Bethany Lannon Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 Just took my daughter who is EBF for her 4-month appt. Her growth rate has slowed drastically (8.6% for weight now), so doctor approved starting her on solids (making my own baby food), but also wants to supplement with formula after her feelings to see if she's getting enough. I would really rather avoid formula after seeing the ingredient list of CRAP for infant formula that Balanced Bites had posted on her fb page (could have been Against All Grain... I can't remember specifically who posted it). Wondering if anyone has a homemade formula alternative... Or could adding in solids after each feeding potentially be enough to boost her growth? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmary Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 The Weston A Price foundation has several formula recipes that you can try. I can't post a link right now, but googling Weston A Price baby formula recipe should work. At four months, I would try to lean on homemade formula more than solids, unless you are seeing signs that she is ready for solids (showing interest in your food, for example) EDIT: Weston A Price also has info on first foods (liver and egg yolk, first, I believe) if you want to try solids right away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boykinbaby Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 First, is your Dr using the correct growth chart? If they're not using the chart for EBF babies of course the growth is low. Are you and/or your hubby smaller people? If so then you may just have a petite baby, especially if you get plenty of wet/dirty diapers and baby is otherwise healthy and thriving. I think Dr put too much emphasis on weight and thus push solids/formula when it isn't needed. Have you looked into a local Le Leche Legue? they usually have great resources and support Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bethany Lannon Posted July 17, 2013 Author Share Posted July 17, 2013 Thanks for the replies... Even using the EBF growth chart, she still went from 90% at birth to 10-25% today. She's showing interest in our foods & my 3yo son started solids at 4 months as well with no issue. I have a boatload of frozen pumped milk so I'm going to give her a small bottle of that after each nursing session and also pump between feedings for a couple days. I'll up my fat intake too (the food template preachers' heads might explode at me going beyond the parameters). She's been becoming fussy and squirmy at the breast for 2-3 feedings each day for a little while now. So it very well could be my supply. I do know that I will prevent store bought formula for as long as safely possible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
missmary Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 (the food template preachers' heads might explode at me going beyond the parameters). _____________________________________________ NOoooo! The fat guidelines in the template are minimums. Go for it lady! EDIT: Also, sounds like a great plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boykinbaby Posted July 17, 2013 Share Posted July 17, 2013 my little girl got fussy about that time (she's 8 months now) so it could be a phase, but offering more is never a bad idea that i've found out. good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bellatrix Posted July 21, 2013 Share Posted July 21, 2013 Fenugreek boosts supply Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaseyD Posted July 21, 2013 Share Posted July 21, 2013 I am feeding my baby the meat-based formula recipe out of the book Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon. She also has a raw milk based recipe in that book. He seems to doing great on it and doesn't spit up now that I switched him to it from the store bought crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaseyD Posted July 21, 2013 Share Posted July 21, 2013 If you go that route, http://www.radiantlifecatalog.com/ is where I got the supplements for the formula. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ravin Posted July 21, 2013 Share Posted July 21, 2013 Have you tried lying-in for a few days to boost your supply? pumping in between when the baby nurses? You want to make sure you're nursing round the clock, on demand (and offering if the baby doesn't demand at least every 2 hours during the day or every 4 at night). Cosleeping to make sure you can get plenty of rest while staying available is also a good idea. Any kind of imposed restriction to a schedule on breastfeeding can mess up your supply, as can supplementing or introducing solids early. Also make sure you're getting plenty of fats in your diet. the Kellymom website has lots of good guidelines and articles. Supplementing is bad advice when EBF'ing 99.9999% of the time. Most doctors are poorly educated about breastfeeding. You might consider talking to a certified lactation consultant. I know it can seem scary to have the baby drop in the weight percentiles, but how is she doing for length and head circumference and milestones? Has she gotten sick at all that might have caused a setback? If those are staying on the curve then the doctor needs to look at the whole picture in considering how the baby is thriving, not just the weight scale. Also, some babies are born with more fat stores than others, and it's common for breastfed babies to slim down from their birth percentiles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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