How Much Should I Feed My Baby?

Since the first day of our daughter's life, my wife and I have been wondering how much to feed our baby... or how much should a newborn eat?

As usual, there are no hard and fast rules about how much to feed a baby, especially a newborn. Everyone seems to have a different opinion. My wife's parents told us to just feed her as much as she wants. But for a period of time, our baby seemed to eat whatever amount we fed her...so that freaked us out a bit. Then we had friends tell us to put her on a feeding schedule, both for time and amount. But more recently, her intake of milk had gone down somewhat...so that concerned us. Funny how as parents we get concerned no matter what!

Our baby is now about 6 weeks old and she weighs about 9 pounds (my apologies to our readers who are on the metric system). She was born at 6 pounds 2 ounces, so her weight gain is on track. But we have some friends who also had a baby around the same time at around the same weight. And their baby is now 14 pounds! What this tells me is that babies are as individual as we are. So there is no set rule you can follow with regard to how much your baby will eat. However as new parents, we can't help looking for some guidance. Here is what my wife and I have decided to do (for now...who knows how our daughter will change as she grows!)

One particular rule of thumb has been helpful for us...at least for some peace of mind. Feed your baby about 2.5 ounces times your baby's weight over a 24 hr period. For instance, our daughter weighs 9 pounds so she should eat around 23 ounces in a day. Since we feed her 6 times a day, it would be simple to assume that at every feeding we feed her 23 divided by 6. But of course raising a baby is never that simple! She tends to vary in the amount she eats per feeding. But as long as she is getting about 23 ounces a day, we don't worry. Keep in mind that these numbers are very approximate...it's a rule of thumb.

For some more peace of mind we keep a record of her diaper changes, both for pee and poo. If she is peeing and pooing regularly, we don't worry.

Her next pediatrician visit is in two weeks, so if we're not feeding her enough or feeding her too much I'm sure we'll find out then.

We still wonder sometimes if we're feeding her the "right" amount. But for the most part, we're not so stressed about it. Heck, I'm sure there will be plenty of other things to worry about in our new lives as parents!

Do you have a comment about how much to feed your baby? If so, go ahead and leave a comment.