Is the recommended amount of formula on the tin gospel?

[WeShouldOpenABar]

I'm switching from breastfeeding to formula and until now continued to feed on demand as that's what I did while ebf.

Now that ds is only taking breast for a bit if comfort I looked at the bottles he's taking and he's often a good few ozs over the recommended for his age and weight.

He hasn't spaced out his feeds and is still 3 hourly on the dot as he was on the boob. Should I be forcing him to space a bit, cutting down the volume?

Tbh it feels like putting him on a diet when he wants it and that makes me uncomfortable but if it's for best I'll try to cut it a bit l.

no, it's a guide.

Just like calorie intake of 2000/2500 for adults is a guide.

Can't possibly personalise it

I’d let him have as much as he wants. Don’t try to force / encourage him to finish bottles though.

No it’s just a guide. It should say on the tin something like ‘this is a guide and your baby may need more or less than this.’

He dropped from 75 th to 9 th centile for weight so he can probably do with the extra for now I was just wary of taking it too far in the other direction.

Thanks all

Not at all. If he's hungry and wants the milk, and you will know when that is, give it to him.

My baby is just over 4 weeks old and about 5kilos now, and we make him 5oz per feed. He always drains the bottle and sometimes cries after the feed. We also find it really hard to settle him during the day, sometimes I think he’s just alert and wanting to play, but other times I think he may actually be hungry. Yesterday he barely slept, apart from a doze on me an a wee doze is the sling. I feel like a should be giving him more, but a couple of people I have spoken to say I should be giving him approx 150ml x his weight in kilos over a 24 hour period, which is only about 750ml. If I divide that by his feeds, which is about 7 feeds a day (every 3 hours approx) then that’s 107ml per feed, which is only just over 3oz!

Surely all of this stuff must be a guide only!?!? My baby would literally starve if I tried to fob him off with 3oz per feed. To be honest I think sometimes I should be giving him 6oz.

I always fed my babies on demand, if your baby is hungry, you feed them til they stop. Both boob and bottle. Only one of them was 'greedy' and I had dire predictions about his future health, that he was eating too much. He's 28, my tallest child and not overweight.
Enjoy your babies and go with your instincts.

My baby had weight gain issues and this is what I use as a guide to daily amount. She doesn't have it evenly spaced though, I just keep track across the day. There are some days she feeds more or less which is fine as long as she's still putting on weight. I do sometimes have to encourage her though as she is a sleepy baby and I think the formula makes her sleepy too.

www.thecalculator.co/health/Formula-Feeding-Calculator-657.html

It really is just a guide.

My first had quite a bit more than on the box. My second had quite a lot less. I remember being very worried about her. In her case the MW said it was probably because she'd been breastfed and had a smaller tummy and was used to a smaller amount of milk. Perhaps the same is true for you. I'm sure he'll change to a different routine of his own accord before you know it. They just do one day. Interestingly both my children were the same weight and on the same centile. My first probably ate double what my second did. Just further demonstrates that we all need different amounts of food.

@Naurts if your baby is draining the 5oz every time you should start making 6oz bottles.

@Naurts I'd up the amount your giving him. If he is crying after a bottle he probably wants more. Just give what they want rather than be regimented with how much you give them. Honestly the more you give him he will settle a lot quicker he may be awake because he is hungry.

The guide on the tin is just that a guide, I don't think anyone as parents as really followed it much. Just give them what they want, if they drain 5oz up to 6oz, if they drain that up to 7oz.

Your all doing a fab job!! I remember with my first I was so anal about everything and writing down what they ate when they pooped and the lot, was so scary and thought I was doing everything wrong. Xx

@MsJuniper thanks for sharing the link as my little one has never really taken a huge amount of formula. She's nearly 8 months and weighs 14.lbs 10 and is very slender but long compared to my friends babies who are all chunky The calculator is great because in fairness she is having the right amount for her weight and towards the higher end plus food so I feel a little more relaxed. She just takes it over 6 to 7 bottles rather than less bottles and more formula. She's also a bit of a grazer has a small tummy, every baby is different, but would like to encourage less bottles as we get to 12 months and hopefully she'll be eating more - currently BLW. Are any of you mums weaning now?

Update on ours...

I gave him 5oz at 3am this morning (before posting here) and he slept fine after a bit of settling, he never gets the milk coma thing. then husband gave him 6oz at 6am. He drained the 6oz bottle, didn’t sleep for my husband, but to be fair he should be getting some alert time at over 4 weeks old, so I’m not surprised he wouldn’t sleep.

I fed him at 9:30, he drained the 6oz bottle again, and fussed afterwards as if he wanted more! Eventually he fell asleep on me and I got him down in the crib, I still think he was hungry though. Should I go to 7oz? Feels like an awful lot for such a young baby. Maybe he’s just a hungry thing.

I'd up to the 7oz & see how it goes if he leaves some it's not the end of the world - many moons ago I was told that if there's some left at least you know they've had enough.

@Naurts definitely up to the 7oz and if he drains that up to 8oz. Better to waste milk than have a grumpy baby on your hands. They need all the nutrition they can get as they are growing so much. You can't really over feed a baby and soon enough you'll be dropping bottles anyway when he moves onto weaning at 5-6 months xx

So he took a smaller feed at 12 o’clock of 3oz, then fell asleep, then wanted more at 2 so had another 3oz. Didn’t sleep after either. Then he was rooting at 5 so hubby gave him 6oz and he threw an ounce back up.

He seemed like he wanted to the 6oz as husband says he drained the bottle. I’m wondering whether he let him take it too fast. Or whether we stretched him too long, he got too hungry and gorged on the 6oz. I didn’t think bottle feeding was supposed to be hard!

Naurts: there are hungry baby formulas. Talk to your health visitor or nurse or whatever they're called now. We were going to move our one onto it. She's a monster (95th centile).

Maybe have a look at responsive bottle feeding? m.youtube.com/watch?v=OGPm5SpLxXY

Thanks, that vid is helpful.

We use Nuby bottles which have a straw in them so milk is taken from the bottom to reduce the air he sucks in. This is to help his reflux.

I just gave him 6oz and he cried every time I stopped feeding him to burp him. I burp him 2-3 points through the bottle. As soon as I remove the teet from his mouth he erupts. I try to slow him down by putting the dummy in his mouth for a couple of minutes throughout the feed, just to give the milk time to go down. As soon as he sees the teet again though he looks like a baby possessed and he waggles his wee face around and launches at it. It really is a sight to see!!!

He drained the bottle again and erupted afterwards for about 25 minutes after the feed. I don’t think it’s wind, as I always get a few burps out.

Maybe I need to give him little and often, then when he gets the bottle he’s not so ravenous.