Pregnancy and Baby Advice Thread: From Conception to Birth, and Beyond!

What will you doing they say no....? Just To play devils advocate here!! Could you get a few cartons? And see how you go? And you could start with a bottle or 2 a day and see how it goes? And then introduce more if needed. Some babies just need 'more'. Xxx

If they say no to HB I was going to increase to 7oz of the existing stuff. I was thinking maybe HB for lunch time abs afternoon feeds and existing stuff for others. See if that helps him through his hungrier more upset times of late afternoon/early evening. X
 
If they say no to HB I was going to increase to 7oz of the existing stuff. I was thinking maybe HB for lunch time abs afternoon feeds and existing stuff for others. See if that helps him through his hungrier more upset times of late afternoon/early evening. X

Sounds like a plan to me. See how you go, follow your mummy instincts! The HV are there to advise, you have to make the final decision xxxx
 
So I spoke to our HV and she was quite helpful. Said he is likely to be going through a growth spurt so this could be why he is permanently hungry, but said to do all or some of the following
1. Use 6 scoops of formula but 7oz of water
2. Give him a couple of hungry baby feeds a day but make sure he has water too to prevent constipation
3. Have colief rather than infacol to help reduce any colic in the evenings.

She said to do this for a couple of weeks and then if no improvement we will discuss comfort milk when next see her in clinic.

We will give this a go and see how our little man goes x
 
So I spoke to our HV and she was quite helpful. Said he is likely to be going through a growth spurt so this could be why he is permanently hungry, but said to do all or some of the following
1. Use 6 scoops of formula but 7oz of water
2. Give him a couple of hungry baby feeds a day but make sure he has water too to prevent constipation
3. Have colief rather than infacol to help reduce any colic in the evenings.

She said to do this for a couple of weeks and then if no improvement we will discuss comfort milk when next see her in clinic.

We will give this a go and see how our little man goes x

That seems fairly sensible! Hope it works for you xx
 
Girls who went over their due date I seriously salute you .. I have three weeks to go and am SO uncomfortable :( I can't relax because my backs hurting so much, I'm out of breath and baby is pushing into my ribs ahhh . I know it will all be totally worth it but can't wait for him / her to be here now!! X
 
Girls who went over their due date I seriously salute you .. I have three weeks to go and am SO uncomfortable :( I can't relax because my backs hurting so much, I'm out of breath and baby is pushing into my ribs ahhh . I know it will all be totally worth it but can't wait for him / her to be here now!! X
Sit on yer ball hun... Honest to God it worked a treat for me..
Although my bump was nothing compared to yours so dunno how effective it'd be for you...
 
We have pretty much moved over to formula feeds now. Oliver has 6oz bottles but he is having a lot more than the recommended 5. Probably more like 7. He drinks every bit up and often cries for more. He has water- usually between 4-6oz a day. I don't know whether he should be on hungry baby formula or it's fine just to give him more of the first milk. May ring HV tomorrow? Anyone had similar issues?

Posted on another forum to another ?start hungry baby milk dilemma recently... Not sure how old your baby is but if not close to weaning onto solids age & a potential argument for hungry baby for any other reasons but otherwise I'd say the same:

"For what it's worth - I've stuck with the first milk (baby now 10 months and still partially breastfed) as things I've read have suggested that the hungry/follow ons etc. might be a bit of a marketing ploy because they can be advertised but regulations mean that the first types can't be (breast is best and all that...)

Also it doesn't entirely make sense to me - milk is milk - how would you get more calories in?! Or is the aim just to make them feel fuller for longer by having more 'filler' or making it harder for them to digest? Which is like the arguments that people sometimes give for weaning their 'hungry babies' early - perhaps it fills up their stomachs quicker or keeps their digestive systems busy trying to process but not sure of the nutritional benefit - milk is supposed to be easy to digest! Sometimes breastfed babies can go ages (days-weeks) between poos without being constipated because it is so easy/efficient to digest...

If babies are growing well on what they're on it's clearly working - so although frequent feeding might be inconvenient I'd go with it. But with bottle feeding overfeeding is more of a possibility than breastfeeding - do perhaps just keep the weight being monitored to make sure it's not going up too much and make sure you consider other reasons for being unsettled rather than just feeding as a default response. "



Also about the giving water as a drink or not in babies not on solids:

- If exclusively breastfed then absolutely would not add water - it's not necessary as your body cunningly adjusts in hotter weather to a more liquidy sort of milk - which I saw the evidence for myself with pumped milk last summer and the colour fluctuations as it separates out!
- If bottle feeding then I would only give additional water if the weather was such that I was needing to drink more than usual (so like last summer!).
- Babies are adapted to get by on milk alone & I wouldn't want to unnecessarily 'fill them up' with something with no nutritional value. Also the idea that it 'won't do any harm' would worry me a tad as a baby's circulating blood volume is pretty tiny and kidneys immature - prescribing IV fluids for babies is far more complicated/risky than adults and imbalances in electrolytes can cause problems.
- Once on solids probably handy to reduce the risk of constipation though & practise drinking from a cup without the spills getting stick!


