Wants to eat constantly

mommybear77

My LO is 4 days old and today it seems like all he wants to do is eat.  He barely makes it 2 hours on 2 ounces of formula.  The nurse told me to only let him eat 2 ounces every 3 hours but he acts like he is starving to death on every 2 hours as it is.

How much and how often did you feed your newborn?

LyndseylovesHugh

At that age my LO ate about every 1.5 to 2 hours, from what I understand that is pretty normal. Now at just over a month she goes anywhere from 3.5 to sometimes even 5 hours between feedings.

ETA I'm not a nurse or anything, but I personally would not limit the amount of food, if my LO was still hungry I would feed her more. Everything I have been told and read says that you can't overfeed a newborn.

rpt06

We've always fed our LO on demand.  IMO, if he's hungry let him eat.  My dr told me to make an ounce more in his bottle than he usually eats (even though it's a waste sometimes) so he can have more if he wants it.

MississippiCatfish

4 days old...that sounds about right! I would call the dr to ask about the amount. I personally think it sounds crazy to not offer more food to a hungry newborn!! She may have misspoken.

ETA: I'm an RN, and that contradicts what I know about newborn care.

Crispity

Every 2 hours sounds about right to me. Definitely feed on demand. Your LO will not overeat at this point, and it's really important that he be fed whenever he is hungry.

mommybear77

Thank you for the replies. I have been feeding on demand since we came home, I couldn't bare letting him cry because he was hungry.  I do not like that nurse and thought she didn't know what she was talking about.  I just wanted to make sure I wasn't hurting his little tummy.