You need to get serious if your baby goes through any of the below discussed weight loss conditions. The weight lost by the baby in the initial three to four days must be regained within three weeks. If this weight is not regained in three weeks, you need to talk to your doctor. If the baby does not gain about 1lb of weight in the initial four months after birth, you should consult a doctor. If the proportional weight of the infant i.e. length, weight and head circumference is not as per the average, it can be a matter of serious concern. When an infant is born, it loses about 5-7 % of weight within the first 72 hours. If your baby loses greater amount of weight than this, you need to take it very seriously . Whether your infant is breast fed or formula-fed, the weight that it loses in the initial days after birth is regained. If this weight is not regained, you need to have a close monitoring on your child's weight and need to talk to the paediatrician. If the infant is breast fed by you, the paediatrician may ask you to shift it to formula feeding as the milk from your breast may be a reason for it's undergrowth. Further, you may require to consult a lactation consultant.
 |
Baby Weight Loss |
There are various reasons that may lead to weight loss. One of these include excessive fluid loss. Meconium is the first black substance that passes through the bowel movement. This may lead to a certain amount of weight loss in babies. If you are feeding your baby on breast milk and the pre-milk (the initial milk quality called the colostrum) does not end within few weeks, it may lead to weight loss in babies. On an average, the naturally breastfeeding babies gain their weight back faster than those that are formula fed.
The weight of the baby keeps on fluctuating after birth. The loss of fluid stored in the infant is also a reason for its weight loss. When the baby gets born, it becomes lighter in weight. It is possible that the baby has excess of weight, if the mother was under a fluid therapy or IVF therapy. Infants are born with extra amount of fat so that they can fight the stress during the delivery. This extra amount of weight is shed off after it gets born.
Infants also carry extra weight in the form of fats. These fats are used to serve the body needs after the infant is born and are no more nourished by the mothers blood. It takes time for them to know about breast feeding. Till this time, energy requirements of the infant is fulfilled by the fats stored in their body. Melting away of these fats may also lead to a short term weight loss that is regained in a few weeks.
How to increase the body weight of infants?
You need to consult a lactation consultant so that you get to know whether your breast is producing enough amount of milk and if your baby is able to suck the milk properly and efficiently. They will also help you to know if you need to have any supplements in order to increase the amount of milk production (in cases of low milk production in some mothers). Babies should be breast-fed whenever they are in need of food. It will help them to stay healthy and baby weight loss can thus be prevented to a great extent.
0 comments:
Post a Comment