Sleeping through to Night Feeding

[JediStoleMyBike]

My DD is 5 months. We were very lucky as she started to sleep through the night by approx 2.5 months.
She weighs upwards of 17lbs now and has 5 feeds a day of 6oz, on top of three solid meals as we were advised to wean. She quite often will take the bedtime bottle at 7pm and cry for another, and have 5oz or so of that so most days she is easily on 6 bottles. She is FF.
She has started to wake in the night, 3-4 am and is impossible to settle. I have to feed her and she will take between 4-5oz. She is teething at the moment, I can see the tooth beneath the gum, and can feel it.
What I'm concerned about is that with this overnight feed we are creating a habit that I won't be able to break. I can imagine that she needs that extra overnight bottle given that she takes so much milk in the day plus solids, but I don't know how else to settle her. Any help would be appreciated.

She almost certainly needs the calories.

The most calorie sense foodstuff baby can have is milk. Per oz eaten/drank, baby will get far more calories from milk than from any solids you could give.

So if you are giving, let's say 120g of low calorie fruit or veg to baby, this is replacing what could have been 120ml/4oz of milk - which would have given loads more calories.

Good should always be in addition to as much milk as baby needs. Meals should not be replacing milk until portion sizes and food groups have significantly increased.

On what basis are you weaning early? There is this persistant misconception that filling a baby's tummy is somehow more important than calories. It is actually making her more hungry, not less hungry.

At 5 months old my 91st centile daughter was having 7oz bottles (drinking about 6oz) every 2 hours. 7 bottles a day:
7am 9am 11am 1pm 3pm 5pm 7pm

At 6-7 months in early weaning, we continued 7 bottles a day and added in meals in addition to her milk:
7am milk
8am breakfast
9am milk
9-11am nap
11am milk
12pm dinner
1pm milk
1-3pm nap
3pm milk
5pm milk
6pm dinner
7.30pm milk

Although you were advised to wean early I don't think they meant to go straight to 3 meals already. Food should be in addition to milk not instead of it. Perfectly normal for a 5 month old to wake for a night feed too. Why were you advised to wean if she was sleeping through the night already?

We were advised to wean due to the amount of milk she was having per day which was 6 bottles of 7-8oz. Just to be clear the solids do not replace a bottle at all. She still has all her bottles - so 6 bottles of 6-7oz on top of three servings of solids.

Also chronic colic and reflux.

Hmm. On demand feeding means alwayalways feeding baby the amount of milk that baby needs.

The amounts given on the formula tin are just a recommendation for the "average" baby, you know? A bigger baby will need more calories.

she was having per day which was 6 bottles of 7-8oz

Nothing at all wrong with this. Any HV or health care professionals suggesting to you that a 5 month old needs anytjibg other than more milk needs sacking really. It's not like this is new NHS policy. On demand feeding has been best advice for... urm... around 30 or 40 years.

So anyway, 6 bottles of 7-8oz is not enough, give 8 bottles of 8oz.

Also chronic colic and reflux

So give 8 8oz bottles plus 3 carefully selected meals, avoiding acidic foods.

Milk feeds 2 hourly plus a dream feed would do it. 7am 9am 11am 1pm 3pm 5pm 7pm 11pm. Then add in carefully selected meals at 8am 12pm and 4pm

We feed as much as she will take, honestly. She never goes hungry.
Will switch around the way she is offered solids. Will give them as a separate top ups between feeds in future.

Thanks FATE!

We feed as much as she will take

The amount baby can physically take per feed is determined by the size of her stomach. I would be surprised if she takes much more than 7oz at a time because of this.

The way to get more milk into baby is not bigger feeds.

You want to give more frequent feeds, so there are more bottles per day.

I would completely ditch weaning for now, shes too young and it's just messing with her calorie intake. Concentrate on establishing her having as much calories as she needs from her milk.

Sorry, first time mum and really finding my way with this, with little to no advice or support. Took
HV advice as it was. Obviously not trying to do my little one any harm.

Don't worry, it won't cause little one any harm

You probably would be best trying to up daytime milk and if that isn't possible, just accept that a night feed or two might be needed to get enough calories into baby. Solids probably won't make much difference to calorie intake at this age, so it's just adding unnecessary complications.

I will do just that - thank you!