hungry baby

[craftymum]

my baby is 4 weeks old tomorrow and is on cow and gate complete formula but he just had a 4oz bottle which he drained at 7:30 and he has spent the last hour screaming and he seems to be still hungry - he doesn't always drain his bottle and sometimes only takes around 2.5 ounces. We just gave him some water to drink and he took a small mouthful and he seems to have settled a bit for now. He also hasn't slept very much today so I'm wondering is he hungry or just overtired and should I maybe change his formula to a different brand? It is just so exhausting trying to keep up with him at the minute

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

Maby up his milk another ounce hun. Does he still try to suckle for more when he has finished the bottle?? Try not to change his forumla just yet as it might upset his little stomach.

When is your Health vistor coming next?? Maybe discuss it with her
xx

 

[craftymum]

he never really drains his bottle though, he normally takes between 2.5-3.5 so we always make up 4oz bottles now. Health visitor was out yesterday and recommended water between feeds to stretch out his feeds but he's not too impressed with that lol. I just wondered if maybe the formula he is on wasn't maybe giving him what he needs but I am reluctant to try him on hungry baby just yet.

 

[dali]

id see how it goes for a couple of days , it may be that he will start to regularly take mor at that time of day, just mean you will need to make up 5oz instead of 6 for that feed.
are you meaning the 7:30 pm feed ? if so then he may be wanting more so that he can start to sleep longer in the evening
i dont think changing his formula wil amke any difference unless it is to hungry baby formula which he is maybe a little young for ... first things first, i would just let him have more if he wants it. do you use a dummy ? if he is over tired he may have just wanted to carry on sucking rather than drinking .. just a thought

 

[craftymum]

Yeah the 7:30 feed though at the minute he doesn't really have regular feeding times as he tends to take roughly 2.5-3.5oz every 2-3 hours. he just took 3.5oz in about 10 mins just now. He does have a dummy but he doesn't really like it, he spits it out and screws up his face everytime and it's actually quite a struggle to get him to take it.

 

[Chaos]

One way to test if he is still hungry is to just brush the teet of the bottle against his cheek .. if he turns his head and roots for it, chances are yes.

The screaming after a feed, might be trapped wind, is he burping well? Have you tried gripe water to try and settle his tummy after a feed? It works really well. Give 2.5mls after a feed. Its pure water with some herbs in that settle the tummy. Its a natural alternative to gas drops. Its also really good for those pesky hiccups!
It might also be that he's got belly ache from a poop that's trying to make an appearance.

As I mentioned in the other post, sometimes Lil Miss screams like this after 4oz. I'll stick another oz in the bottle, she'll take 3 sucks and pass out cold. It's like she wanted just that little bit for comfort to fall asleep. If she does this, I'll let her suck and quickly swap it out with the dummy.

You're doing a great job mamma, it takes time for mum and baby to figure each other out.

 

[craftymum]

he's not burping great at the minute though since yesterday he has been going 4 hours between feeds though he seemed to have really bad colic so we tried some infacol which to be honest works sometimes but not always. Might try the gripe water to se eif that makes a difference. Thanks for all your advice x

 

[NIfirsttimer]

careful with the gripe water lou it made roo really sick & runs... i think they need to be 4 weeks + for it too?

 

[NIfirsttimer]

OMG just saw he is 4 weeks already WHERE did that go!!!!???/

 

[craftymum]

Tell me about it Kat, it's scary he's a month tomorrow by the date, I can hardly believe it, I guess my little man is no longer a newborn

 

[tinkabells]

Hollie was the same, she still doesnt always finish a bottle but has been lately, she was on Cow & Gate normal formula but this wasnt enough for her, even though she didn drain them, an hour or so later she would want more etc, so HV said to try her on the hungry baby and we haveny looked back she loves it, i did try her on the cartoon first ao not to go out and buy a big box but she has been on hungry baby since 3 weeks xxx