3 Bottles a day but concerned with amounts

[Jenny_Jen]

My DS has dropped to 3 bottles a day which is fine, but the amount he is taking has not changed.  He is taking 3 7 oz bottles so a total of 21 oz a day.  He's never been a big eater when it comes to formula but loves solids.  So far our day is looking like this over the past week:

7 am wake & take 4 oz

8:00 cereal with 3-4 oz of formula in it

9-9:15 sleep 45 mins

10-10:15 wake, have a bath & get dressed for the day

11:30 lunch 2-3 oz of fruit & a few cheerios here & there (I've tried giving him formula 1st here but he won't take it & screams at me).  I usually make my own fruit but since it's winter now certain fruits are hard to get now & I can only really get apples & bananas so I do give jarred fruits right now.

12:30 nap for 2 or 2.5 hours (I've tried giving him a bottle before nap but also won't take it)

3:00 7 oz

4:30 dinner 4 -5 cubes of veggies (I make my own)

7:00 or 7:30 - 7 oz & bed

If he wakes at night he won't eat so he wakes for other reasons (which I am suspecting is a teething issue at the moment because Tylenol calms him down.)

So is 21-22 oz enough formula?  My Dr wants him to have 24 oz minimum but I just can't get it into him no matter what.  Even if I cut down on his dinner or lunch he still won't take any more oz during the day.

[KathrynK]

if he is having cheese and yoghurt as part of his diet then I wouldn't worry about the amount of formula. You can't force it down him! I always worry that dd isn't having enough, especially as we had a 2-week bottle strike during our last bout of teething so I make sure she has soft cheese to eat with lunch, lots of yoghurt both at breakfast and for desserts, and often do cheese sauces with veggies etc for dinner. Cheese sauce is amazingly easy to make and really makes those veggies a bit more interesting!
hth
kathryn x

[Jenny_Jen]

I have not introduced youghurt or cheese yet.  I have thought about it but don't know what kind to get???  I have youghurt in the fridge right now (it has fruit in it), but is there a kind you are supposed to feed to babies?  What cheeses can I give him?  We usually have chedder in the house.

He is a healthy, chubby, happy baby so I tend to lean on the side that 21 oz is good with him, but Dr says 24 oz at a minimum.  I started laughing at her when she said that because during his 7 months with me he's only taken that before solids started & that was on a good day.  He was 6 lbs 7 oz at birth (39 weeks) & 18.5 inches & now is 18.5 lbs & 27.5 inches so he's growing just fine.

[KathrynK]

some babies just don't drink that much formula, they are all different.
Where do you live? Here in the UK there are loads of ranges of baby/ child yoghurts. There is a huge section for them in the supermarket, I have tried various ones now and lo loves them all.
I use Dairylea which (forgive me if you already know this) is a soft cheese which comes in triangles which I spread on toast or in sandwiches, and comes in strips which I break into small pieces so she can pop them in her mouth and munch on them. They are great for practising finger foods. Have you tried toast yet? I started lo on toast at around 7.5- 8 months, that was her first finger food. I used cheddar to make the cheese sauce for her veggies and also she can have it grated, as finger food or in sandwiches.
If you are wanting to try more dairy products and need some more advice stick a post on the solids board- I have gotten some great advice from there before!
don't worry about the "magic" figure of 24oz just cos your Dr says. If he doesn't want it then you can't make him!
hth
kathryn x

[Jenny_Jen]

I will stick a post there about youghurt & cheese types.  I am in Canada & have never seen baby youghurt at the supermarket, but then again I have never looked.  It's definatley not in the baby aisle though so I will take a look.

I agree, you can't force feed your kids, so worrying about it only makes it worse.

He has had toast before & pizza crust.  He doesn't have the pincer grasp down yet so he can't pick small things up so I just finger feed him & let him play with the food on his tray.  He will eat anything you put in his mouth, except formula , meat, veggies, fruit, cheerios, etc, doesn't matter, as long as we're eating it, he'll eat it or cry if we don't give him some.  Crazy kid I have!

[* Paula *]

Jenny,

Hugs i am sorry you are going through a rough time.

Teething can defintely be an aspect as to why he is not wanting to take his formula?  My DS has never been very big on his formula - and always preferred solids more.

Definitely agree with trying some yogurts and cheese on toast, that way you are getting more into your lo.  How about offering custard?  I know it is a little on the sweeter side, but at least you are getting a few more oz into him.

Have you tried offering him a sippy cup with with a few oz of formula in it with meal times?

I know the doctors can be pushy saying minimum of 24 oz or 21 in the UK, but you cannot force them to drink it, and if your lo will take yogurts and cheeses etc, that all counts towards their daily intake.

Good luck, and keep us posted on how you get on.

Paula x

[Jenny_Jen]

Yes I have introduced the sippy cup with 2 oz of formula in it, but he plays more with it then anything.  Even if I tip it up & he sucks, once he tastes the formula during or after a meal, he doesn't want anything to do with it & ends up just chewing on the sippy part.

I would really think the formula issue was teething but at the times I've posted he takes the formula back without a problem.  When he got his first 2 teeth in a few weeks ago he would just refuse the bottle constantly & cry but he's not doing this now.  He will only take it at the times I've posted.  He is a slow teether, he started teething at 4 months & finally popped his bottom teeth at the end of October so I know what he's like when he's teething.  The night waking is once or twice a night crying but he is easy to put back to sleep with PU/PD so something is bothering him in the middle of the night, or it may just be habit.  If I try to feed he will only take 2 oz & then cry & not want his morning bottle so I haven't fed in the middle of the night in a few weeks now.

Thanks for all the tips, I'm off to post in the solids forum now....

[* Paula *]

What size teats are you using?

[Jenny_Jen]

I feed with the Playtex drop in system using their fastest teats, he's been on them for a quite a while now.  His oz's went up when I first started using them, but that was when solids weren't really a big thing.

[debo620]

hi, I live in Canada---I just give my son full fat plain yogourt---made by Astro. I mix in unsweetened apple sauce or fruit puree--he loves it!

[blondie10]

My HV came to see me for a weaning talk yesterday and said the recommended amount of milk before 6 months was 28oz and after 6 months was 21oz because they make up for it in their solids as everyone else here has said. Sounds like your LO knows best and is doing fine!

[Jenny_Jen]

My Dr said 24 oz is the standard minimum here but he's thriving just fine on 3 7 oz bottles so I'm not going to worry about.  He loves his solids so any nutrients he needs, I'm sure he's getting from that.

I gave him cheese today & yesterday on toast & he loved it, I'll look for yogurt the next time I'm out grocery shopping.  I eat astro yogurt myself but I'm sure it's not made with whole milk.

[Jenny_Jen]

My mom was at our grocery store today (I live in a small town with one grocery store) & they don't carry Dairylea products there.  They do have Activia & some other brand I have never heard of with 3.5% MG (not sure what MG is).  The dairy man that worked there said that's what he would recommend.

[debo620]

well, I checked... I buy ASTRO bavarian style plain yogourt and it is %6.0 MG! 100 calories and 6 gr fat for 1/2cup! I buy it at Safeway

[Jenny_Jen]

I'm in Southern Ontario & we have Zehrs here (They are owned by Loblaws I think).  I'm going to the grocery store today so I will look.  I know they carry Astro there so I'll check it out.