4 bottles - enough?

[shem2005]

My DD is a couple days off 5 months. She was having 5 bottles a day but then her dreamfeed intake decreased and so did her 7am feed. So we decided to drop the dreamfeed. For the last 3 nights she has slept from 7pm till 7am and has increased her mls to roughly what she was taking with her dreamfeed, although about 150 mls less that she was taking about 3 weeks ago.

Is 4 bottles enough for a 5 month old?

[LindseysMom]

I think if your baby seems content with that much it should be enough for her.  All babies are different.  As long as you feed on demand and do not adhere to a strict feeding schedule she will be fine.  Just a note though babies usually go through a growth spurt around 6 months so she will probably increase her intake again soon.  She may just not be growing that fast right now.

[Mariek]

Hi there

The usual guidelines for amounts of formula are based on weight rather than age (2.5-2.7oz of formula per lb of weight in a 24 hour period). That said all babies are different and some will eat more, some less.

I agree with Lynne about the growth spurt coming up (usually around the 6 month mark) so don't be surprised if she suddenly starts wanting more.

With regards the feeding on demand I have to say that Tracy didn't advocate feeding on demand (she would say feeding a baby on demand will give you a demanding baby) but rather she promoted a structured routine (the EASY routine). If you're not already using EASY there are some sample routines in the EASY forum.

love

[PaulaP]

My lo is 16 weeks and also only takes 4 bottles.

He is on the 4 hour easy routine, and this seems to suit him down to the ground.  He sleeps from 7:30pm to 7:00 am and his schedule is as follows:-

7:00am - 8oz
11:00am - 8oz
15:00pm - 8oz
19:00pm - 9oz - I tend to offer him the extra oz incase he needs it.

I too was worried that he was not taking enough as he is not on any solids yet (tried a bit of baby rice with him, but it constipated him so I stopped it), but he seemed completely satisfied and still slept through the night.  About a week ago, he started waking up earlier for his bottles and I was wondering whether to introdue a dreamfeed, but the extra oz that I offer him at night now seems to do the trick.

Regards
Paula - Mum to Thomas

[Noelle]

Both of my kiddos were on 4 bottles a day at that age 

[GraysonsMommy]

Grayson is 5 months and has been doing only four bottles a day for about a week.  We stopped the DF, because he wasn't interested in his AM feed, even after being awake for a full hour without it.  And the DF was only 3-4 ounces anyway, so we stopped it and now he eats a full morning feed (8 ounces), but now the afternoon bottles are slowing down too.  He's 18 pounds and used to take 30-32 ounces in 24 hours, but now, he's averaging about 25 ounces which seems low.  He has been in the 95% for weight, so maybe his body is reaching a plateau, is that possible?  I expect it will pick up again soon with the next growth spurt, but should I worry about this limited intake?  Oh, he eats one meal a day, with about 1 tablespoon of cereal and maybe another tablespoon or two of fruits and or veggies.

Jessica

[Mom to M&M]

Same issue here. Marisa turns three months Friday and the past two nights has slept from 7:30pm-6:45/7am. We dropped the DF some time ago as it was only disrupting her sleep. And she's always been on a 3.5-4 hour schedule (although sometimes she eats her dinner bottle closer to 3 hours).

Keep in mind that she does have 1tbsp cereal per 2 ounces formula in bottle per GI specialist for her reflux. That said, is this enough for her? She's also consistently been in the 85-90% for weight:

- 7am: 6 ounces (3 tbsp cereal in bottle)
- 10:45 am: 6 ounces (same cereal)
- 2:40 pm: 6 ounces (same)
- 6 pm: 6 ounces (same)
- 7:15pm: top off with 1-1.5 ounces before bed

So she ends up getting about 25 ounces of formula plus the cereal. I know that's probably enough calories because of the cereal - but is it enough formula for a 14 1/2 pound 3-month old?