How often should my (Almost 4 week old) be fed & how much?

jmorales986 · October 2013

Hello! My son will be 4 weeks in 4 days and is all over the place when it comes to his feeding pattern. Unfortunately, my milk supply was short lived so he is on formula. There are times in the day when he takes in a 4oz bottle, 6oz bottle, or just eats an ounce! Last night he was fed 6oz around 1AM and when he woke up around 6:30AM, only ate a little over an ounce (which is odd because with 5hrs between feedings I was sure he would be hungry!). During the day, he may eat 4oz every 3 hours, or less or more. Now, since he was born, my husband and I have been feeding him according to whether or not he is asleep (we were told not to wake a sleeping baby); so he may eat every 2 hours, 3 hours, or 4, depending on how long he sleeps. So I guess my question is, should we put him on a feeding schedule, even waking him up to feed if need be or just continue what we are doing? Thanks!

tinab3 · October 2013

I am doing the same as you with my almost 5 week old. I never wake him to eat and go by his cues for when he is hungry and how much he wants to eat. We have no set schedule.

Amandysergio · October 2013

I have a 2 week old and I'm wondering when this feeding pattern started for you op? My DD normally eats 2.5oz-3 every 3-4hrs, and very occasionally she has taken 4oz already. I think that's a lot (yes I'm going to ask her doc, she has an appt soon). She's gaining weight appropriately and is healthy, I'm just wondering if a random 4oz bottle is too much too soon?

Mthurm17 · October 2013

Our twins are 4 weeks as well, and our pediatrician advised us to feed them at least every 3 hours during the day. They eat 2-3 ounces at each feeding. At night, we don't wake them to eat, although they typically wake about every 3 hours to eat at night as well. Our ped said that you should multiply baby's weight by 2.5 or 3 and that's how many ounces they should get in 24 hours (I.e. a 7 lb baby should get about 21 ounces in 24 hours).

Amandysergio · October 2013

Thanks ladies

mkb5g5 · October 2013

DS is 4 weeks today and eats 3-4.5
oz every 2-4 hours not on a typical schedule. This has been going on for about 2 weeks. His pedi said if he seems hungry then feed him, don't think about it being too much because he if over feeds the only result is spit up.

magdalina.h · October 2013

We feed on demand. With formula, it's a little easier to change the amount of food to give. I would start by offering 3 oz. If he wants more give him more. Babies food intake varies throughout the day just like ours. Sometimes we're starving at lunch and sometimes we can just eat a couple of bites.

kelseyjohnston · October 2013

I've always fed on demand...it was too exhausting keeping track and he will never go longer than 4 hours without letting me know he needs something. I BF so I don't know amounts..but he is chunky and has tons of diapers so I know he gets enough.

Amandysergio · October 2013

magdalina.h said:
We feed on demand. With formula, it's a little easier to change the amount of food to give. I would start by offering 3 oz. If he wants more give him more. Babies food intake varies throughout the day just like ours. Sometimes we're starving at lunch and sometimes we can just eat a couple of bites.

Thanks for sharing

that makes sense. Sometimes DD eats 4oz in a sitting (and then will sleep for several hours, about 4) and other times she will only eat 1.5oz. I feed on demand now, too. In the beginning she had jaundice and I had to wake her every 2 hours, that was not fun lol.

sdgirley · October 2013

I had same exact situation. Her Dr said 4oz is ok once in a while but otherwise 2.5-3oz she should be fed.

CaliforniaDream87 · October 2013

We feed on demand. We don't believe in putting a 4 weeker on a "schedule". He usually ate between 2-3oz. at 4 weeks.

naorwick · October 2013

Our pediatrician told us to not go more than 4 hours without feeding our newborn. (she is about 3 weeks old) During the day I feed her every 3 hours and at night we will go every 4, although she typically wakes up before the 4 hours anyways.