it silly for me to make an appointment woth a GI anyway, even without the ped recommending it?

amother

Lightblue

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:09 pm

Ema of 5 wrote:

Thanks! I’m going to try avocado. I don’t want to do cereal for exactly the reason you mentioned.
Is it silly for me to make an appointment woth a GI anyway, even without the ped recommending it?

Avocado for a 4 month old? Yikes Confused

Sooo hard on their little guts. They don’t have the enzymes or microbiome to digest that.

scintilla

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:10 pm

Ema of 5 wrote:

Thanks! I’m going to try avocado. I don’t want to do cereal for exactly the reason you mentioned.
Is it silly for me to make an appointment woth a GI anyway, even without the ped recommending it?

Where I live you need a referral for insurance purposes...I would tell the doctor you really feel strongly about finding a cause and ask them for a referral. My pediatrician would be happy to.

amother

Chocolate

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:11 pm

Ema of 5 wrote:

I spoke to the ped again today, he REALLY wants me to start him on solids. He said I should start woth baby cereal, but I feel like that’s silly a week before pesach. What can I start with that’s solid (as in heavy, like baby cereal) but I can continue over preach? I’m thinking maybe I’ll do like I did with my other kid who started solids early (also around 4-4.5 months)- I put two scoops of formula in everything she ate. I started her on real solids though- not baby cereal or baby food.
I’m just a little frustrated. Isn’t finding out if there is an underlying cause better than just increasing his intake or whatever? Don’t I WANT to find out if there’s an underlying cause?

Why not go see peds GI?

scintilla

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:12 pm

amother Lightblue wrote:

Avocado for a 4 month old? Yikes Confused

Sooo hard on their little guts. They don’t have the enzymes or microbiome to digest that.

Look, I'm all for waiting till 6 months and doing BLW etc. But sometimes a baby does need to start at 4 months for medical reasons, and if so, you have to make the best possible choices. If you need to feed a small baby calorie dense foods and can't do dairy or eggs, your choices are pretty limited and avocado is imo a good starting point.

amother

Maize

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:21 pm

Has this baby ever been weighed before and after nursing to see what he is getting? I know wic will do it. How long do the nursing sessions take? He may be burning calories from nursing. Also how are his diapers? You can tell a lot about a baby from diapers. I didn't read all the posts but I am wondering.

amother

Lightblue

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:23 pm

scintilla wrote:

I think sweet potato and butternut squash might be better choices.

dancingqueen

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 8:55 pm

Aside from the Pesach issue the infant oatmeal mixed with breast milk or formula is usually the recommended first food.

Last edited by dancingqueen on Thu, Mar 16 2023, 1:17 pm; edited 1 time in total

Ema of 5

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 9:03 pm

amother Maize wrote:

He hasn’t, but I bought a scale which is coming Friday. He used to nurse well, anywhere from 10-45 minutes! Now he’s barely making it to 10 minutes usually, sometimes only 5.
He gad a tongue tie that was clipped the day before his bris. I took another kid to that ent for something else recently, and while we were there he checked the tie and said it looked good.
He eats about every 3 hours, during the day. At night he goes longer stretches. He has plenty of wet diapers (I change him right before I feed him) but dirty diapers are very inconsistent.

amother

Freesia

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 9:55 pm

Please don’t start egg on a child that young. Best would be to follow the guidance of a pediatric dietician/Nutritionest . If your child is intolerant to dairy then there might be other allergy or intolerances . I really think you need to try a GI now, so what their opinion is and if you’re feeling in your gut that there’s something underlying , then keep searching for answers. Hatzlacha

amother

DarkCyan

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 10:00 pm

Ema of 5 wrote:

Yes you want answers. Pushing solids now is just covering up the issue. And if there is a digestion issue solids are the worst thing you can do to fix it.

amother

Oak

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 10:17 pm

amother DarkCyan wrote:

Solids is crazy for such a young age especially low weight. I would up his feedings not add solids. Babies need formula or breastmilk not nutrition from food. I also think it’s fine and he’s being overly cautious. He’s almost double his weight. It’s terrible advice to give food for weight gain, and besides studies show it’s best to wait until 6 months to prevent stomach issues.

I dont beleive starting solids early is a cause for stomeach issues. my grandmother started solids at 4 months with all her 6 kids and non of them have any issues.

amother

Tealblue

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 10:23 pm

Ema of 5 wrote:

Why dont you nurse more frequently? If a baby is struggling with weight gain the first thing to do is nurse more often.

Ema of 5

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 10:26 pm

amother Tealblue wrote:

Why dont you nurse more frequently? If a baby is struggling with weight gain the first thing to do is nurse more often.

I nurse in demand. I can’t force him to nurse anymore than I can force him to take a bottle. There are times when he wants to nurse less than 3 hours later, and of course I do it. Any time I nurse, I also try to give him a bottle.

giftedmom

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 10:26 pm

amother Oak wrote:

I dont beleive starting solids early is a cause for stomeach issues. my grandmother started solids at 4 months with all her 6 kids and non of them have any issues.

Yes
My one baby that I started on real food (not baby cereal or jars) at 4+ months is bh thriving and above average in height and weight. She’s also been the least sick of all my toddlers bh bh.

pause

Wed, Mar 15 2023, 10:44 pm

Ema of 5 wrote:

When my baby was having a hard time gaining weight my pediatrician's first strict instruction was to nurse every 1.5 - 2 hours (from the start of one feeding till the start of the next) and at night every 3 hours. If baby sleeps, to be woken up for feeds. And that I should eat lots of good fat food like meat and avocado.

I think that should be your step number one. Get him nursing way more often. Especially that he's sucking so little each time, he isn't getting much.