Weaning off Supplementation

[tracyo77]

I think I read somewhere on this board that a baby should be weaned off of formula and not taken off all at once. My question is - my daycare provider is mixing my 3 month old ds's bottles with half breast milk and half formula. If I can produce enough breast milk for him to have by itself in a bottle will he have tummy troubles?
He drinks anywhere from 12 - 24 oz. a day (Tuesday he drank three 8 oz. bottles!!)
I would much rather he be drinking more breast milk since his appetite is increasing - and I have been taking fenugreek and pumping at least 4 oz. a time, so I am thinking if I can squeeze a few more pumping sessions into my day I can maybe supply daycare with more bm..and maybe he would be satisfied with two 8 oz. bottles rather than three...
What are some other babies this age eating in an 8 hour period? He bresatfeeds before work and after for about a half hour at a time..so I know it satisfies him..

[whitnessforhim]

From what I understand you can completely wean baby off formula if you are able to produce enough BM to satisfy babies daily intake needs. It shouldn't in any way bother his tummy...someone correct me if I am wrong.

Secondly, I gotta say 3 8oz bottles is a lot of milk for a 3mo. old. Heck my 8mo. takes about 8-10oz of EBM at most when I am at work (9hr period). Have you considered that he is being over fed. 24oz of EBM is a norm of what most babies should drink in a 24hr period and he's getting this sometimes at DCP?

I think you are making more than enough for baby to be EBF and your baby is being over fed at DCP.

[PeacefulMom]

I agree with witness. That sounds like a lot of milk. Maybe they should give him 4-6 oz bottles at a time and see what happens. It is very easy to over feed a baby with bottles because the milk just keeps flowing.

[madelsmama]

If you're producing enough milk to meet baby's needs, you CAN stop the formula cold-turkey. Formula is much more likely to upset a baby's stomach than BM.

Eight ounces of milk is way overfeeding. Your child's stomach is small, but he will continue to drink as much as he's allowed from a bottle b/c he doesn't have to work for it like he does at the breast. The milk drips from a bottle nipple automatically, and he will swallow as is his reflex. You'd be better off fixing 2-3 ounces bottles and sending several of them (he can drink a little more if he's still starving). My babies never ate more than 3-4 ounces at that age, the most they ever took in a bottle was probably 5 ounces, close to their birthdays.

Print this out for your day care provider. Feeding a breast-fed baby from a bottle is different than feeding a formula-fed baby.
http://www.kellymom.net/bf/pumping/bottle-feeding.html

And a milk calculator to help you figure out how much to send:http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkcalc.html

[tracyo77]

I had a feeling that was way too much - but being a new mom I wasn't sure. I think starting next week (so I can pump enough over the weekend) I will give her maybe two 8 oz. bags of formula for the day and see how that goes. I know that my lo can get very cranky when hungry, and I'm not there to see what cues she is using to judge his hunger. Also, when my ds went in for his 2 month check-up, I had asked my pediatrician how much he should be eating and she said as much as he wants.

[madelsmama]

I'm not sure I've understood what you mean by 2-8oz bags, but feeding 8oz. is too much for his stomach at this age. Continuing to overfeed him will result in his stomach being stretched and eventually lead to obesity.

She can give him 2-3oz. (slowly, taking breaks during the feed) and reasses things after. If he still seems hungry, give him another 1oz. Be specific with your instructions to your DCP. You're paying her, after all.

Your pedi is correct in her advice WRT nursing from the breast. Bottle-feeding is just tricky and should be done as advised in the link--slowly and in smaller than 8 oz. volume.

[whitnessforhim]

Just curious why you would send formula if you are pumping plenty of milk?

Like others have stated it is very easy to overfeed on a bottle but it is not the same on the breast. I agree if he continues to be overfed you won't be able to provide enough BM in the future to meet his demands and this overfeeding can as stated above possibly lead to obesity.

I agree that I would prepare smaller bottles for him at DCP.

Being a new mommy can be so confusing sometimes. But I think you've gotten some really good advice here and if you are making enough BM always use that liquid gold first!! Formula cannot match what your BM is doing for your baby!!

[tracyo77]

I figured two 8 oz. bags should be enough for four 4 oz. feedings if needed if she divides them up - or I can just freeze 4 oz. at a time in bags.
It's not every day that he eats like that either - some days he only eats about 12 oz. (which I know may still be a lot compared to what other kids eat, but far better than 24 oz!!)