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I just delivered my 1st baby via SVD at 33 weeks of pregnancy 12days ago due to leaking liquor. She is only 1.8kg at birth but does not have any complication at birth. My baby got jaundice a few days after birth and was admitted to SCN and she is now okay.
- Will my baby get jaundice again as she sleeps a lot and has to be pushed to feed most of the time? For your info, I give my baby full breastfeed plus breastmilk via cup feeding because I am afraid she won’t get enough through breastfeeding alone.
- Is it normal for a prem baby to sleep most of the time?
- Do I have to add formula milk to feed my baby to gain weight?
Asked by Norazian - Posted 1 year, 2 months, 6 days, 13 hours, 54 minutes ago.
Dear Pn Norazian,
Firstly, congratulations on the birth of your first baby.
Secondly, my apologies for this late response. I was away abroad, and my mail box was full.
- New born babies, particularly premature babies can develop prolonged jaundice. This is most often due to breast milk jaundice, is self limiting and no treatment is often required. Your doctor will need to ensure that your baby’s stools are bright yellow and growing well. Most of the time, if your baby remains yellow till 1 month, your doctor may suggest repeating a blood test to check the level of jaundice and ensure its due to breast feeding and nothing else.
- New born babies tend to sleep almost 20-22 hrs a day. Essentially they wake up only to feed and that is normal. They will tend to sleep most often in the day and be awake at night till approximately 2-3 months after which their sleeping schedule will reverse.
- You do not need to add formula milk to help your baby gain weight faster. Nothing is better than breast feeding. It is however very difficult, challenging and at times depressing. You need plenty of support. We recommend exclusive breast feeding till 6 months then start solids and continue breast feeding till 2 years.
If you are going back to work, try to express as much as possible during the day…though in our working environment in Malaysia, this is again very challenging with poor facilities in most offices.
Finally, let me be the first to give you a hundred marks on your commitment to completely breastfeed!
Kind Regards
Dr. Sanjay Woodhull
Consultant Paediatrician
