When a baby is born it is normal and logical to be very attentive to be sure that you are getting enough breast milk. However, there are cases in which the mother may feel worried or receive negative comments about breastfeeding that undermine her confidence.
Adequate pediatric control is essential, but, surely knowing the issues to be taken into account, can help them to be calm.
Let us then explain the signs that should be assessed to ensure that the baby is drinking enough milk: general condition, bowel movements, urine and weight.
Before explaining the issues that the pediatrician will review to be sure of the baby is getting enough milk It is necessary to highlight the importance of these controls, because, although the baby sleeps a lot and does not ask for food, we can find in some cases that precisely this state is due to the fact that they are lethargic due to lack of enough food and enter a spiral in which They ask less and less because they are weaker.
These cases, although they are the least common, are serious, so I insist on the usual control of the pediatrician and return to consultation before a reasonable doubt to rule out problems.
The general state
When we talk about overall status We are not referring to the baby's weight, and also to the speed of his weight gain, but to signs of good health and nutrition such as the color and texture of his skin, his reflexes and muscle tone, the hydration of his mucous membranes and, in general, its activity and signs of vital joy. A baby with a good general condition, who asks for food and urine and poops normally almost certainly is well fed, large or small, fat or thin.
Within the same weight, a child may be starving and another may be perfectly healthy, everything depends on his birth weight and also, that doubt fits, on his particularities as an individual. Weight tables must be interpreted, especially when it comes to breastfed babies.
Just as there are men who measure 2 meters and others who do not reach 1.70 and both are healthy, just as there are corpulent and other thin people and both are healthy, with babies the same thing happens.
So the tables and percentiles will not give us an answer about whether or not the child is well fed by themselves and, of course, do not mean that a larger and heavier baby is better fed than one of smaller size or weight within normal.
The tables will serve as general guidance and to help detect declines or increases that may indicate a problem, but they are not, by themselves, a kind of contest to see who has the healthiest baby for being the largest or most plump.
Bowel movements
The first baby bowel movements They are the meconium, a black and sticky paste. Normally the transitional stools, more liquid and greenish, will appear from the second day, but if at 7 the normal pockets have not appeared it is convenient to consult with the doctor as it can indicate that not drinking enough milk.
Baby's stool Who drinks exclusively breast milk usually have a pleasant smell, butter, cream, curdled milk. They usually have lumps and are yellow and soft, almost semi-liquid in some cases and in others as a paste. But they can also be brown or greenish without indicating any problem.
Another issue is the frequency. Breastfed babies usually poop 2 or 3 times a day, but this is not a norm, although if they do not do so, it is appropriate to tell the pediatrician to assess whether the other signs of good nutrition are correct, that they surely are. As I say, the general is not norm.
After two months it is quite normal that the rate of bowel movements decreases and many babies, like those who continue to poop on a daily basis, others will do it every 3, 4 and up to 7 days. If the other signs are normal there is no cause for concern and there is no need to give any kind of laxatives, stimulate the anus or give them water or juices.
Whenever the bowel movements are not hard and the baby can make them without problem we have to take into account that he is not constipated, and, as I said, it is not necessary to intervene by forcing them.
A change in consistency or frequency Stool is not usually problematic, but it is a sign to consider. For example, if the baby is sick with mucus, he may suck less and his stools are harder, less frequent or simply change and then everything will return to normal, if we can talk about normality on this issue.
The urine
Babies urinate very frequently, however, with super absorbent diapers it is not always easy to know how many times and how much they are doing. With normal diapers they should wet about 7 a day, and that gives us a good sign that you are not dehydrated or malnourished. If we notice that urinate less We should increase the frequency of teats and consult a doctor if we have doubts.
However, we must also bear in mind that it is not an exclusive sign, since a baby who urinates frequently may not be perfectly fed if the teats are not complete, so the frequency of urination is only one more point to consider .
What is a very serious sign and that a very urgent medical intervention will be necessary is the absence of urine. If the diapers are so absorbent that we have doubts it is convenient to leave the child without a diaper and observe. In summer, dehydration can be more frequent, so if we have doubts, we should see a doctor.
Analyzed the signs of alarm regarding the general condition, urine and feces of the baby, in the next topic I will discuss in detail the issues that should be assessed regarding the weight of the baby to determine if you are getting enough milk.
