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I have a 3 month old dcb that is strictly breastfed. HIs mom said that the lactation person and her doctor said that he should be eating 1 to 1.5 ounces of breastmilk for every hour. So if he eats every 3 hours it would be a bottle of 3 to 4 1/2 ounces of milk. He seems like he wants way more than that. That seems like very little imo. Does anyone have experience in that? I did not breastfeed my 2 kids. On formula though at that age, we fed more than that at a time and therefore they could go longer between feedings.
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Not an expert, but did breastfeed. I would take into consideration the total amount of ounces he's getting in 24 hours, as well as, his temperment. The lactaton people will tell the mom: "You need to educate the daycare that this is all he needs. They will push for more ounces, but you have to educate them."
Some mom's will produce enough to provide more if you request it. Some moms will struggle with those 10-12 ounces a day to give the provider. Those moms will feel put in the middle and helpless.
I was the type that struggled to produce more. With dd those 3 ounce bottles were plenty, she did great. With ds he screamed for more. I listened to the lactation "experts" and insisted to my provider that he did not need more, and there had to be another way to calm him. Afterall, he did not have this problem when he was with me. When I finally caved and started supplementing, he was suddenly a different baby for my provider and I felt soooo guilty for not doing it sooner.
So moral of the story, is that it could very well be enough. And if it's not, don't be surprised if mom resists at first. Be gentle, but insistent of this is the case. -
So she is going to send between 9 to 13.5 ounces a day. He's here from 7:30 to 3:45. He's been eating more than that here now and feeding every 3 hours. His temperment is good when he's full but when he's hungry he screams. So now I"m going to give him less food but she wants me to do the pace feeding method she said. Where you give him 1/2, then burp him for 5 to 10 minutes and then feed him the rest. That way his brain can know he's full. Because i don't have any other children to sit there for that length of time to do a bottle. She's going to talk to the doctor on the 29th to see about giving him really watery cereal when he turns 4 months. oiComment
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Why not just supplement with formula and do bigger bottles instead a cereal filler? Is the cereal more beneficial in some way? (Not meant to sound smarty, I'm genuinely curious.)Comment
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I breastfed two babies ad feeding every 3 hours is something I didn’t do until later. Maybe start feeding him every two hours instead? He might be getting over hungry and then over eating at the feed time. I would also ask for more milk. I breastfed for as long as I needed to so there is no way I know how many ounces my kids got but they both only fed for 5-10 minutes at each feed.Comment
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Look up paced feeding. 1 1/2 ounces per hour is correct. The calorie content of her milk will change as he grows. If you can pace feed during the day, he’ll cluster feed with mom to make up for it.
Supplementing with formula isn’t the end of the world, but it’s also not ideal.
Hold baby VERY upright when feeding to slow the flow, and burp after every ounce. Breastmilk is very thin and they can easily gulp it all down so fast that their brain doesn’t register that they are full. If paced feeding doesn’t work, that means his belly has been stretched out because he’s getting more than that per nursing session and she’ll need to figure out how to pump a bit more or supplement. He doesn’t actually NEED more, but an empty tummy is miserable to a baby and that’s not fair to expect him to live like that.Comment
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You got that right! She has 1st time momitis so bad. So I gave him bottle this morning. A total of 4 ounces. Halfway through I stopped and took my time changing him and we went back to the bottle. He got done with that and screamed. He was still hungry. I got a bit more from another bag of breastmilk that she got and now he's happy. It's just not enough for him that she wants to do.Comment
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She might be worried about “closed gut”. Basically, once the baby eats something beside breastmilk they no longer have a “closed system” and they are more susceptible to intestinal illness. Exclusively breastfeeding and delaying solids are part of this. BUT that’s not always possible when you have to leave your children with a caregiver, especially one that’s caring for multiple children.Comment
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I tell parents that I feed on demand. So they must provide enough to feed their baby until they are full. I do not limit them; a baby will stop eating when they are no longer hungry! My brother learned this the hard way with his son, they followed what a book said and wouldnt give their baby anymore then what the book said. So of course they were waking up a million times a night because of a crabby baby
Once they finally stopped listening to all the “experts” ..they got a full nights sleep.Comment
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Exactly! They are up literally all night. He eats every 3 hours and it takes her 45 minutes to feed. He's 4 months old next week. My kids were sleeping 10 to 6 by that age.I tell parents that I feed on demand. So they must provide enough to feed their baby until they are full. I do not limit them; a baby will stop eating when they are no longer hungry! My brother learned this the hard way with his son, they followed what a book said and wouldnt give their baby anymore then what the book said. So of course they were waking up a million times a night because of a crabby baby
Once they finally stopped listening to all the “experts” ..they got a full nights sleep.Comment
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Breast milk digests much faster than formula so breastfed babies typically don't "sleep thru the night" like formula babies. It's very common for breastfed babies to night nurse through their entire first year of life. This is normal and parents shouldn't be shamed for how well their child sleeps "thru the night." We weren't wired that way to begin with (from a survival standpoint.) Anyways...
Pace feeding is CRUCIAL in breastfed babies so their body has time to tell their mind they are full (this can take up to 20 mins!) Babies who overeat typically show the same signs of hunger...crying from pain (too full, rather than enpty) and inconsolable. They know they have a belly ache but not why (too full.) Therefore, they can be willing to take another bottle of milk, thinking the belly pains are from being hungry. This leads to a stretched out stomach and makes for a bad cycle of eating too much.
If baby is fed from the breast at home and only gets a bottle at daycare and the bottles haven't been pace fed, chances are the stomach is already stretched a little. It might take a couple weeks of pace feeding and being a little fussy afterwards to help shrink the stomach back to its appropriate size. Since breast milk changes in macros and calories, the 1 to 1.5 oz per hour rule stands on good measure.
As a "crunchy" mom (who is still nursing my 19 month old) it was also important to me that my daughter did not get any "supplementing" for the first year as well (I won't go into all the 'whys' because a mother's wishes should be respected no matter why (as long as no harm is done.)) As long as baby is growing properly and having adequate diapers there is no need to supplement. I trusted my body that it would do what it was made to do...I think we forget what our bodies are meant for and just how capable and amazing they are.Comment
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While this is all good and true - none of this takes into account that a care provider may not have 20 minutes to focus on feeding one child or considers the impact a fussy child can have on the group as a whole.
I respect every parents right to decide what's best for their child, but if they are choosing daycare then they have to also be flexible when it comes to preparing their child for a smooth and successful day at daycare
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So you telling me he's only getting 3 to 4 ounces in that time? (not you, her 
)
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