Is It Possible To Exclusively Breastfeed a Large Baby?

If your baby is large, no doubt you will come across a midwife or health visitor who tells you that "your baby is too big to surive on just your breast milk - you will need to supplement with formula".

This comment makes me almost as angry as the "big baby = hard birth" comments - because IT SIMPLY ISN'T TRUE!!

So why isn't it true?

Very simply, breastfeeding works on a supply and demand basis, if you feed on demand, your baby will happily increase your supply to a perfect level for them. What *does* cause problems is when well meaning, but ill informed health professionals interfere with the wonders of nature, getting mums to supplement breast milk with "only a drop of formula to keep him going" - what happens? it has a knock on effect on your supply, because the demand is being met by the formula and what do you know....after a while your supply is lower! A self fulfilling prophecy you might say.

The fab breastfeeding website Kellymom has some great information to help you to decide if your baby needs a formula supplementation and the following hypnosis download can help you to Relax about breastfeeding and help your baby feed.

Add in the fact that many big baby births are needlessly medical, needlessly induced and needlessly delivered by C-Sections. If you know anything about the physiology of birth you will know that oxytocin levels in the first 20minutes after the birth and skin to skin bonding with mum and baby is vitally important in terms of successfully intiating breastfeeding - but it's hard when your birth and immediate postnatal period has not been "normal", when the drugs you were induced with inhibit you from releasing your own natural oxytocin (the hormone that helps mother/baby bonding and breastfeeding initiation) to expect this chain of hormones to kick in naturally. Another reason why a natural physiological birth is so important for a large baby!

Does a Big Baby Need Solids Introduced Earlier?

In one word - NO!

Big Babies do NOT need to be weaned onto solids earlier (I have had one health visitor who told me my baby probably needed baby rice at 12weeks because he was big! actually I didn't wean him until 7 months!) than "normal" sized babies, it's another commonly held myth in society that goes against the advice from the World Health Organisation that says it is best for ALL babies to be exclusively breastfed until 6mths of age. If you are breastfeeding exclusively then your milk, not only being the best thing for him, is more than enough to keep him going until 6months.

Again, the wonderful website Kellymom does a great job of myth busting early weaning for big babies.


I guess it all comes back to the same factors again, the "3 B's":

Trust in birth
Trust in your body
Trust in your baby

Nobody knows your baby or your body better than YOU, reclaim that power and knowledge again, it wil serve you well!

If you do have problems breastfeeding, or receive some advice that makes you feel a little bit nervous then please do contact a trained breastfeeding counsellor from one of the following organisations:

The NCT Breastfeeding Line - 0300 330 0771

The Association of Breastfeeding Mothers Helpline - 08444 122 949

La Leche League Helpline - 0845 120 2918