Is it normal...

[natividad]

Hello all,

Alexander is 4 weeks old and I have noticed that his big toe nail seems to be embedded in his skin. I was wondering if it will eventually grow out. It does not seem to hurt him or anything, but I can't help being a bit concerned.

Also, I have been BF him exclusively since he was born, but lately he seems to be going through some sort of appetite spurt. He cries and cries even after I BF him for what seems to be hours - talk about BFing ON demand. Out of desperation, I gave in and gave him 3 oz of Similac. Wouldn't you know he was content afterwards. Now I am thinking that perhaps I am not producing enough milk? Most of the times he seems to be satisfied with the BM (we go through a good number of wet and poopy diapers), but lately he just seems to be not getting enough. I am not sure what to do. The WTEWYAE book says not to supplement with formula since that will be one less BF opportunity. Any suggestions and/or advice? TIA!

Naty
Mom to Alexander 2/26/03

[brubeck]

My kids both have toenails that look like they are ingrown because they curve in slightly and grow close to the skin. Try gently lifting the nail and see if you can slide your fingernail inside and pry it away from the skin. If you can, then clip it.

I suspect that your son is going through a grown spurt since he's barely a month old. He may want to nurse all the time now, but chances are next week he will have settled down again.

Another reason he might be content after the formula is that formula takes longer to digest, and so it stays in the tummy longer, making the baby feel more full. It is for this reason that I give my otherwise exclusively BF'd son 2 ounces of formula at night before bed. :-)

And it is not a sin to have a bottle once a day at this stage in the game. You need a break sometimes!

If he has lots of wet and poopy diapers you ar certainly feeding him enough!

[COElizabeth]

Naty,

Here is a link Rachel provided on a thread in the feeding topic area. It's a discussion of various ways to increase supply. Oatmeal is also supposed to help, and there are other suggestions in that area. http://www.drjaygordon.com/bf/galact.htm

I think it's possible to mistake some things like fussiness and chewing on hands for hunger. I know my DS often sucks on his hands after eating, but I don't think it's a supply issue. He's always gained weight well. I have also read that sometimes babies will eat formula after breastfeeding even though they really have had enough. They just keep eating because it's easy to get out of the bottle. I don't know if it's true, but it seems possible. Finally, another thing to consider is that your baby may have reflux pain. James had this. Frequent nursing and crying after feeding can mean the baby is in pain (milk soothes the pain for a while, so the baby will nurse to coat the throat, but then of course the reflux acts up again). I'm not saying this is your baby's issue. I think it's likely just a growth spurt and that your supply will catch up. But if it doesn't, it's one thing to talk about with your doctor. Good luck!

Elizabeth
Mom to James
9-20-02