For the past four days my four month old will hardly eat during the day. She is formula fed and used to be a great eater. She does have reflux, but is medicated and it does not seem to be an issue. Because she wont eat during the day, she is waking up twice a night. When she wakes up a night she will eat great. I offer her to bottle a lot during the day, she will either eat a little and then stop, stick her tongue out to get the bottle out of her mouth, push the bottle out of her mouth with her hand, or sometimes she will even cry.
I am concerned because she is suppossed to be eating between 25 and 40 oz, during the day she has only been getting 16 or so oz, so I feel like I have to feed her when she wakes up because I am concerned about her getting enough nutrition.
Aside from the eating, she is happy.
Has this happened to anyone else? Any thoughts or advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you all for your thoughts and advise! My daughter has started eating a little more during the day and now only waking up once a night to eat. She contiunes to wake up and cry a little, two or three other times but puts herself back to sleep.
We saw the pedi on Friday and the good news is she is gaining weight! The bad news is he does not want to start her on solids (even cereal) yet. He is concerned that she is an allergy baby (she always has a runny nose, has a lot of exema, and lots of rashes). He wants to wait until she is 6 months to even try cereal. Oh well, thank you again for all the support and advice!
M.,
Have you tried to give her some solid food yet? She might be ready to start eating more than just the bottle. I was told once they start refusing the bottle is when they are ready to advance to something with more substance. Good luck!
M.,
My best advice is to call your ped. He/She will give you the best advice, and your little one may have to be seen. My son also had Acid Reflux but I don't remember him refusing to eat. Good Luck! A.
Is she getting 25 oz in a 24-hour period once you count what she eats in the middle of the night? If so, she is fine, just a little confused. I'd limit what you feed her in the middle of the night. If you've been giving her a full 8oz bottle, just give her 6 ounces the next time it happens, then 4 the next night, then 2. This happened with my daughter. She may cry when the bottle is empty, but it's enough formula to take the edge of of her hunger and let her get back to sleep. Put her back to bed like you normally would, just be prepared for a little extra crying.
Also... if you haven't started her on solids, this might be a good time to start rice cereal.
And, sometimes kids refuse to drink when they are teething.
If she continues this through the week, you might rule out a medical problem like an ear infection.
I work with a lot of refluxers in my line of work as a Newborn Specialist. It sounds to me like your daughter may have outgrown her medicine dosage (this seems to be especially true when babies are on Zantac--it seems that the Zantac just doesn't work anymore. If that's the case, ask your pedi about switching to an acid blocker such as Prilosec or Prevacid (Zantac is an acid reducer.)
Try spoon feeding her cereal mixed with formula. My baby liked the thicker consistancy, but it is recommended to be a little more "soupy". If she doesn't eat more, call the pedi. Just to make sure she isn't getting dehydrated.
Hi M.,
Getting your child adjusted by a chiropractor will typically help with the reflux. I am a chiropractor and I have treated many children with reflux. It helps almost immediately. Also, testing to make sure your child is not allergic to the formula you are using is very important. Putting acidophilus (available at Whole Foods or other health food stores) in her bottles will help her digestive tract. Ultimately, once she is feeling better she will be more apt to eat. Babies are very smart! She may realize that the formula makes her feel bad. No one wants to eat when they know what is going to happen after they do! Good luck! Let me know if you would like the name of a chiroprator in your area. You will be glad you took her in for treatment! Sleep is a wonderful thing!
My daughter is 5 months today. We went through that last month. Not only was she not eating well, but she seemed like she was always sleeping. (Completely different from my son when he was her age) I talked to my pediatrician's nurse about it and she told me that she must be getting over a growth spurt. About a week before she did not want to eat, she ate all the time. We have had several of these periods where she does this. They only last for about a week. My doctor told us that she is right where she needs to be on the growth charts, so not to worry. She also said that if we were getting wet diapers still there was not a problem, but if those stopped then she would need to see her. Every child is different, so if you are still concerned, then call the pediatrician. I have also noticed a change in both my kids eating since our temps have changed outside.
Hi M.,
Have you tried giving her the bottle at different temperatures? This may sound strange... but my 4 month old boy who is breastfed likes his bottles cold when he is at daycare. He will drink them warn but definitely has a preference. You may also want to try a different nipple speed, maybe she is getting the formula too fast or too slow.
Good Luck!
E.
My daughter has reflux and did the same thing for a while. We have added cereal to her bottle since she was 2 weeks old (under the advice of her doctor). Because the rice adds calories and makes the bottles thicker she does not eat as much as the "average" baby, but my doctor says not to worry. She is doing great developmentally, and you cannot get a baby to eat more than they want. Also you may try feeding your daughter in a quiet room, Isabelle gets very distracted and cannot focus sometime unless she is in a quite room. She also eats better at night, and I have contributed that to it being quiet and dark so I try to give her that same environment during the day.
Good luck, everything will work out for you I am sure. Us reflux mom's need to stick together, reflux can be a real pain sometime.
