Babies with jaundice are common nowadays. But for babies on BM, jaundice takes a long time to go away. My baby is 21 days old but his jaundice level is 153 which is considered not ok for his age. I'm quite tired hearing the dr at polyclinic telling me that I can supplement BM with formula if I want the level to drop quickly. My milk supply is more than what he feeds. And since BM is way better than formula, I kept asking myself, do I really need to supplement him with formula? Can formula milk really help to make the level lower? What do all BF mothers think? Am I heartless not to supplement him with formula and is there any health risk involved for babies with prolong jaundice?
BF Babies with Jaundice
- Thread starter diza
- Start date
rachelleling
Member
I am having the exact prob as you! My baby gal was hospitalised and under phototherapy for 3 nights immediately after she was born. then another 2 more days under the phototherapy when she was 2 weeks old as jaundice rises to 20.7mg/dl (btw, level 153 is in what units?) Doc said she has breastmilk jaundice and so, the last 2 nights of phototherapy, we let her go fully on fm. indeed, when after 2 nights, the level dropped rapidly and she looked pink and fair!
We were told that we can resume bf. So, i continued bf but she slowly turned yellow again. It's heart wrenching to see her so yellow while other babies are pink and fair.
I read up on bm jaundice. why it was suggested to give fm is bcos it is tot that in bm jaundice babies, the bm contains some fatty acid which resulted in the absorption of bilirubin into the bloodstream and so, it cant be expelled out. but usu, once baby goes beyond week 2 of age, the jaundice level should not be so high that it is of danger, and will take some weeks for it to clear. If jaundice level still high, then, it could be some liver prob. my baby had a blood test to test for liver function and it was normal. so, it is clear that my gal's jaundice is due to my bm. it is really depressing cos i also ave more than enough milk for her and yet my milk is causing her this. i cry sometimes cos of this.
Anyway, i became concerned cos i tot she looked more yellow so going to see PD again tomorrow and see how. will update again
oh yes, if jaundice level is above 20mg/dl, there is a risk of brain damage. so, doc are very concerned to quickly bring the level down and hence recommend supplement with fm.
We were told that we can resume bf. So, i continued bf but she slowly turned yellow again. It's heart wrenching to see her so yellow while other babies are pink and fair.
I read up on bm jaundice. why it was suggested to give fm is bcos it is tot that in bm jaundice babies, the bm contains some fatty acid which resulted in the absorption of bilirubin into the bloodstream and so, it cant be expelled out. but usu, once baby goes beyond week 2 of age, the jaundice level should not be so high that it is of danger, and will take some weeks for it to clear. If jaundice level still high, then, it could be some liver prob. my baby had a blood test to test for liver function and it was normal. so, it is clear that my gal's jaundice is due to my bm. it is really depressing cos i also ave more than enough milk for her and yet my milk is causing her this. i cry sometimes cos of this.
Anyway, i became concerned cos i tot she looked more yellow so going to see PD again tomorrow and see how. will update again
oh yes, if jaundice level is above 20mg/dl, there is a risk of brain damage. so, doc are very concerned to quickly bring the level down and hence recommend supplement with fm.
I do bottle feed my baby when I expressed my milk. So far he never have nipple confusion. Phew.. And the funny thing is some poly dr say ok to sun tan.. Some say no... I have not source out fr gd PD ard my area so kept bringing baby to poly for weekly checks on jaundice.
K thx for reassuring me...
ilovebbdylan
Member
but it really depends on how serious the condition is. every baby is different, let the doctors assess the condition.
but if baby wont have nipple confusion, if i were u, i will definitely introduce a few feedings of FM , of course not giving up BM as well. once baby recovers well, i will give fully BM.
because since u are already on bottles instead of full latching, u have the option to be more flexible.
most importantly is babies health
but if baby wont have nipple confusion, if i were u, i will definitely introduce a few feedings of FM , of course not giving up BM as well. once baby recovers well, i will give fully BM.
because since u are already on bottles instead of full latching, u have the option to be more flexible.
most importantly is babies health
My bb had jaundice but I persevered with breastfeeding. I had a gd pd who explained what is breastmilk jaundice n told me to not other abt it n just carry on breastfeeding. My baby's jaundice level was downward trend so it's fine. But in reality, how not to bother abt it? Seeing baby so yellowish everyday is heartbreaking n worrying! I cried n prayed everyday. But I tell myself those talks of fm supplementing is lazy n short cut solution that inexperienced or misinformed doctors give. I trusted the pd n just breastfeed. His jaundice cleared only when he's one month plus. Anyway, breastmilk jaundice seldom go up to dangerous levels. Glad the ordeal is over. Hang on, mummies struggling with breastmilk jaundice! It will pass n hope u'll enjoy breastfeeding just like me! Only total breastfeeding can provide baby with total protection from infections so if u r blessed with ample milk supply, try to breastfeed baby n not supplement fm. But do check the jaundice level n make sure it's a downward trend.
oh yeah, do not worry about bf jaundice =)
My 1st was diagnosed with "true" jaundice and had to go for "suntanning" session.
