If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below. |
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
My Health Visitor said that if I was thinking of waiting until 6 months to
begin weaning then I should remember that iron intake rapidly depletes after 6 months with a b/fed baby. How can this be? Surely the iron content is constant? I know that formula has more but is less readily absorbed. Does a baby suddenly have an increased need for iron at 6 months? DS was 6 wks pre-term so I was going to wait until 6 months from EDD (or until he showed signs of being interested - not a glimmer right now) but now I'm worried that I'll make him iron deficient. Also, he's 5 months now and the last 2 fortnightly weigh-ins he's just put on 4oz per week when he'd been doing at least 7oz in previous weeks. I know it starts slowing down at some point but I had it in my mind that it was later than this (about 8 months). He feeds at least 6 times a day, poos a lot, wees a lot and seems quite happy. He only sleeps for about 1 hr total now in the day (12 hrs at night) so is his extra activity eating up all his calories? --Alison |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
|
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
I started solids at 6 months and I haven't really been feeding high-iron
foods. My DS had his 9-month well baby visit last week and they checked his iron level. (The nurse pricked his toe instead of his heal to get the sample, which I thought was weird!) It was at the high end of the normal range. I don't think there is any real big reason to worry about iron levels in a normal infant. It is probably a good idea to get it checked periodically, though, since the test is so easy. Anna Alison wrote: My Health Visitor said that if I was thinking of waiting until 6 months to begin weaning then I should remember that iron intake rapidly depletes after 6 months with a b/fed baby. How can this be? Surely the iron content is constant? I know that formula has more but is less readily absorbed. Does a baby suddenly have an increased need for iron at 6 months? DS was 6 wks pre-term so I was going to wait until 6 months from EDD (or until he showed signs of being interested - not a glimmer right now) but now I'm worried that I'll make him iron deficient. Also, he's 5 months now and the last 2 fortnightly weigh-ins he's just put on 4oz per week when he'd been doing at least 7oz in previous weeks. I know it starts slowing down at some point but I had it in my mind that it was later than this (about 8 months). He feeds at least 6 times a day, poos a lot, wees a lot and seems quite happy. He only sleeps for about 1 hr total now in the day (12 hrs at night) so is his extra activity eating up all his calories? --Alison |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
"Alison" wrote My Health Visitor said that if I was thinking of waiting until 6 months to begin weaning then I should remember that iron intake rapidly depletes after 6 months with a b/fed baby. How can this be? Surely the iron content is constant? I know that formula has more but is less readily absorbed. Does a baby suddenly have an increased need for iron at 6 months? DS was 6 wks pre-term so I was going to wait until 6 months from EDD (or until he showed signs of being interested - not a glimmer right now) but now I'm worried that I'll make him iron deficient. snip Ian was (very slightly) anemic at his 9 month check, despite being 90% bf. I started solids at 6 months. BUT -- they cut the cord very quickly with him, not waiting until all the iron pumped into him. That basically would have been when it quit pulsing. Iron drops for about a month took care of it, and he was non the worse for wear. My pediatrician made it clear that it's very common, and as long as you catch the anemia when it starts, it shouldn't be a problem. Supposedly, when you introduce any amount of non-breastmilk food (including iron drops), the baby becomes less able to absorb that special type of iron in breastmilk. It's not that there is an increased need for iron at 6 months, so much as that is when bf babies typically get their first solids, which makes that iron absorb less easily. So, when you do introduce solids, if your baby's cord was cut early, or was preemie, then you might want to consider concentrating on iron fortified cereals or trying iron drops. HTH~ Teresa |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
Thank you all. I will see if we can get his iron levels monitored rather
than just assume that he *needs* solids to get the iron. --Alison |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
"Alison" o.uk wrote in message ...
My Health Visitor said that if I was thinking of waiting until 6 months to begin weaning then I should remember that iron intake rapidly depletes after 6 months with a b/fed baby. How can this be? Surely the iron content is constant? I know that formula has more but is less readily absorbed. Does a baby suddenly have an increased need for iron at 6 months? DS was 6 wks pre-term so I was going to wait until 6 months from EDD (or until he showed signs of being interested - not a glimmer right now) but now I'm worried that I'll make him iron deficient. It's not iron intake that's depleted, it's iron stores. The lactoferrin concentration of breastmilk doesn't change. It might be a concern for your DS, because premature infants don't generally have the iron stores of full-term infants since most of the iron is taken up during the last six weeks of pregnancy. Did the hospital take a hematocrit when your DS was born? If they did, that might give you a baseline. My pediatrician checks for anemia at 9 months, at which point my DS (also 6 weeks premature and breastfed) *was* actually anemic. He got supplemental iron drops for three months, and at his 1 year check had a hematocrit of 12.7, which is well within the normal range. You might be able to have them check for anemia early, like at the 6 month checkup. If the hematocrit is low, you can supplement iron drops, rather than pushing solids or switching to formula. -- C, mama to one year old nursling |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
Rapid Iron Depletion
|
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Prenatal vitamins and iron | JennP | Pregnancy | 33 | March 30th 04 10:15 PM |
So Sick From Iron...warning/ (gross)... | Christine | Pregnancy | 11 | March 15th 04 09:33 PM |
Iron question for anemia... | Jill | Pregnancy | 15 | February 10th 04 05:35 AM |
Recent Articles of Interest (Other Topics) | Chookie | Breastfeeding | 2 | November 3rd 03 07:05 AM |
Iron? | Irish Marie | Pregnancy | 19 | July 17th 03 10:15 PM |