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Original poster

At what age was your LOs having 6 ounces? (Formula feeding)

15 replies

Louba4 · 09/09/2018 19:32

Hello,

Just wanting some advice really! DS is now 9 weeks and I had originally planned to exclusively breastfeed and was doing so for the first couple of weeks, then followed combi feeding due to poor latch and now only formula feeding (but that’s a whole other story!) so I’m not as clued up on how much to feed/how much is too much.

DS has been having 5 ounces of Aptamil around every 3 hours (anywhere from 2.5 hours - 4 but we generally feed on demand) for the last couple of weeks, and this was after the HV said only to put him up if he was draining 4 ounces constantly, which he was, but is now emptying the 5 ounces too and wanting more. I’ve looked online and freaked out a bit when it said 6-8 ounces was about right for a 6 month old! Obviously I know this varies with each baby and different brands of formula, but I just wondered when you put your LO on 6 ounces and is it perfectly fine at his age?

Thank you!

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JiltedJohnsJulie · 09/09/2018 20:13

How heavy is your baby OP? Ff babies need roughly 2.5 floz per pound in weight sona 10 pound baby needs 25 floz in 24 hours.

Rather than up the bottles again, could you try feeding every 3 hours during the day?

moita · 09/09/2018 20:15

I don't think you can overfeed a baby - does he feed frequently at night as well?

isthistoonosy · 09/09/2018 20:18

My first (DS) ate crazy amounts, at 2 months he was eating almost double the rule given by the previous OP. It was fine for him. His sister ate less than the recommended amount and didn't start solids until 8 months as she wasn't ready. We just went by their need and kept an eye on their growth and weight gain.

He started solids early on the HV and GPs advice, was showing all the signs of being ready (sitting, lost the tongue thrust etc).

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Original poster

Louba4 · 10/09/2018 08:51

@JiltedJohnsJulie he’s around 13lb 7oz now, so if I’ve worked it out correctly makes it around 5.5 ounces every 4 hours... I think!

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Original poster

Louba4 · 10/09/2018 08:53

@moita some nights he still wakes up around every 3 hours, but there’s other nights he skips a feed a goes around 6 hours too!

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Original poster

Louba4 · 10/09/2018 08:57

@isthistoonosy did your HV not have a problem with your first having so much more than the ‘recommended’ amount then? The last time I saw mine she seemed pretty hesitant about me putting him up to 5 ounces when he’d been draining 4 for over a week - think this was also because he’d put on 13oz in 6 days too though!

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Pamdoo · 10/09/2018 08:58

It depends, mine was draining 6oz at about that age and 7oz by 12 weeks, 5x a day! He's now draining 8oz 5x a day at 4 months. Box says 6oz! Its just a guideline. At around that age he started dropping night feeds too, so he may be upping his day intake to sleep through

Pamdoo · 10/09/2018 09:00

They will also take more/ drop some around growth spurts, mine would drink like mad for a week so I knew he was having a spurt then he would drop a bit

BarryTheKestrel · 10/09/2018 09:02

Feed the baby what the baby wants. If your child is consistently draining bottles and looking for more, why would you not give them more? That's like you eating your dinner, still being hungry and denying yourself anything extra for 4 hours because you 'should' have had enough.

Every baby is different and will have different dietary needs. The recommendations are for the average baby, however most babies aren't average!

DD was demand fed formula and from around the same age would have 6oz in one feed, then only want 4oz at her next feed, then maybe another 6oz later on, but that's what she wanted and was satisfied with.

Don't be ruled by what others say, they aren't the parent of YOUR child. Do what is best for your child.

mrs2468 · 10/09/2018 09:05

My baby is that weight at has 6oz x5 a day but recently draining those so putting up to 7. Sometimes she finishes it others not. They will spit it back up if they are being over fed. Will mine will anyway!

Original poster

Louba4 · 10/09/2018 10:08

Thanks for the advice everyone!

I guess it’s just hard with so much conflicting advice everywhere... some say you can’t overfeed a baby, others (my HV included) say you might just have a greedy baby and you don’t want to give him too much for his tummy. Gah!

@Pamdoo were yours particularly sicky having that much or did they seem to keep it down pretty well? I’d say DS is having around 7-8 bottles at 5 ounces in 24 hours so maybe it’s similar to having 5 6 ounces bottles, just a different way of feeding the same amount I guess!

@BarryTheKestrel I do give him more when he’s asking for it, I wouldn’t just let him go hungry! I just worried a bit that he’s having too much, as he’s generally more sicky when he does have more. Plus my HV has said things like “oh he’s a greedy baby” or “ you just need to wind him more to allow time to pass for him to digest his milk”. So I just wanted reassurance really.

@mrs2468 I think that works out around the same given that DS is having around 7-8 bottles a day at 5 ounces. I think I’ll just try giving him 6 from the off and see what happens!

OP posts:

mrs2468 · 10/09/2018 10:15

It's so hard knowing what to do. I'm having a dilemma on teat sizes just now!

mindutopia · 10/09/2018 10:38

Give him as much as he wants. If you're overfeeding him, he'll projectile vomit it up all over the place. If he's not doing that and he's settled and happy after, he's getting what he needs. They don't read the guidelines, so just follow his lead. To answer your question, my first who was ff wasn't having 6oz until closer to 5 months or so, but she was a small baby (6lbs 9 oz at birth) who struggled to feed due to lots of issues (why we had to switch to bottles in the first place) and she struggled even with bottles, so she never really took as much as many babies. Everything you're describing sounds perfectly normal to me. It's a very outdated (and not evidence based) viewpoint that babies have to be fed only a certain amount by the tin, as per your HV's advice. Just keep doing what you're doing.

Pamdoo · 10/09/2018 10:57

were yours particularly sicky having that much or did they seem to keep it down pretty well?

He was and is pretty good at letting me know he's had enough. Sometimes he'll leave some. If he does take a bit much he'll bring some up. Don't think your HV opinion is the norm, I was always told by midwives and 2 hv that the you couldn't overfeed and just to give them what they wanted, unless they want to constantly drink gallons

FartnissEverbeans · 10/09/2018 19:50

Rather than up the bottles again, could you try feeding every 3 hours during the day?

This is exactly what I was going to say. When my son was five weeks we moved to a three hourly schedule. It was fantastic! He immediately started sleeping for five hour stretches and his feeds became more predictable. It was a bit weird actually - he would start displaying hunger cues at almost exactly three hours on the dot How did he know??

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