When do you go from 2 oz to 3? And when to 4?

amother

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 1:52 pm

I’m not a first time mom lol, but it’s my first that I’m not nursing. He’s only on formula. My question is, sometimes he seems a tad hungry after finishing 2 oz, and sometimes he doesn’t even finish 2 oz. For now I’m giving him a drop more when he seems hungry after 2 oz, but I make a 2 oz bottle each time. Is there a magic age it goes to 3 oz? At what age should he be eating 3 oz at a time? And once I’m asking, what about 4 oz? When does it change to that?

imanotmommy

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 1:54 pm

I'm pretty sure there's no magic age... When you see that he's most often hungry for more, you'll start making more. Or if you see that he always wants more when it's a certain time of day, you'll make a bigger bottle at that time.

amother

Magenta

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:17 pm

Doesnt it say on the formula package?

In Uk it says the recommended amount per child per weight.

Officially there is a set amount per weight of the child. Il see if I can upload the image.

Java

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:18 pm

imanotmommy wrote:

This.
You also don't have to jump straight from 2 to 3, you can do half sizes although it's a little more annoying

amother

Stonewash

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:20 pm

amother [ Magenta ] wrote:

Doesnt it say on the formula package?

In Uk it says the recommended amount per child per weight.

Officially there is a set amount per weight of the child. Il see if I can upload the image.

Right but its often alot more than what most babies actually do eat.

amother

Magenta

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:23 pm

Yes, its a guide.

I used to up the formula and would rather give more then less and try get them to have a longer stretch.

Also I always tried if I could not to up the night feeds, in that way they wouldnt be relying on it so much and would have more to ear during the day.

I tried to rather give them a bigger bottle than having them have smaller ones every few hours.

I remember when my baby was around 5 ir 6 mo ths he was just having 3 big bottles a day rather then lots of smaller ones and bh slept v well.

Op, how old is your baby?

How often is he/she eating?

2 or 3 oz is around 90 ml which is for a newborn ish up to a few weeks..?

amother

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:35 pm

amother [ Magenta ] wrote:

Op, how old is your baby?

How often is he/she eating?

2 or 3 oz is around 90 ml which is for a newborn ish up to a few weeks..?

My baby’s 3 weeks old. He almost always has 2 oz (or fewer, because he falls asleep and I can’t wake him) every 2.5-3.5 hrs. Though at night will be more hours between feeds

amother

Cerise

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:38 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

My baby’s 3 weeks old. He almost always has 2 oz (or fewer, because he falls asleep and I can’t wake him) every 2.5-3.5 hrs. Though at night will be more hours between feeds

2 Oz is very little for a 3 week old! (All my kids are exclusively formula fed) definitely offer more, whether she consistently finishes it or not

amother

Magenta

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:41 pm

On my formula box says 3 oz for babies up to 2 weeks for babies weighing approx 3.5 kilo.
6 feeds in 24 hours.

Obviously this is a very rough guide.

I always started my babies on 3 oz and went up from there. Id rather they get used to having more earlier on so thet could potentially have longer gaps and sleep through..

P.s a lot of times my babies were having less then the formula guide says on the box and bh were sleeping well.

amother

Lime

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 2:46 pm

I only formula feed. My ped always says that there is no set amount. You can give as much as they need to be full.
I don't remember exactly, but I'm pretty sure I was giving 4 oz by the time my babies are 2 weeks old. And I think I was doing 6 oz at around 4 months. At 5-6 months I start solids. BH my babies eat well, sleep well and gain nicely

amother

Magenta

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 6:37 pm

I would def try giving 3 oz each time.

Even if he doesnt finish it I would keep at it, because its possible he will go longer from consistently having more in the bottle.

8lbs also sounds a good weight to have at lwast 3.

With mine Im sure I was doing between 3 and 4 for that age.

amother

Papayawhip

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 7:45 pm

Two week old newborn here- and my pediatrician said 2 oz is a normal amount at this point. And that’s breast milk, not formula which is more filling.
Just putting it out there. If your baby is gaining wait and is satisfied between feedings he/she is getting enough.

momof2+?

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 8:04 pm

No wonder formula fed babies gain more than nursing babies. The formula feeding mothers simply increase the amount of formula they are feeding, and as long as baby can manage to eat it (and don’t throw up from being fed too much) they stay consistently at that amount of formula. Nursing mothers only produce as much as the baby works to eat. My babies that I supplemented with formula were chubby kids compared to my babies that I didn’t supplement.

amother

Magenta

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 8:26 pm

momof2+? wrote:

My bottle fed baby is the skinny one and my breast fed is the chubby one.

And the breast fed one was soo so chubby as a baby. Waay fatter then bottle fed baby.

Really broad assumption to make.

If anything moms who formula feed know their babies so well and can set a schedule tailor made to each baby because we can work out exactly how much they need.

I also missed out to say that Rather than giving my babies lots of small bottles per day , I would work out how much they were eating per day in ml/oz, and divide it up and try to give fewer bottles, but with more in, so they would be on more of a routine and be satisfied for longer.

chocpretzel

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 9:05 pm

Follow your pediatricians advice. I know some people rather give bigger bottles less often but my pediatrician recommended smaller bottles more often. So I started out with 2 oz every 2 hours and as he got hungrier, increased an oz with each feeding. The entire time he was on formula (till one years old) he had max 5 oz at a time. Follow your baby’s lead and your pediatricians recommendations.

amother

Burntblack

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 9:54 pm

amother [ OP ] wrote:

My baby’s 3 weeks old. He almost always has 2 oz (or fewer, because he falls asleep and I can’t wake him) every 2.5-3.5 hrs. Though at night will be more hours between feeds

My baby is 3 weeks old as well. Trying to exclusively nurse but had a hard day with him yesterday and gave bottles. Did not finish the 2ozs. I'd say your good. You can try to increase in a half a week or so. My baby is closer to 9 lb.

amother

Razzmatazz

Wed, Jun 08 2022, 11:43 pm

2 different lactation consultants told me by 2 different kids the rule is 1-1.25 ounces per hour (yeah I tried to nurse). Best not to let baby go more than 3 hours during the daytime at that age.