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View Full Version : How Many Times Do I Need to Feed Him?



agomalley
07-25-2003, 04:34 PM
My DS, Ryan, is 15 weeks old. He has just started sleeping through the night. I had been BFing him about 8 times per day. We cut out the 2am feeding and now he doesn't seem to need his 11pm feeding. Is the 6 times he is being fed enough? He seems to be eating less or taking a quicker time to eat. I haven't had him into the doctor's since his 2 month appointment, but he does seem to be growing well. Is this a normal pattern?
Thanks,
Anabelle

lizajane
07-25-2003, 08:41 PM
i bet you are right that he doesn't need the 11pm feeding, so 6 times sounds right. schuyler is 4 months and he eats 4 or 5 times/day. (and he is a giant, so it isn't because he is small!) his last meal is between 7 and 8pm and his first meal of the day is between 8 and 9am.

i am sure that ryan is eating much more efficiently, which means it will take him a shorter amount of time to eat more. so i think he sounds just right! isn't it great!

one word of caution-i think he is a-ok. just keep an eye on your milk supply. if you think it appears as though he is suddenly hungry, give him an extra feeding for a day or two. schuyler started eating every 4-5 hours, and while he was happy, i suddenly realized the milk slowed down, and then he needed more again. i just uppped the nursings for a few days and we are back to normal!

hth
liza

FloridaMomtoBe
07-25-2003, 08:51 PM
Hi Anabelle, this sounds fine to me. It seems to vary a lot from baby to baby, but I had the same concern early on. Once we got past the first week or so and aside from a couple of days here and there that I assume were growth spurts, Josh at the most nursed 8 times daily. By about 3-1/2 to 4 months, he was down to 5 times a day...I remember because when I went back to work right after New Year's, I was nursing him before work, pumping three times throughout the day (which corresponded to the three bottles of EBM he drank), and nursing him before bed. Now I'm sure it depends on how much Ryan will take at any one time - Josh at that time was drinking 7-8 oz bottles so I knew he was getting plenty. Not sure if you have a dr appt at 4 months, but you can also get your ped's advice then too....

HTH,
Michelle