There are some really helpful websites out there that are more Mum-focussed & have some forum subsections specifically on feeding methods (breast-feeding/bottle feeding/weaning etc.) which I found really helpful. Although there are guidelines out there they don't cover every eventuality & there are shades of grey - also lots of advice from HVs etc. seems hugely individual/not evidenced based/out of date and lots of other health care professionals may or may not have ever really had much training/recent updates in 'normal babies'! (I say that as someone who may or may not be one... ah - no ninja smilie here - but with the aid of the great interwebs/Mummy-paranoia do feel better informed now!)


Gah - this thread is making me broody & she's only 10 months. :D
 
Posted on another forum to another ?start hungry baby milk dilemma recently... Not sure how old your baby is but if not close to weaning onto solids age & a potential argument for hungry baby for any other reasons but otherwise I'd say the same:

"For what it's worth - I've stuck with the first milk (baby now 10 months and still partially breastfed) as things I've read have suggested that the hungry/follow ons etc. might be a bit of a marketing ploy because they can be advertised but regulations mean that the first types can't be (breast is best and all that...)

Also it doesn't entirely make sense to me - milk is milk - how would you get more calories in?! Or is the aim just to make them feel fuller for longer by having more 'filler' or making it harder for them to digest? Which is like the arguments that people sometimes give for weaning their 'hungry babies' early - perhaps it fills up their stomachs quicker or keeps their digestive systems busy trying to process but not sure of the nutritional benefit - milk is supposed to be easy to digest! Sometimes breastfed babies can go ages (days-weeks) between poos without being constipated because it is so easy/efficient to digest...

If babies are growing well on what they're on it's clearly working - so although frequent feeding might be inconvenient I'd go with it. But with bottle feeding overfeeding is more of a possibility than breastfeeding - do perhaps just keep the weight being monitored to make sure it's not going up too much and make sure you consider other reasons for being unsettled rather than just feeding as a default response. "



Also about the giving water as a drink or not in babies not on solids:

- If exclusively breastfed then absolutely would not add water - it's not necessary as your body cunningly adjusts in hotter weather to a more liquidy sort of milk - which I saw the evidence for myself with pumped milk last summer and the colour fluctuations as it separates out!
- If bottle feeding then I would only give additional water if the weather was such that I was needing to drink more than usual (so like last summer!).
- Babies are adapted to get by on milk alone & I wouldn't want to unnecessarily 'fill them up' with something with no nutritional value. Also the idea that it 'won't do any harm' would worry me a tad as a baby's circulating blood volume is pretty tiny and kidneys immature - prescribing IV fluids for babies is far more complicated/risky than adults and imbalances in electrolytes can cause problems.
- Once on solids probably handy to reduce the risk of constipation though & practise drinking from a cup without the spills getting stick!


There are some really helpful websites out there that are more Mum-focussed & have some forum subsections specifically on feeding methods (breast-feeding/bottle feeding/weaning etc.) which I found really helpful. Although there are guidelines out there they don't cover every eventuality & there are shades of grey - also lots of advice from HVs etc. seems hugely individual/not evidenced based/out of date and lots of other health care professionals may or may not have ever really had much training/recent updates in 'normal babies'! (I say that as someone who may or may not be one... ah - no ninja smilie here - but with the aid of the great interwebs/Mummy-paranoia do feel better informed now!)


Gah - this thread is making me broody & she's only 10 months. :D

That's good to see others struggle with deciding as well!
The only thing I would say is that I attended an infant feeding update earlier this month (as a midwife) and we were told the most recent advice is to offer (not force) 1oz cooled boiled water a day around lunchtime to solely ff babies. Not to replace milk in anyway, and if they don't drink it that's fine, but just to offer.
Xx
 
