Such a thing as 3 not 4 bottles on 4-hr. EASY?

[Sugarmama]

Hey there,

My lo has not been a great eater since around 7 weeks old. Is 24 weeks today! She has lately been drinking around 22 oz. per day, including a tiny DF. Note: She's 20 lbs. and 30 inches long!

Anyway, her feedings are a standard 4-hour EASY; however, she could go longer. I give her 45 min. to eat (used to try for 1.5 hrs, but did my head in!), and she takes frequent breaks and will take maybe 2 oz. at a time. Have started solids, and she's eating maybe a teaspoon at a good sitting.

I noticed today, when I had to run errands and couldn't wait for her breaks during her 11 a.m. feeding, and cheated when we returned home to try to finish off a bottle at 1:30 that she would have scarfed down the whole thing.

I'm wondering whether it wouldn't be better to feed her three "awake" bottles at 8, 1, and 6. The 1 bottle would fall awfully close to her nap, but I bet she'd eat in 20 min. instead of 45 and might be done eating by 1:20 or so, and she's been staying up until around 1:45 until her nap lately. Note: the 8 bottle I'm not worried about, as she doesn't really care if she eats right when she gets up anyhow.

What things am I not thinking of by considering this change? Where would I fit in solids, though, huh?

Daycare comes in a couple of months, and I'm not sure how this change would affect that.

Thanks for your ideas!
Jodi

[* Paula *]

Jodi,

At such a young age I would not suggest going down to 3 bottles on a 4 hour EASY.  At this stage, their milk is their main source of nutrician and the solids are only tasters.

You say that your lo takes such a long time to feed, what size teat are you using?  Do you think she may be ready for the next stage up to increase the flow of milk.  It could be that she is bored and this is why it is taking so long for her to finish a feed, but when you left it longer, she was really hungry and this is why she was eating it so quickly.

HTH's

Paula

[Sugarmama]

Hi Paula,

So you're saying that, even if she would drink the same amount, I should offer milk every four hours because she might up her intake on some days?

I have tried a bigger nipple. (Am currently using 3-6 mos. Dr. Brown nipples, but I have larger Playtex nipples that fit the same bottles.) It seems it's hard for her to "keep up" with it--like she's kind of struggling to breathe in between swallows. Plus, she seems to get a little fussy during those feeds, kind of like, I can't keep up, mom! I'll keep trying this periodically, though. Yesterday, when I tried a bigger nipple, she scarfed down four or five oz. at once, which is RARE for her, but then I tried the bigger nipple the next morn., and it was back to 2 oz., so I'm not sure on that one.

Sounds like I'll stick with the 4-hour bottles, though.

Please let me know if you have other ideas.

Thank you,
Jodi

[* Paula *]

Yes, I would definitely stick with offering bottles every 4 hours, she will up her intake eventually.  Sounds like she does want a faster flow but is not ready to go to the next stage teat yet - sounds a bit too fast for her.  Have you tried taking 1 teat and making an extra hole in it with a steralized pin to see if she takes to this better?  If she does take to this better, you may find that you would need to replace your teat sooner than normal with the extra hole.

HTH's

Paula

[Sugarmama]

The Dr. Brown nipples have only one hole to begin with. But would I add a hole just right alongside the current one? No, I haven't tried this.

Thanks, Paula

[* Paula *]

Let us know how you get on.