So when my 2nd was turning more and more yellowish at home, I got worried. My pediatrician ran some tests on her peepee and poopoo and told me it is bf jaundice, not to worry and continue to bf. Pretty scarry to see her so yellowish and concern family members tell me to stop bf too. But I know if I dont let her latch on (esp during the early months), I wont be able to establish the supply so I perserve on. She only starts to look better around 2 months (I think). Now 4 months old, she has got buffy rosy cheeks that I cant stop kissing..
My 1st was diagnosed with "true" jaundice and had to go for "suntanning" session.
So when my 2nd was turning more and more yellowish at home, I got worried. My pediatrician ran some tests on her peepee and poopoo and told me it is bf jaundice, not to worry and continue to bf. Pretty scarry to see her so yellowish and concern family members tell me to stop bf too. But I know if I dont let her latch on (esp during the early months), I wont be able to establish the supply so I perserve on. She only starts to look better around 2 months (I think). Now 4 months old, she has got buffy rosy cheeks that I cant stop kissing..
So far his jaundice level is going down... And since some of u said that it can take up to a month or more before the jaundice disappears, I shall cont to BF him. Even my husband and mom is indirectly telling me to supplement with FM. I will persevere and I'm hoping that my boy gains weight fast and be very chubby!
rachelleling
Member
Sigh.... my gal's jaundice level went up to 18mg/dl. So, doc advised me to stop bf and give fm for 48 hours. So, I am going to do that. Such an irony! I have so much milk (baby gained 600g in 10 days!) yet i cant give to my baby. I am feeling rather depressed over this. I will continue to pump cos I still wanna bf her after this jaundice episode.
I think this is not the time to be stubborn and insist to bf her cos consistently high bilirubin level is not good for baby. I just hope she will still wanna latch after this. i really feel like crying now. what for have somuch bm when it is causing my baby the jaundice?!?! ARGH!
I think this is not the time to be stubborn and insist to bf her cos consistently high bilirubin level is not good for baby. I just hope she will still wanna latch after this. i really feel like crying now. what for have somuch bm when it is causing my baby the jaundice?!?! ARGH!
so urs is not a downward trend??? mebbe can ask for PD for a thorough check.. for me, his jaundice is goind down so i cont to BF him. He demands milk every 2 hour to 2.5 hour and I can see that after every feeding he poos and when I changed his diaper, it is heavy... so full of "jellies". Anyway, dont be too stressed up especially during confinement.. not good.. can lead to post-natal depression.
rachelleling
Member
mine is downwards when she was under photolight and FM. we did a liver function test and some dunno metabloism test. she was normal. then, once she on bm, it went up. So, now, doc ask me to stop bf n let level come down first
my son was diagnose with G6PD Deficency and it worsten his jaundice so he was hospital stay for another 2 days after i discharged. my bf was not enough so have to give fm in hospital. back home, i give bf totally and his jaundice shoot up after a week at home... but PD told me to continue on bf. that 1 mth, his eyes on the white part is yellow lor... so heart pain but my dad said this is very common in asian babies and true enough, the yellowish went off without me noticing it.
Think about this, in the ancient time, ppl don have fm and only bf and everybody still can grow up so bf should not be harmful to babies.
Think about this, in the ancient time, ppl don have fm and only bf and everybody still can grow up so bf should not be harmful to babies.
Is ur baby having true jaundice or bm jaundice? Is it a downward trend? Maybe u want to seek a second opinion. My pd is Dr Ong at International Children and Adolescent clinic at Mt Alvernia. If doctor gave wrong recommendations, it can stress mothers unnecessarily
my friend's doctor told her that her bb wasn't growing well n told her to stop breastfeeding n give fm. But actually her bb has gone back to birth weight by full month n her bb has always been on the smaller side until now.The fact is our bm did not cause jaundice. It only prolonged jaundice but if it's bm jaundice, it's not very worrying bcoz it will gradually get better. It's worrying only if jaundice level is on upward trend bcoz this means it's more than bm jaundice.
rachelleling
Member
I m seeing dr y y yip from icac at glen e. same branch as the dr Ong. Mine is most likely bm jaundice cos my baby has gained almost 800g from birth till now which is almost 4 weeks. My elder son had bm jaundice too. Actually how bm jaundice work is like it is suspected tat there is a fatty acid in the bm tat makes the body reabsorb the bilirubin into the body. By rt, bilirubin shd b expel fr the body cos if it is present jb the body, it will cause the yellow skin. So, cos baby body not mature enough, the baby was not able to handle the fatty acid hence, this is how baby got bm jaundice. The other bm elated jaundice is baby Not taking enough bm hence body could not expel the bilirubin fast enough. I think tat could b the reason why your Fren doc asked her to supplement with fm.m cos I think by rt, baby shd get back to birth weight by week 2. If not, doc will think tat baby not taking enough bm to expel the bilirubin. So, looks like mine quite likely to b bm jaundice since other tests like liver function tests are normal. Actually, I also read tat can continue to bf cos is not harmful but then I dun feel good to see my gal having do high level as I scared later may cause brain damage. I guess it won't hurt to give full fm for 48 hours to bring down the jaundice. For my first son, he also had bm jaundice. Just happen tat I did Not hv enough milk for him so I supplemented with fm. His jaundice went away quite fast at 1 mth plus. Oops realize I wrote too long. Just wan to share wat I know abt jaundixe