Posted on another forum to another ?start hungry baby milk dilemma recently... Not sure how old your baby is but if not close to weaning onto solids age & a potential argument for hungry baby for any other reasons but otherwise I'd say the same: "For what it's worth - I've stuck with the first milk (baby now 10 months and still partially breastfed) as things I've read have suggested that the hungry/follow ons etc. might be a bit of a marketing ploy because they can be advertised but regulations mean that the first types can't be (breast is best and all that...) Also it doesn't entirely make sense to me - milk is milk - how would you get more calories in?! Or is the aim just to make them feel fuller for longer by having more 'filler' or making it harder for them to digest? Which is like the arguments that people sometimes give for weaning their 'hungry babies' early - perhaps it fills up their stomachs quicker or keeps their digestive systems busy trying to process but not sure of the nutritional benefit - milk is supposed to be easy to digest! Sometimes breastfed babies can go ages (days-weeks) between poos without being constipated because it is so easy/efficient to digest... If babies are growing well on what they're on it's clearly working - so although frequent feeding might be inconvenient I'd go with it. But with bottle feeding overfeeding is more of a possibility than breastfeeding - do perhaps just keep the weight being monitored to make sure it's not going up too much and make sure you consider other reasons for being unsettled rather than just feeding as a default response. " Also about the giving water as a drink or not in babies not on solids: - If exclusively breastfed then absolutely would not add water - it's not necessary as your body cunningly adjusts in hotter weather to a more liquidy sort of milk - which I saw the evidence for myself with pumped milk last summer and the colour fluctuations as it separates out! - If bottle feeding then I would only give additional water if the weather was such that I was needing to drink more than usual (so like last summer!). - Babies are adapted to get by on milk alone & I wouldn't want to unnecessarily 'fill them up' with something with no nutritional value. Also the idea that it 'won't do any harm' would worry me a tad as a baby's circulating blood volume is pretty tiny and kidneys immature - prescribing IV fluids for babies is far more complicated/risky than adults and imbalances in electrolytes can cause problems. - Once on solids probably handy to reduce the risk of constipation though & practise drinking from a cup without the spills getting stick! There are some really helpful websites out there that are more Mum-focussed & have some forum subsections specifically on feeding methods (breast-feeding/bottle feeding/weaning etc.) which I found really helpful. Although there are guidelines out there they don't cover every eventuality & there are shades of grey - also lots of advice from HVs etc. seems hugely individual/not evidenced based/out of date and lots of other health care professionals may or may not have ever really had much training/recent updates in 'normal babies'! (I say that as someone who may or may not be one... ah - no ninja smilie here - but with the aid of the great interwebs/Mummy-paranoia do feel better informed now!) Gah - this thread is making me broody & she's only 10 months. :D

Like Susie says, nice to know other people struggle to know what's best to do too.

The comment about HB milk possibly having more calories though, it doesn't. It's got a protein in that fills baby more, so the part about it being harder to digest is true. And it's still classed as 'first' milk. You can't get it on promotion, it's regarded the same as newborn milk as it technically is suitable from newborn. I bought some in Boots the other day and you don't earn advantage card points on it because it's classed as a newborn milk. I honestly don't think it is a marketing plot because Cole has been a totally different baby since he's been on it. But it obviously doesn't suit every baby. I just make sure he has water to stop him being constipated.
 
Posted on another forum to another ?start hungry baby milk dilemma recently... Not sure how old your baby is but if not close to weaning onto solids age & a potential argument for hungry baby for any other reasons but otherwise I'd say the same: "For what it's worth - I've stuck with the first milk (baby now 10 months and still partially breastfed) as things I've read have suggested that the hungry/follow ons etc. might be a bit of a marketing ploy because they can be advertised but regulations mean that the first types can't be (breast is best and all that...) Also it doesn't entirely make sense to me - milk is milk - how would you get more calories in?! Or is the aim just to make them feel fuller for longer by having more 'filler' or making it harder for them to digest? Which is like the arguments that people sometimes give for weaning their 'hungry babies' early - perhaps it fills up their stomachs quicker or keeps their digestive systems busy trying to process but not sure of the nutritional benefit - milk is supposed to be easy to digest! Sometimes breastfed babies can go ages (days-weeks) between poos without being constipated because it is so easy/efficient to digest... If babies are growing well on what they're on it's clearly working - so although frequent feeding might be inconvenient I'd go with it. But with bottle feeding overfeeding is more of a possibility than breastfeeding - do perhaps just keep the weight being monitored to make sure it's not going up too much and make sure you consider other reasons for being unsettled rather than just feeding as a default response. " Also about the giving water as a drink or not in babies not on solids: - If exclusively breastfed then absolutely would not add water - it's not necessary as your body cunningly adjusts in hotter weather to a more liquidy sort of milk - which I saw the evidence for myself with pumped milk last summer and the colour fluctuations as it separates out! - If bottle feeding then I would only give additional water if the weather was such that I was needing to drink more than usual (so like last summer!). - Babies are adapted to get by on milk alone & I wouldn't want to unnecessarily 'fill them up' with something with no nutritional value. Also the idea that it 'won't do any harm' would worry me a tad as a baby's circulating blood volume is pretty tiny and kidneys immature - prescribing IV fluids for babies is far more complicated/risky than adults and imbalances in electrolytes can cause problems. - Once on solids probably handy to reduce the risk of constipation though & practise drinking from a cup without the spills getting stick! There are some really helpful websites out there that are more Mum-focussed & have some forum subsections specifically on feeding methods (breast-feeding/bottle feeding/weaning etc.) which I found really helpful. Although there are guidelines out there they don't cover every eventuality & there are shades of grey - also lots of advice from HVs etc. seems hugely individual/not evidenced based/out of date and lots of other health care professionals may or may not have ever really had much training/recent updates in 'normal babies'! (I say that as someone who may or may not be one... ah - no ninja smilie here - but with the aid of the great interwebs/Mummy-paranoia do feel better informed now!) Gah - this thread is making me broody & she's only 10 months. :D

