Am I Overfeeding my 1 month old baby?

Question

My 1 month old daughter is 11 pounds and is already drinking 6 ounces of formula at 1 sitting. In an hour she's crying and hungry again. I am afraid to keep feeding her, but that is the only thing that keeps her content. She cries a lot but is happy when she is being held. She is not a nuke baby so I'm running out of options. We even tried switching formulas thinking she was colic, but that didnt work. The doctor said that she should only be drinking 6 ounces at most however in a 4 hour period she has consumed 8 ounces Please HELP!!

Just a note to some of you that responded. My daughter was diagnosed as "Colic" yesterday. She cried and fought off sleeping for 16 hours straight. I am unsure if she is truly colic or just a fussy baby. She doesnt like the pacifier and is most content when she is being held. She is 5 weeks old and already weighs 12.9 pounds She was almost 10 pounds at birth. I have tried gas drops, soy formula and also rice cereal in the formula. (which the nurses at the hospital frowned on) Being a new mommy sure is overwhelming when you dont have all the answers...

Answer 1

If she weighed almost 10 lbs when she was born. then NO you aren't overfeeding your baby! Babies should gain 1/2 oz to 1 oz a DAY!!!! They also have growth spurts at 3 weeks and again at 6 weeks! Your Dr. will tell you if the are worried about your babies weight! My Nephew is 6 months old and weighs 22 lbs! ( he was 7lbs 3 oz when he was born)

I hope this gives you peace of mind! Don't worry till the D. start to worry!!

Answer 2

A strict feeding schedule is not recommended for babies this young. Feed your baby when she is hungry, giving her as much as she wants. But don't go over her limit by pushing the bottle into her mouth when she turns away or closes her lips. When she lets you know she's done, then stop. At this age, if I remember correctly, she should be eating about every 2 hrs (apprx). Some babies eat every 1 1/2, some babies eat every 3. Just trust your baby. And be sure to call her doctor with ANY questions. Good luck

Answer 3

my daughter was a little piggy too! At 2 weeks she was drinking 8 six oz bottles a day. her Ped wanted me to cut her back to 28 oz per day, but she was hungry, so my mom showed me how to add a little baby cereal to her formula and increase the nipple hole size (put a toothpick in the hole, drop in boiling water for a minute, cool under cold water, remove toothpick when nipple reaches room temp.) Tada! happy baby!
Doctors are all hung up on babies being overweight, and no medical book acurately describes the screams of a hungry baby
Babies do a lot of growing in a very short period of time, she's hungry, follow your "Mommy" instincts and feed her and keep her happy. Do the starving children in the infomercials look happy?
I overfed my daughter according to medical standards, now she's 17 gorgeous and doesn't have a weight problem, she is a little thin though

Answer 4

That is a hard one! When my daughter was 6 month old she was only drinking 6 oz. and that was normal( she is 11 months)! What formula have you tried? My daughter had colic and she is still on a formula for it. It is called Nutramigen ( by enfamil) and it is pricey( about 23 dollars a can) I think it works well but I would ask your doc about lepson drops( I think that is how you spell.) It is for severe gas that causes them to cry all the time ( Colic) Also you have to keep the child on the formula about a week to see a difference. My daughter wanted to be held all the time and wanted to have a bottle a lot but she did not drink that much. I would talk to the doc. and see ehta other options you have.

Answer 5

If she's hungry, I say feed her, as long as she doesn't throw up the formula, then there shouldn't be any alarm of allergy. But at the same time if you can stop the crying in another way, then she is not hungry. Playing, holding (could never hold a newborn enough), changing diaper. If you've gone through the list and she is still crying, then feed her. She may be hitting her growth spurt (but that's usually 3wks, 6wks, 9wks) all babies are different so if she didn't hit her growth spurt yet, then this would be it.

Answer 6

Babies are unique and so are their needs....They eat a lot early on to stock up for their future activity-packed days. You aremay not necessarily be overfeeding her, but try to make sure that she actually needs FOOD and not just COMFORT (all crying sounds the same in the early days). Try amusing her when she cries and you are sure she has had enough.

Answer 7

Yes she is over eating. talk to your doctor, she might have silent reflux. it can cause them to be hungry all the time. My son has it and he did the same thing with the screaming and having to be held all the time and constant eating. It's really hard, but it'll get better. I wouldn't feed her any more then 4 oz every 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours, thats what i had to do with my son. And when you hold her lay her across your arm tummy down with her head facing your elbow and your hand between her legs, and pat her back. you can even swing her side to side...this really helps. Try a snugly too, that way she'll be close to you and you can get some things done. things will get better, and seriously talk with your doctor about silent reflux, it can go months without being treated and once it is it's like having a different baby. good luck.

Answer 8

I'm not an expert but I do have two children. My son was a big eater right out of the hospital, drinking 6oz of milk when he we got home from the hospital. The formula wasn't satisfying him and he wanted to eat more frequently so I started putting a teaspoon or two of baby cereal in his formula and that satisfied him. He went longer periods of time between feedings and slept better and longer.
She sounds like she's hungry. Putting a little baby cereal in her milk will not add that much more weight, but it will fill her little tummy so that she can fill full and sleep better.
God be with you and your family.

Answer 9

I had the same problem with both of my children and was told that adding a teaspoon of rice baby cereal to the formula would help and it did! Both of my children were content with that little added extra, so I hope that you will give it a try and have the same result. Good luck. By the way, I am a nurse and I know that it is safe to do and will not interfere with the digestive track.

Answer 10

She could be crying because she wants to be comforted. Try swaddleing her that may help or a snuggly she may just want to be close to you. You don't have to worry about spoiling you baby yet during the first four months of life they need to be held close and comforted. It is unusual to have a one month old taking 6 ounces of formula every hour.