3 Month Old Weight Gain

I wouldn't worry, I think the weight gain is fine. I had a premie baby who weighed just over 3 pounds at birth and was told by the specialists that they look for a 1-2 pound weight gain each month so she is right on track. Hope this helps!

I have 2 children, the first one gained just a little weight each month, but since she was my first, I thought nothing of it. By the time she was 1 year, she was still only 18 lbs, and I couldn't turn the seat around. My second child was 18 lbs at 6 months! Each child is different. Don't compare to child to child it will drive you crazy. If you are concerned, go to the dr. Don't sit and stew for a month, your stress level will be through the roof, dr.'s are used to mom's coming in for many reasons. Also, think about it, if the student dr. says it's ok, she is probably going by the same charts and information that the dr. is going by! As a monther, the decisions I make are the ones I can live with. So make sure you make ones that you can live with. Each Mom as well as child is different. Good Luck

Your worrying over nothing. As long as she doesn't start losing weight don't worry. My youngest daughter didn't gain weight like the doctors said she should and she is 20 and fine now. I am glad I didn't listen to the doctors and allowed her to grow at her own pace. Not all babies are the same. My oldest one gained weight a lot faster then my younger one. Don't compare your children when it comes to eating or anything else as they are two different people. My oldest is 5'9 and my youngest is 5'4. Your baby may have inherited different genes than the older child. I breast fed both of mine so it has nothing to do with weight gain. I was always told a breast fed baby is healthier than a bottle fed baby. Just relax and enjoy her. She will only be little once.

Congratulations on breastfeeding your baby! You are doing the very best thing you could do for her!

Don't worry about her weight as long as she is gaining, eating and producing diapers she is fine. Too many people and Dr's make parents focus far too much on charts, which are supposed to serve only as a guide...not to mention that they are based on formula-fed infants. Formula fed babies often gain weight and size faster because of cows milk based diet, which is formulated to add size and bulk to baby cows....whereas human milk has different fats and components meant to focus on human brain development instead....

Also, babies that are formula fed are typically told that they 'can' start solids as early as 4 months in the parent wants because their gut is more adjusted to foreign materials (formula) whereas breastfed babies usually wait the full 6 months as recommended by the AAP and WHO. Until babies are a full year old, breastmilk is their main source of nutrition, as they still cannot utilize much nutrition from solids, even if they eat them. At 6 months, food is entirely for learning textures and socializing with the family at mealtime and breastfed babies should always be nursed FIRST, before any meal of solids in order to continue getting their primary nutrition 1st before the fun stuff!

Can you come to the Morton Plant Nursing Moms group that meets at the Clearwater location every 1st and 3rd Fridays at 10am? You can get LOTS of great info there :-) Also, check out kellymom.com and mothering.com

Best wishes!

Breast fed babies just don't gain as much as fast as formula fed babies (they're also less likely to be overweight adults). As long as your daughter is having plenty of wet/poopy diapers in a day, not spitting up excessively and is generally a happy baby then it's all good. Double check with your pediatrician if you're still concerned but all the breastfeeding moms I know have (comparatively) long, skinny babies.

I understand your concern, but like the other Mommies said, don't worry too much. My daughter was BF and at 3 months weighed 12lbs 8oz, and until about 1 year was always 97% for height and below 50% for weight (because she was so long, she really looked thin). The Ped said she was growing just fine and was very healthy. Even when she started eating solids (she ate everything - was never a picky eater) she still had the same ratio until about 1.5 years (then it became 50% - 97%). Now 3 she's tall, slender, healthy and very athletic. Every baby is different and just because one child drinks 25-30 oz of milk, doesn’t mean that’s ideal for all children. The next time you’re at the Ped’s office, just raise your concern. Keep up with the breastfeeding!!

~J.

M.,
First of all, good on you for choosing to breastfeed your baby!

You are totally worrying over nothing. :) Your baby is gaining fine! I breastfed 2 babies and they only gained about 16 oz per month. My first was only 18 lbs at a year and my second 20 lbs at a year, and both are healthy, active girls who will probably never have a weight problem.

Breastfed babies' weight gain also starts to taper off after the third month.

Formula-fed infants tend to gain much faster especially after 3 months, so don't compare to your older child's baby book.

Also, most growth charts are based on formula-fed babies. Here's some info on tracking your breastfed baby's growth on proper charts developed by the World Health Organization for breastfed babies.

http://breastfeeding.suite101.com/article.cfm/growth_char...

Please don't worry and please don't start supplementing your baby as it's totally not necessary. Keep nursing on demand, check that your baby pees about 6 wet diapers a day, at least 1 poo per week, and is gaining approx. 4 oz a week. I'm sure your baby is just perfect and is growing the way she is meant to.