Thanks for this. Interesting. I don't think there is a straight forward answer. We are trying one or two feeds on HB a day and see whether that suits our boy more. I agree there seems to be a lot of conflicting advice out there though which first help parents
 
Does anyone have trouble getting their baby asleep in the day? Oliver generally sleeps for couple of hours in the morning but then will not sleep until the evening - usually between 8.30 and 10. He is tired but just won't give in. He rubs his eyes, yawns, whines, puts his hand in mouth to comfort, but just won't go down. I think this is why he has a melt down in the evening because he is overtired. Any ideas? He still wakes up every three hours in the night so not like he is getting too much sleep overnight in my mind.
 
Does anyone have trouble getting their baby asleep in the day? Oliver generally sleeps for couple of hours in the morning but then will not sleep until the evening - usually between 8.30 and 10. He is tired but just won't give in. He rubs his eyes, yawns, whines, puts his hand in mouth to comfort, but just won't go down. I think this is why he has a melt down in the evening because he is overtired. Any ideas? He still wakes up every three hours in the night so not like he is getting too much sleep overnight in my mind.

Yep, me. Seth does not do napping! The only time he will nap is in his pram. Even white noise etc will not send him to sleep in the day...

He's been better the last few days though as he's been sleeping well at night, otherwise we get the evening meltdown too with overtiredness!

I know that's no help really but just so you know it's not just Oliver ;) xxx
 
Does anyone have trouble getting their baby asleep in the day? Oliver generally sleeps for couple of hours in the morning but then will not sleep until the evening - usually between 8.30 and 10. He is tired but just won't give in. He rubs his eyes, yawns, whines, puts his hand in mouth to comfort, but just won't go down. I think this is why he has a melt down in the evening because he is overtired. Any ideas? He still wakes up every three hours in the night so not like he is getting too much sleep overnight in my mind.

Hi penny we started hungry baby formula (2 feeds per day) and colief last week and since then Bella been alot more settled and now goes 4 hours between feeds. In the 4 hours I force her to have a nap by any means possible, on me, rocked to sleep, pushchair, in the car etc although sometimes she will now fall asleep herself either on me straight after feeding or on her play mat.
Will Oliver sleep in his pram or I the car? Just thinking it might be a good place to start x
 
I just put Thomas down after one of his meltdowns, only thing working for me just now is to swaddle him, put his dummy in, rock him and say shhh repeatedly, he's gone after 5 mins and I can then put him down.
Sometimes though he will go down fine by himself!
 
Does anyone have trouble getting their baby asleep in the day? Oliver generally sleeps for couple of hours in the morning but then will not sleep until the evening - usually between 8.30 and 10. He is tired but just won't give in. He rubs his eyes, yawns, whines, puts his hand in mouth to comfort, but just won't go down. I think this is why he has a melt down in the evening because he is overtired. Any ideas? He still wakes up every three hours in the night so not like he is getting too much sleep overnight in my mind.

Cole used to refuse, point blank. He'd literally be awake from 7am to bedtime, unless we went in the car and even then it had to be more than a 10 minute journey for him to nod off. Since we swapped a few things he naps loads now. In fact, he's currently on his second nap since 6am!! A few things I did are:

*HB milk
*White noise (as loud as my phone would go then gradually turning it down as he started to nod)
*Rocking in his chair but quite fast then gradually slowing down once his eyes start dropping
*Playing with him for an hour after his bottle then trying to get him down when he's tired out rather than putting him down straight after a bottle (although he's the other way round in the night)
*7pm bedtime so he gets 11-12 hours sleep a night

Not sure if they'll work for you but it's a start. I also do what Nelly does and let him fall asleep wherever he needs to. Xx
 
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