Expressed milk quantities

[FTEngineerM]

Wondering if any expressing mamas can share their wisdom?

How much do you put in a bottle at a time and what age are they? My baby seems to be a snacker and is on the boob ALOT so is it possible to match that?

I’ve been reading up on paced feeding which seems to mimic the intake speed/effort of the breast.

As you need to discard the milk if your baby doesn’t drink the milk you can do small quantities. 50-60 ml for each bottle. That way you don’t lose much if you baby has had enough sooner than you’d think. You can also freeze in small amounts 20-30 which means it defrost really fast under a tap. So if your baby is super h7ngry you can quick get more ready.

On average a breastfeed baby takes between 650-800ml in 24 hours and that is the same from1-6 months.

Thanks for replying @ICJump

That’s a fab idea to freeze in tiny amounts. I’ve been combining both boobs output in one bigger bag then freezing so 70-140ml depending on time of day.

That makes sense actually, he’s on 50th centile and has been since birth, assuming he’s in the middle of the 650-800mls that works out at 60ml per feed.

Great! We have a plan thank you.

Depends really on how old baby is. Between 1 month and 6 months they take roughly 25 floz in 24 hours. So if they feed every 2 hours, 2 floz should be enough.

Unlike ff babies who need ever increasing amounts to meet their nutritional needs, BM changes to meet your baby's needs so the quantity of milk that they require stays pretty much the same.

Have a read of How Much Expressed Milk Will My Baby Need?

My baby is six weeks old and takes 130ml bottles most of the time with 3 hours between feeds. There are days when he wants to feed more often and takes less in each feed so having small amounts is a good idea rather than it going to waste. I have always worked on the assumption that if he stops feeding and there is a little bit left then he has had enough, pretty much what would happen if he was feeding from the breast.
I have been told that if there is milk that he cannot drink (over the 1 hour after starting the feed) then it can be used in the bath, better than it going straight down the drain!

Hi @Milcd did your baby throw up anything after taking 130ml? My baby can go 4-5 hours between feeds, wondering if there's something wrong? Did your baby poop everyday as well or was it every few days?

Thanks