It’s normal for a baby to lose weight after he/she is born. In the first 24 to 72 hours after birth babies tend to lose about 3-10% of their birth weight and then regain that weight over the next 2 to 3 weeks. If a mother receives lots of IV fluids during labor, the baby could be born “heavier” because of the increased water. The somewhat higher weight could be measured if a baby were weighed right before it peed for the first time. The difference of this extra fluid retention might only be a few ounces, but some parents are told to be concerned when, at their baby’s two week checkup, the baby is a few ounces under birth weight.
So many moms whose babies have looked healthy, nursed well, met developmental milestones one right after the other and have lost all confidence in breastfeeding due to someone telling them that their baby’s weight was not on the charts. This someone was looking at the scale and charts, rather than the baby.
If you have been told that weight gain is not acceptable, look hard at this list of questions:
- Is your baby eager to nurse?
- Is your baby peeing and pooping well?
- Is your baby’s urine either clear or very pale yellow?
- Are your baby’s eyes bright and alert?
- Is your baby’s skin a healthy color and texture?
- Is your baby moving its arms and legs vigorously?
- Are baby’s nails growing?
- Is your baby meeting developmental milestones?
- Is your baby’s overall disposition happy and playful?
- Yes, your baby sleeps a lot, but when your baby is awake does he have periods of being very alert?
Another common problem at early checkups is a baby that is not gaining what the practitioner considers to be “normal weight gain.” There is not general agreement on normal weight gain and the range in texts are from 4 to 8 ounces a week. Some babies are genetically destined to be a lot smaller or larger than others. As I mentioned in the first paragraph: Easy concept, isn’t it?
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