3 week old taking 4oz of formula at every feed

[Cherry85]

Hi,

Our 3 week old is taking 4 oz every 3-4 hours which based on all the info in formula tubs is a lot more than normal?

Is this ok? If he is full he would stop some cant be over feeding him can we? He is only 6lbs 15oz so very small.

I dont want to leave him hungry - he usually wants a feed every 3-4 hours and we have been told to wake him and feed him if he goes past 4.

Just looking for a bit of reassurance that we aren't doing anything wrong 🙈 or advice if we are

You might be leaving it too long between feeds. Try waking him to feed every two hours - he may take in less as he’s more satisfied

I would also review your bottle / teat and get a slow flow teat if possible. I was having a similar issue but with EBM and feeding little but often (from hunger cues) did help reduce overall bottle intake.

Are you pace feeding bottles? (Easy to find info on google)
This isn't just for babies used to breast feeding but can be helpful for any baby using a bottle to give their digestive system chance to notice when they are full and reduce likelihood of their stomach being stretched. Little and often is better so early on.

It's all new to everyone at one point, you'll find what works for you as a family 🙂

Are you pace feeding? Our first was breastfed on demand but used to regularly have bottles of expressed milk and we found relatives would cradle her to feed giving her very little control and she would just gulp it down. When pace feeding her she would drink far less and be satisfied

Mine was taking that too and I also stressed about it! Don’t worry. Do try a slow flow teat if bottle feeding though, that worked well for us x

Just feed on demand as much or as little as the baby wants. They won't eat if they're not hungry.

You can over feed a formula fed baby because it’s harder for them to control the flow of milk. Are you using the smallest teat size?

I asked the health visitor exactly this week before last as my 4 week old DD was wolfing down 3oz and still looking for more afterwards but that was already more than what the tin says to give a 7.5lb baby. DD was born at 4lbs 13oz and was just under 6lbs when the HV came.

She said to totally ignore what’s on the formula tin and just feed your baby, she said every baby is different and sometimes small babies have catching up to do. So we’ve upped it to 4oz now, she doesn’t quite finish the bottle but takes more than the 3oz.

Mine drank loads - hungry every 2 hours usually drinking about 4oz a time! I just fed on demand throughout. We did give a dummy in the evening as otherwise he was having bottle after bottle!

My daughter was on 4 oz at 3 weeks. At 4 weeks she went to 5 oz and at 5 weeks 6oz. She’s currently 8 weeks and still taking 6 oz every 3 hrs. Health visitor said you can’t technically over feed a baby. They will either be sick or pull away when there full enough. X

Your baby knows what they want. Too many people go by text books and think they know so much.. you just keep doing what works for you and your baby. If the baby is happy they are getting what they need

My LO was on 6oz at 4 weeks. Nothing wrong with it - the NHS guidelines are that after they have regained their birth weight to feed on demand.

Before weaning she was taking 60+ ounces of milk a day. Has never deviated off her growth curve. She just liked her milk!

I would only worry about it if there is something else happening - like they are being sick after or getting gas pain. If they are perfectly content then carry on as you are, they know how much they need.