A 1-month-old baby will need 8-10 feedings of 3-4 ounce each. Feeding amounts can vary between babies for a few factors.
After the first month, your breast milk will mature and the feedings can decrease slightly from the newborn stage. However, you need to consider whether you are feeding only breast milk or formula or a combination of both.
It’s important to take care that you don’t overfeed your baby. It’s never bad to have a baby not full than to have a baby overfed.
Hopeful at the end of this post, you will know exactly how much to feed your one month old baby.
The Right Frequency of Feeding Breastmilk for a 1 Month Old
As your baby starts gaining age, his consumption per feeding will increase and there will be larger gaps between each feeding. The reason is simple, the baby’s stomach is larger now and he can consume more than what he used to a few weeks back
But sometimes, the frequency can increase as your child is growing rapidly. So, don’t get surprised if your baby is hungry after 15 minutes or an hour. It’s normal. Every child has a unique appetite, you just need to know if he is really hungry or ihe just needs care and attention.
As a general rule, 8-10 feedings of breast milk is good enough for most babies. If you are feeding directly from your breasts, your life will become much easier as you won’t need to calculate the volume of milk intake.
What About Formula Milk? Is the Feeding Amount Different?
Formula milk tends to be absorbed at a slower rate than breast milk. You will also need to consider that fact that you are bottle feeding the formula milk.
When feeding from the breasts, there is more resistance and the baby will get tired fast and hence frequent feedings. With bottle feeding, it’s a lot easier to consume more milk at a time and so you need to feed less.
6-7 feedings of bottle milk should be enough for most babies.
Overfeeding is a common issue when you are bottle feeding. Always check the size of the nipple hole. If it’s too big, the baby will drink more milk than he actually needs. The hole should be such that the milk drips slowly and doesn’t pour out like from a cup.
It’s important to look for cues if your baby is full or not. If your baby is full, don’t keep on feeding just because you want to empty the bottle. That’s a bad practice and many parents are guilty of doing that.
Instead of blindly following a feeding routine, opt for responsive feeding. So, cues like moving hands to mouth, clenching fingers or moving mouth towards the breasts/bottle are signs of the baby being hungry. Here are some cues that will let you know if the baby is full:
- Spitting out milk or moving his mouth away from the breasts/bottle.
- Unlatching himself from the breasts often.
- Some babies even closes their mouth to say they are full.
- He seems distracted and not interested.
- Slows down on sucking or falls asleep.
- Relaxes his hand.
The cues might be different to these sometimes.But if you are observing your baby, you will know it.
Night Time Feeding Truth
Some babies can wake up a few times during the night or may sleep throughout the night.
Is it necessary to feed him the moment he wakes up? It may or may not be.
If you are breastfeeding, let her feed and see if she is drinking. If she shows signs of being full, she might be waking up for nothing.
It’s actually good to breastfeed during the night as you will have a better sleep. So, be natural and don’t be so frantic about the baby waking up.
Final Words
Some moms really get obsessed with feeding their babies. It’s good to care and worry, but being obsessed can result in overfeeding.
Give your child time to react and choose her own feeding time. Even if you have a fixed feeding time, choose it according to her feeding pattern. Observe and take a few notes. You will be the best mom ever!!
