Most babies gain around 4-5 kgs in the 1st year of life. Most of the babies double their birth weight by the end of the 6th month and treble their birth weight by the end of the 1st year of life. From then on, the growth rate dramatically decreases, and most babies gain only somewhere between 1-2 kgs in the second year. Because of this drastic reduction in the growth rate, appetite also dramatically comes down. If they have 1 feed, they may skip the next 2 feeds. If they have feeds well on one day, they may skip the feeds altogether the next day. Most parents get worried about this phenomenon. As long as the baby is active and growing well, parents can comfortably ignore this.

Bottle is luxurious way of drinking milk. There is no waiting period, the moment the bottle is kept in the mouth, milk flows immediately by itself, and there is no effort involved on the part of the baby to get milk. The only work the baby has to do is, press the nipple once the mouth is full, therby stopping further milk flow and swallow it.

Comparing it with breast feeding, baby has to suck for a while and subsequnetly wait till the milk flow is initiated by what is called as let down reflex. No body likes to wait in this modern world. Then they will have to exert and suck actively to get the milk with lot of effort involved on the part of the baby. So, once the baby is used to the luxury of bottle, he may not be very much inclined for the breast, slowly the milk flow will decrease and one fine day he may say, “thank you mommy, I am comfortable with the bottle”

It is better for him, epescially for breast feeding and brain development. So try to postpone the date at which you will have to rejoin your work. Contemplate all possibilities of leave like extension of maternity leave, earned leave, medical leave, and loss of pay or even temporary break from your job.

If you exhausted all possibilities, then plan to go back to your work, but with lot of precautions. Say no to formula or tinned milk or infant milk substitutes. With little planning one can continue to feed the baby with breast milk. Buy 10 small containers with a capacity of around 100ml with lids. Put all of them in a large vessel and boil and sterilize them and keep it. Whenever the mother is in the home, after feeding extract the remaining milk from the same breast and from the opposite breast and store in the refrigerator at 2- 8 degree celcius. This milk can be kept for 24 hours in the refrigerator at 2- 8 degree celcius. The milk can be kept in the room temperature for 4-6 hours. Always label the container when you collect the milk with date and time. There is no need to reheat the milk and with little planning they can take 1-2 containers ½ an hour before the anticipated feed time and keep it in the room temperature, so that temp will be near the room temperature during the feeding. The baby should be fed only using a spoon or paladai in head up position and bottle should never be used at any cost.

Mother has to pump the breast and remove the milk twice at least during the office hours, otherwise she will get engorged breast which may cause pain and discomfort and also it will lead to reduction of milk secretions. She can collect that milk and store it in the refrigerator in the office and get it back to the home for future use. If no such facility is available, she will have to discard it.

Refer to breast milk expression and storage in guidelines section

At around 6 months when you are going about weaning the baby, such a thing usually happens. And it is pretty normal, as long as he is gaining weight as expected. The technique of swallowing milk is different from swallowing solid or semi solid feed. So, when a baby is initially offered semi solid food, he is trying to handle it as liquid milk, and in that process it comes out. Have some patience and give him some time, he will master the art of swallowing semi solids and solids.

Cow’s milk to be avoided absolutely till the end of 1 year.

Biscuits, juices, commercial preparations (tins) to be avoided till the end of 1 year. Many of them contain coloring agents and preservatives which may not be good for your baby.

Diet from 6 months completion till 9 months

• Kanjee- made of rice (par boiled rice- iddly rice) and roasted bengal gram (pottu kadalai in tamil) in the ratio of 3:1. Take it in the proprotion specifed, gently fry it, and make it a powder and store it in airtight container. Take 3 spoons of the preparation and add water and boil well. Add salt or jaggery for taste. Initially give small volume, once a day in dilute watery consistency. After the baby is getting used to it, increase the frequency to 2-3 times a day, and gradually increase the volume, and increase the consistency like iddly batter.
• Boiled and mashed potato
• Boiled and mashed carrot
• Iddly with curd or dhal water
• Dhal rice
• Cooked apple

There should be a minimum of 10-15 days gap between 2 new foods.
Initially start with small quantity and gradually step up the quantity. Do not introduce new food during periods of illness.

Diet after 9 months

Continue what ever has been started already. In additionone can add the following one by one

• Boiled egg – give yellow first, subesequently introduce white
• Pongal
• Uppuma
• Iddiappam
• Rasam rice
• Sambhar rice
• Curd rice

Any soft steam cooked food

Diet after first birth day

All home made food including non vegetarian food could be slowly introduced.

There is no need for additional water even during summer, as mother’s milk contains enough water. Giving water will decrease total milk intake and may be counter productive, may lead to poor weight gain. If the water given is of poor quality, or given with bottle, it may predispose the baby to diarrhea and vomiting and related issues.

Diet from birth till the completion of 6 months (180 days) is only mothers milk, and it means not even water to be given additionally.  It is strongly suggested that every baby should get exclusive breast feeding for optimal physical growth and mental development.