Next to "volition I ever sleep again?" the biggest questions many new parents have are all well-nigh feeding.

Whether your little i is breastfed, formula-fed or a combination of both, figuring out how much he should be eating — and whether that fussing is related to hunger or something else — can feel overwhelming, especially in the very beginning.

The skillful news is that babies tend to be really good at letting y'all know when they're ready to eat, eating when they're hungry and stopping when they're full.

So with a little fleck of knowledge on your role, you lot tin learn to tell when it'south time to offer a meal, how much milk your picayune 1 needs and whether he's getting the right amount.

How much should my breastfed baby eat?

Breastfed babies should eat equally oft and every bit long as they want, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). Most newborns nurse every two to three hours, counting from the start of each nursing session. That adds upwardly to around viii to 12 feedings a twenty-four hour period.

But you should let your baby guide y'all instead of the clock, so offer your breast whenever he shows signs of hunger. If your infant seems very sleepy, you should wake him to make sure he gets at to the lowest degree viii feedings within 24 hours.

As for how much he should drink during each nursing session? Over again, there's no correct or wrong answer. But you lot can by and large wait your newborn to nurse for 20 to 30 minutes per feeding.

Information technology'due south fourth dimension to end the session when your baby lets go of the nipple, or when his sucking pattern slows downward to four sucks per swallow. (That'southward a sign that he's probably just condolement sucking and not actually drinking anymore.)

Another matter to keep in mind: Information technology'south totally normal for your trivial one to occasionally want to nurse nonstop. Chosen cluster feeds, these bursts of hunger tend to coincide with growth spurts. It tin feel like all you're doing is nursing, but just follow your baby's lead — and know it'll probably just terminal for a day or ii.

All Most Breastfeeding

How much should my formula-fed babe swallow?

There's no single number that works for everyone. The corporeality your formula-fed baby eats will depend on his weight, age and appetite (which tin can vary from one twenty-four hour period to the next, but like yours does).

Every bit a rule of pollex, infants nether vi months who haven't yet started solids will take in 2 to 2 one/2 ounces of formula per pound of body weight inside a 24-60 minutes period. (That's 20 to 25 ounces per day for a 10-pound baby.)

Your infant will need to eat more than oft in the beginning, only his feedings volition space out more equally he gets older and his stomach gets bigger.

Here'south a full general idea of how much formula your bottle-fed baby will take:

  • During the first few weeks: 1 to three ounces of formula every 3 to iv hours (closer to two to 3 ounces a feeding after the beginning few days or calendar week). Wake your babe for a feeding if he sleeps longer than five hours.

  • By the start calendar month: At least iv ounces every four hours.

  • By 6 months: 24 to 36 ounces spread out over iv or five feedings a 24-hour interval.

Even so, go on in mind that every baby is different, so pay attending to your little one'southward cues.

If your baby is still showing hunger signs after finishing a bottle, offering more than. If he seems fidgety or distracted before the bottle's empty, he's probably had plenty, so don't strength him to cease information technology.

How much should my baby eat if I'one thousand breastfeeding and formula-feeding?

Combination feeding doesn't have to be complicated. You can adapt the basic guidelines for breastfeeding and formula-feeding based on your baby's historic period. Paying attention to his hunger and fullness cues can assistance y'all figure out the correct rhythm too. If you're still unsure near amounts, your baby's pediatrician tin offer more than guidance.

How much breast milk or formula should I requite my baby afterward starting solids?

Breast milk or formula should make upwards the majority of your baby'due south nutrition until he'southward a year old. But as he starts eating more solid food, the corporeality of breast milk or formula he drinks volition slowly taper off. Specific amounts are different for every baby, of class, but here are some basic rules of thumb:

  • half dozen months: Nurse 5 to 6 times a twenty-four hour period for a total of 24 to 36 ounces of breast milk, or offering iv to five bottles a mean solar day with 6 to 8 ounces of formula each.

  • 7 months: Nurse five to six times a mean solar day for a total of 24 to 30 ounces of breast milk, or offer four to five bottles a solar day with 6 to 8 ounces of formula each.

  • viii months: Nurse four to half-dozen times a day for a full of 24 to 30 ounces of breast milk, or offering iii to v bottles a day with 7 to 8 ounces of formula each.

  • nine months: Nurse iv to half-dozen times a solar day for a total of 24 to thirty ounces of breast milk, or offer 3 to four bottles a day with 7 to viii ounces of formula each.

  • 10 months: Nurse four times a 24-hour interval for a total of 24 to 30 ounces of breast milk, or offer three to four bottles a mean solar day with 7 to eight ounces of formula each.

  • xi months: Nurse or bottle-feed 3 to four times a solar day for a full of 24 ounces (or less) of chest milk or formula.

  • 12 months: 24 ounces (or less) of breast milk or formula a day, edging closer to 16 ounces by your babe's get-go birthday.

Infant eating chart

Here's a handy babe eating chart summarizing how many ounces of milk a baby should exist getting depending on the state of affairs:

how much should baby eat chart, baby eating chart

Signs baby is hungry

Picking up on your baby's hunger cues helps you know when he'south gear up to eat (or have some more). Plus, taking detect of his early hunger signs means yous tin get him fed earlier he starts crying. Your little one might let you know he's looking for a meal past:

  • Nuzzling against your breasts

  • Sucking on his hands (or on other things, like your arm or shirt)

  • Opening his oral cavity

  • Showing the rooting reflex — turning his head to the side with his oral cavity open, often later on his cheek is stroked

  • Sucking on his lip or natural language, which might look like he's sticking his natural language out

  • Smacking his lips

  • Crying, oftentimes with a brusque, low-pitched wail that rises and falls

How tin can I tell if my infant isn't getting plenty to eat?

Your baby's mood will oft be the get-go indicator. If your piffling one isn't getting plenty to eat, he might weep, fuss or suck on his fingers even after a full feeding. (Keep in listen that these could also be signs of colic or gas, though.)

Some other signs that your infant isn't eating enough and may need more than:

  • Too few wet or muddied diapers. Infants should take at to the lowest degree 6 wet diapers inside a 24-hour period, and the urine should be stake yellowish. As for bowel movements? Breastfed newborns should accept at least 5 poop diapers within 24 hours, and formula-fed newborns should take at least 4.

  • Lilliputian or no weight gain. The average newborn gains 4 to 7 ounces per week, and so if your infant is gaining less, he may not be getting enough to eat. The pediatrician tin assistance you lot figure out whether your infant's growth is on track.

If y'all suspect that your baby isn't eating enough, allow the pediatrician know. He or she can make up one's mind whether your baby has an underlying feeding event (like a oral fissure, natural language or palate trouble or GERD) and help y'all figure out a good for you feeding plan for your little one.

How tin can I tell if I'm feeding my baby too much?

Babies are good cocky-regulators — they tend to eat when they're hungry and cease when they're satisfied. Simply it's yet possible for infants to have a little besides much, especially if they're being bottle-fed, since it takes less piece of work to drink from a canteen than from the breast.

Babies who've overeaten might come away from a meal with stomach pains or gas, or they may spit-up or even vomit. Overfeeding tin can besides up the take a chance for obesity afterward in life, but just because your baby is on the bigger side now doesn't mean he's eating too much.

All the same, information technology'due south a good idea to talk with your baby's pediatrician if you're worried about his eating habits.

Figuring out how much milk to give your baby can feel a little overwhelming. Just take heart in knowing that your little 1 tends to exist good at getting what she needs, then follow her atomic number 82 while keeping the general guidelines in heed. You'll settle into a comfortable routine before long — and go a infant feeding pro.