Over feeding formula fed baby?

[Charmcg]

Hi, my LO is 6 weeks old and has occasional (thankfully not constant) spurts of wanting more food than his suggested allowance. He currently takes 4oz (120ml) every 3-4 hours, like clockwork. But occasionally has feeds where he will not settle afterwards and is looking for more food. Nothing soothes him, and when I offer a bit more milk he takes it and will tell me when he’s had enough by pulling away from the bottle. I’m very lucky in that he’s usually a very content baby, and doesn’t have any issues with wind or vomiting, but I’m scared that I’m over feeding him and that I’ll have a very unhappy HV on my next home visit.

Anyone had the same experience or have any advice?

My advice is - feed your baby if he is hungry.

Hungry babies need food. Better a happy baby and an unhappy HV than the opposite

Thank you. Just going through all the new mum panic stages!

The HV isn’t the police. They’re crap also.
You know what to do

I wouldn't worry about over feeding him. My LO is also 6 weeks and is having at least 8 5oz bottles a day. We've noticed that he seems to want more in the afternoon/evening, so instead of going 3 hours between feeds it's only about 1 1/2-2. But he seems to go longer at night now without one so he must be storing up. HV came this week and just said as long as he's not throwing it all back up then she's happy with it.

Agree with @changethetoner. DD went through a stage of wanting 2x 210ml or so in an hour before bedtime. I felt a bit uncomfortable about it but ultimately if she's hungry she's hungry.

Yes I had 2 boys that always ate more than the 'rules' said they should. They were delightfully chunky babies who have always slept like logs, and grew into healthy weight teens standing at 6'2 and 6'4.

PPs are right - you're doing fine. Of course sone babies will need more than others.

Definitely feed the baby if he is hungry!!!

HV are absolutely useless. All babies are different you can't go by a book.

Trust that your baby knows how much he needs. They grow so much in the first few months!

My daughter, only for one week of her life before six months met the guidelines for drinking 30oz per day, she would usually average 23-27. I worried so much but she went from the 50th centile to 75th and has stayed there.

Trust yourself 🙂

@Changethetoner @SleepingStandingUp @FTEngineerM @proudwomansexmatters @Providora @Chanel05 @JustYourAverageSue @InpatientGardener thank you all so much! I think I’m quite overwhelmed at the minute with my OH working away too so I worry I’m doing something wrong. But all your responses are so reassuring! Thank you

@Russell19 @MamaWeasel my above comment applies to you too. Thank you

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed when you care so much ❤️.

Glad you’re feeling reassured.

If he’s draining a bottle add an extra ounce and see how he does. He’ll definitely tell you when he’s had enough so don’t worry

I wouldn’t worry about ‘allowance’ - everybody has days where they eat more/less than usual, babies are the same.

Oh OP! I've been in your exact shoes! I upped the oz in each bottle eventually! And just fed whenever baby wanted it! LO is now 8 months and has 7oz bottles in the day and 1 9oz bottle before bed!
Baby will stop drinking or be a little sick if they've had enough/too much!
You're doing brilliantly, go with your instincts! Xxx

@Vicky1989x and @popcornlover13 thank you so much for your replies. I feel much better about it now, I can trust my little man to tell me when he’s had enough. It’s so lovely to have a supportive community like this to help! x

When I moved to bottle feeding I used to write it all down.Amounts and times. You could definitely see patterns emerging and some days when she took more, there was slightly less the next day etc.

Tbh I don’t believe you can really overfeed a baby who is asking for food. He would throw it back up if he was overfull. I think you’re doing the right thing by giving him what he wants.

Feed your baby if they want it. Have you ever tried to feed a baby that doesnt want food? Its really hard.

Agree with PPs, follow your baby's lead and feed as much as he wants. HVs are notoriously crap, especially towards FFing mums. Follow your instincts:)

I agree with previous posters, HVs are useless sometimes, they can be quite pushy and annoying - I had one like that!

It’s fine, if he wants more milk give it to him. Babies grow fast and their appetite gets bigger quick
And like you said, if he’s had enough he’ll push the bottle away.

@Charmcg I’m lucky to have an amazing HV! I have a very chunky little boy (he was 20lbs at 6m - 95th centile) and she tells me - as long as you’re feeding him when he’s hungry and paying attention to when he’s telling you he’s full then you’re not over feeding your baby! Som days he’ll eat loads and other days not so much 😊 just like us really 😊 does your DH work away from home regularly? Mine does and I know how hard it can be ❤️

@KM38 I haven’t had my 6 week visit yet, but I’m happy now that I’m giving him what he needs
And yes, DH works away 2 weeks at a time. It used to be 3 months at a time so I’m very happy it’s not that long anymore, but it feels like the longest 2 weeks in the world right now haha. Hope you are doing okay with your partner working away too.

[quote Charmcg]@KM38 I haven’t had my 6 week visit yet, but I’m happy now that I’m giving him what he needs
And yes, DH works away 2 weeks at a time. It used to be 3 months at a time so I’m very happy it’s not that long anymore, but it feels like the longest 2 weeks in the world right now haha. Hope you are doing okay with your partner working away too.[/quote]
@Charmcg Yeah just listen to baby 😊 he’ll soon let you know if he’s hungry 😅😅

Mine also does a 2 week on/2 week off rotation now (hes offshore). Was 6 or 8 weeks at a time before DS arrived so 2 weeks is amazing! Although it doesn’t feel much shorter than 6/8 weeks sometimes when you’re home alone with a newborn 🤣 mine is now 6months and crawling and by the time I get into bed at the end of the day exhausted 🤣