Ways to stop milk snacking

[Libramum]

Not sure whether this is a sleep or feeding issue. My 5 month-old is waking roughly every 2 hours for a bf. For the first 3 months he could easily go 3/4 hours and he fed well in the day. Recently he spends hardly any time on the boob in the day. Instead he seems to be stocking up at night. Can't be sure how much he's taking in, but when he has expressed milk it's usually less than 4 fl oz. If I express after feeding there's loads of milk left. I give him a bottle of formula in the evening, but he rarely takes more than 4 fl oz, then wakes again a couple of hours later. He can go for 3 hours between feeds in the morning and evening, the more frequent feeding is just in the afternoon and night. He's a plump little boy in the 70th percentile for weight so no worries about weight gain.
Any tips on getting him to take decent feeds so he can go for longer - would be nice to get a bit more sleep!

it's a feeding issue which has impacted on sleeping. i breast fed my son for 6 months but topped up with formula. your son should be taking 8oz of formula before bed. if he's not it's probably because he has been 'snacking', timing in between feeds is important otherwise he will end up grazing all day.
another possibility is that he's is hungry for food (he's a big boy), you could consider starting him on some baby rice in the evening with his milk. good luck.

well, babies are designed to eat little and often, and what he is doing is well within the realms of normal!

that said, he is at that age where they do become a bit more distractible during daytime feeding, so much to do and look at etc etc, that it becomes easy to fall into a pattern of taking less in the day and then more at night.

it might be worth trying to add some feeds in during the day, taking him upstairs, lying on the bed in a darkened room and seeing if he'll feed more that way.

I think in essence though you need to be led by him. he is telling you how much he needs, and how often. you can try and revert him to more during the day and slightly less at night, but if he is hungry then he's hungry!

it IS a phase though, and he will get through it and start sleeping more

your baby sounds completely normal to me - 5 months is often a time when babies start to wake more often in the night - it's a growth spurt so try not to worry, it will soon pass.
as yesterday said, try feeding more often during the day in a quiet area where he is not distracted, but also think about how often you eat, snack or have a drink - i bet it is more frequently than every 3 hours - your baby knows when he needs feeding and the best advice is to be led by him.

Solid food will not help - babies digestive systems are not able to tolerate solid food before around 6 months of age, and early solids can increase the risk of allergies. Milk has many more calories than baby rice or purees, so if he is having a growth spurt - more milk feeds is what he needs.
and sorrynw3mumof3 but it is a myth that big babies need solids earlier - their guts don't close any earlier just because they are bigger.

I appreciate it's probably not the answer you wanted but i would say it is a normal growth spurt that will be over within the next week or two, so to try and grin and bear it if you can. Well done for feeding for so long, and try not to worry too much - he sounds like he is doing great