M., my daughter was also breastfed and also gained barely a pound, if that, each month. It worried me, but my pediatrician said that BF babies gain more slowly and as long as she pees/poops appropriately and meets her milestones, there's nothing wrong. She is now 11 months, still nursing, and doing great.

If you did want to help her gain a little more, here's a great breastfeeding-friendly website with great info:

http://www.kellymom.com/babyconcerns/growth/weight-gain_i...

M.

Hi M.. I don't think you have anything to worry about. I have heard that breast fed babies sometimes gain weight slower, as long has long as she is gaining and she is not spitting up her food...she is fine. Don't worry about it. You go to the doctors in another month see what she weighs then, if your doc isn't concerned I wouldn't be.

Good Luck :)
Sarah

Congrats for Breastfeeding after formula feeding! I think if she were hungry she would let you know! Good luck. I know there is always a little doubt sometimes with bf. Trust your body. If your baby is happy odds are she is healthy!

I think you're worrying over nothing. Formula-fed babies tend to drink until the bottle's empty. Breast-fed babies stop when they're full. She's still gaining about 1/2 ounce a day, which is fine. I never heard the thing about having to double the weight before starting solids.

I breastfed my daughter exclusively until she was 6 months old, then started cereal mixed with expressed milk along with other baby food. We moved right to stage 2 foods since she was older and had lost the reflex where their tongue just pushes all the food out of their mouths anyhow. lol

The overall AAP recommends just breastmilk or formula for 5 months, but the AAP's Nutrition Committee says you can start solids at 4 months if there's a reason to.

As long as your daughter is on track developmentally and is still gaining some weight, I think you're both doing just fine. Of course, if the only way you're going to get any sleep at night is by calling the pediatrician, but all means call and put your mind at rest! Good Luck!

Kids instinctly know what they need and they are all different. It's hard to compare them to other siblings. I'd fatten up your breastmilk by eating an egg daily, whole milk, and a tsp of cod live oil a day. Read more about healthy diets while nursing at http://www.westonaprice.org/children/dietformothers.html

Please don't worry too much! The World Health Organization just changed the weight tables for breastfed babies because they gain differently than formula-fed babies. Kids grow in spurts, as I'm sure you know, and this is probably just a time when she's working on other things.

I let a doctor worry me about my daughter's gain when she was little and now that she's four, I know that she's just skinny! :-) There's no other way to put it. She's always in the 90th percentile for height and the 40 or 50th for weight. Her cousin's like that too.

If it were me, I would absolutely keep an eye on her to make sure that she seems content after feedings and active when she's awake, and I would pay attention to her weight at the next check up, but keep on breastfeeding on demand. It's a wonderful thing that you're able to do for her.

And my kids didn't start solids until six months, so you don't have to start at four months. We just kind of have to follow their lead!

Hey there! If your doctor isn't concerned, I wouldn't be either. My daughter was born 9 lbs 10 oz, weighed about 13 lbs 2 oz at 4 months, and just weighed in at 18 lbs 15 oz at 12 months. She has still not doubled her birth weight, but is doing great, eating table food, and meeting all her milestones. So with that said, if she seems healthy, meeting milestones, and doctor is happy - you may just a petite little lady. Best wishes. :-)

I wouldn't worry. If the doctors aren't concerned, then her weight gain may just be on the lower end, which is still ok. I have a 3 year old and a 7 month old. The baby is smaller than her sister at each milestone, but she is still gaining weight. The baby was also strictly breastfed until 6 months when we started her on solids and my 3 year old was bottle fed from 3 months.

Ask again at her 4 month visit, but I would say just keep doing what you are doing. And please don't start solids at 4 months just because you want her to gain more weight. Most pediatricians don't recommend starting solids until 6 months when your baby's digestion system is more mature and it may result in eating problems later on.

I felt your anxiety when I read your note. I had problems breastfeeding my older child, and was prodded into supplementing with formula, and I think that was the beginning of the end of breastfeeding him. As soon as he had a bottle, he never wanted to try breastfeeding again. My younger child breastfed more easily, but was also very small, and there was a suggestion of supplementing, but I didn't do it. She was small, but seemed very happy and content, and had shiny eyes and lovely skin and did all of the normal newborn things, so I went with my gut feeling that she was fine and indeed she was and is. Try not to obsess on those charts! Many of them are based on formula babies, who do indeed gain more quickly. But why pump up your baby on fake milk when you can do it more naturally with the real thing? Best of luck to you!