I need help getting my son to drink

[marelle4381]

I took my son to the doc the other day because he has a slightly flat head from sleeping on only one side of it no matter what I do. He got weighed and is a pound lighter making him a total of 17lbs at 8 months old . He's in the 10% for weight and 90% for height. He is super strong and all muscle, no fat. He LOVES baby food, but will hardly drink his formula ( I couldn't breastfeed when I went to work because no pump would work ) he won't drink water, juice or anything. I had told the doc about this before, but seeing as how my son would drink it sometimes, he wasen't worried, but now that he lost a pound they are.

He wakes up about 2-3 times at night to drink 6-8oz's everytime. At daycare he wont drink ANY. So the doc wants him to go to a Neurologist to make sure the flatness on his head doesn't have anything to do with him not drinking. They told me to try and give him formula before food but he still won't take it. He just bites on the nipple, laughs, and spills it all over. He has plenty of wet dipes but I'm still scared he's not getting enough water intake. I'm not worried about his head because it's really not that bad. So any suggestions???

[Leininger27]

His weight sounds pretty good to me so I wouldn't be too worried. My daughter weight 12 lbs at 1 yr old. She is going on 4 years old now and only weighs 22 so every child is different. She isn't even on the chart for weight and the girl eats!

Does the daycare use a different bottle than you do at home? Have you tired seeing if he will take it out of a sippie cup? Regular cup? My ds #2 really like to drink from a straw. My ds#1 was off formula at 10 months because I let him take a drink of my milk once. He was hooked. Maybe he just doesn't like the taste!

Also you could try pediasure. It will help him get the nourishment he needs and it comes in yummy flavors (as my dd puts it).

[EmnJJsMom]

If he is having plenty of wet diapers he's getting plenty of fluids and I wouldn't worry about it. I didn't think that 17 lbs was small for an 8 month old. At 6 months old my dd was 18 lbs 15 oz and she was in the 95th% for weight. I wouldn't worry too much. Have you tried a sippy instead? or a reg cup? Maybe he just doesnt want the bottle. If he's teething maybe he doesn't want to suck. Hope something works for you, but he sounds fine to me.

[marelle4381]

Originally Posted by Leininger27 His weight sounds pretty good to me so I wouldn't be too worried. My daughter weight 12 lbs at 1 yr old. She is going on 4 years old now and only weighs 22 so every child is different. She isn't even on the chart for weight and the girl eats! Does the daycare use a different bottle than you do at home? Have you tired seeing if he will take it out of a sippie cup? Regular cup? My ds #2 really like to drink from a straw. My ds#1 was off formula at 10 months because I let him take a drink of my milk once. He was hooked. Maybe he just doesn't like the taste! Also you could try pediasure. It will help him get the nourishment he needs and it comes in yummy flavors (as my dd puts it).

I did try sippy cups, reg cups, straws. He has never had a problem with the taste and does drink it at night. He doesn't mind it spilling in his mouth cause he laughs. It's good to know that others have low weight babies too.

[dessismama]

Have you tried goat milk? Your son might be old enough to try this; I bet it tastes better than formula...

I hope your little guy is OK!!!

[fostermomcchr]

I am sure the doc's concern is that he lost weight, more so than that he weighs a certain amount. Have you tried different types of nipples/bottles? Maybe he would prefer a different type and at night he is just too tired to worry about the nipple then. Lots of babies stop drinking much when they start on food as well as if they are teething. Try giving him lotd of fluid rich foods to increase his liquids-watermelon, etc to see if that helps. Good luck!

[EmnJJsMom]

I forgot to mention, a lot of babies lose weight once they start crawling and cruising! By about 9 months babies level off their weight or lose a little bit from what I've seen. Both my girls thinned out after they started crawling.

[Hayley]

I sent you a pm. My Ds had Torticollis. LMK if I can help you!

[marelle4381]

Originally Posted by fostermomcchr I am sure the doc's concern is that he lost weight, more so than that he weighs a certain amount. Have you tried different types of nipples/bottles? Maybe he would prefer a different type and at night he is just too tired to worry about the nipple then. Lots of babies stop drinking much when they start on food as well as if they are teething. Try giving him lotd of fluid rich foods to increase his liquids-watermelon, etc to see if that helps. Good luck!

Hmmm, I use Avent nipples, I got rid of all the other bottles because he liked Avent the best. I gave his daycare the same bottle. The watermelon sounds like a great idea I would have never thought of that. I'll buy some today. As far as goat milk, never tried it, I'll see if he'll take it this weekend. Thanks.

[Kylie&Logan'sMommy]

at that age my dd wouldnt take the bottle either, I went through about 10 different brands of cups until I found one that worked for her and then she started drinking more. the nuby brand finally did the trick for us. Good luck