How to Get My 10 Week Old to Stop Snacking

Hi D.,

I went through the same thing with my daughter when she was around that age, although my daughter is breast fed. I thought I would be going back to work so we started giving her a bottle of expressed milk when she was 3 weeks old. Every time she took a bottle she would only drink 3 oz. It was like she magically knew once she had 3 oz and stopped. I think baby knows best when s/he has had enough and it's nothing to worry about as long as baby is gaining weight and growing correctly. I worried so much about her eating habits, but have learned to let go and let her call the shots since she was healthy and happy. I always added about an extra ounce to the bottles just in case she decided she was ready for more than 3 oz, and then once she started drinking the whole 4 oz I added an additional ounce.

I know it is hard for you. You must be ehautsed, however, 10 weeks is so new. Give him what he needs. He is still to younge to put him on a schedule. He is telling you what his body needs right now. Follow his lead and be patient.

Hi D.,
That's sounds like what my daughter did, although she was breastfed. I can't remember when she started eating more and going longer between feedings, but I'm guessing it was around 4 months, which is also when she completely started sleeping through the night. I don't know that there is much you can do, he'll probably just start going longer between feedings on his own. One thing I did try was just feed as much as she wanted during the day in hopes that she would have longer stretches in between feedings at night. Good luck!
D.

Too soon to worry! He'll eat more and even out in a few weeks.
One thing that really helped me, was the sleep, eat, wake cycle. I would feed him as soon as he woke up from a nap always. Then let him play a while and then doze and then feed him when he woke. This little routine helped my life in many ways-since I could schedule errands and chores etc and because I laways knew what he needed-sleep or food without wondering how long it had been.
You might try this-maybe it will help him space the eating out a little. But don't withold food-the more you feed him during the day, the longer he will sleep at night. So force feed him even mor often if you have to! Good luck-this will pass!
a m y

Hi Debbie,

At 10 weeks that is probably all his little tummy can hold.

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I. B.

Hello D.:

Have you spoken to the doctor? You can try putting some cereal in bottle (small amount) I would also check the bottle nipple it is possible it is [hole] too small; therefore, using a substantial amount of his energy. Do not allow him to fall asleep during bottle feedings this is not good. Try to stimulate him by taking you pinky and gently going backward and forwards [I did this with my children this got them to drink a little more.]

Hope this helps.

D.,
I am a mom of 2 teens and stepmom of a three year-old.
It is hard enought to try to change the habits of an adult or child, what makes you think you can change the habits of a 10-week old? it is not gonna work. His little body know much better than you what he needs right now. He stops when he is full, and asks for milk when he is hungry. Save yourself the stress, and go along with him for now. After six months you can start to impose more habit-changes, when his tummy can take more at a time. It is nothing personal against you that he gets full. It is nothing personal that he wants every two or 2.5 hours. Take it from me, because I tried to do what you want to do with my first child, to no avail. After a few more months you can add a tiny little bit of baby "cereal" to keep him fuller longer with the same volume but his tiny tummy can't handle it right now. Be patient. Be patient. God programmed him to do what he is doing, you are just the provider. Right now the baby is the boss. You get to be the boss later. God luck.. it gets better!! And you are not alone.

Sorry, but I think that's pretty normal! I think there/s a growth spurt around 9-10 weeks. But regarding the post about putting cereal in the bottle, I think he's much too young for that. My ped recommended not doing that at all so check with yours before doing something like that. He can't digest cereal yet and it will give him tummy aches.

He isnt snacking hes eating what his stomach can hold and it sounds like hes doing perfect. As long as hes gaining weight theres no problem. Look at his fists. His stomach is the size of his fist. He can hold no more than two fists full of milk in his stomach! Dont goive rice cereal at this age as it will make him terribly constipated and fussy. Rice cerela should only be given at this age under a docotrs supervison for certain medical coditions. 3 times a night is great in my book for night waking! Mine was up every hour for the first months. Read sleepless in America by Mary sheedy kurkinca for more info on this.

I have a 4 month old and an 8 yr old and really I'm not hearing a problem here.
Your son your said was 10 weeks old and waking 3 times in the night, well, that has nothing to do with hunger or age learning to sleep throught the night is just that, a learning and developmental stage just like walking and crawling is. Most mothers think if they feed their children more before bed or give them the ever popular "cereal in the bottle" than they'll sleep through the night, but thats not the case. You cant "feed" your baby's to sleep , they need to get there on there own. I know its hard for us , but theyll get there soon enough and those 3am feedings will be a thing of the past!

And as far as his eating, I personally am a "feed on demand" mother. So in turn I also see nothing wrong here. Babys are very different from us they metabolize their food at a much higher rate than us adults; so therefore, need to eat more frequently. So If he wants to eat 3 oz and then 4 more 2 hrs later, Good for him!! Give him what he wants.
The thing that ive learned with children and baby's that I live by and has made my life so much easier is to "Pick your battles" is this one important enough to fret over think about it if it isnt move on and get over it and if it is deal with it quickly and move on! Beleive me it works!

the amount he is eating is about right. unfortunately,some babies will eat more frequently than others. get the book baby wise by gary ezzo and robert bucknam. they sell it at borders. they talk about how to have the baby not totally on his schedule but being in control of his schedule whether it comes to feeding or sleeping. he will sleep longer as he gets older and will eat more also as he gets older.

Sounds quite normal for a 10 week old. My son followed the same pattern until he was a bit older than that. Make sure Dad is pitching in over night so you aren't so exhausted. Sooner or later he'll start taking bigger feeds and lasting a little longer between each. Just remember his tummy is tiny and he needs the nutrition he is demanding.

Since he's only eating that much .. that's probably all he has room for! Babies should be fed on demand for at least the fist 6 months, optimally til they're about 1. Every child is different and eats on a different schedule. My oldest nursed ever 2 - 3 hours until she was almost 9 months old .. and she started eating solids at about 6 months. So just let him eat as much as he wants. As long as he's growing and doing well health-wise you don't need to worry.

Babies hit growth spurts every so many weeks/months. It may be that your little one is hitting a growth spurt and needs to eat those extra times right now. It sounds pretty normal to me. I think you will see his feeding pattern stretch out and the amount he takes at a feeding increase over the next 3-4 weeks. But don't be surprised if down the road, he has another period where he needs to eat more often.

I wouldn't worry about it at this point. The only thing I would try is to entice him to eat a little more before bed so that he sleeps longer than 2-3 hours at a time.

Anyhow, I hope this helps. Good luck with your little guy.

Hi Debbie,

Some babies just like to eat small amounts very often. My son was breastfed and did the same thing. He would nurse every hour and with his nanny he would take 2-3 ounces of breastmilk every 1-2 hours. I don't think there is much you can do to change it. My son ate that way until he was 6-8 months old.

J.

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Dear Debbie,

This is not totally unusual. Our bodies tell us what we need, and your child apparently cannot eat much at a time and therefore will require more feedings. As the baby grows and develops, this will correct itself. I know it isn't easy on YOU because I went through it myself with feedings every 2 hours around the clock. The baby is still just SO young ... Once the baby reaches a weight at which his "nature" feels comfortable, you will get relief. In the meantime, be patient. Not everyone is alike ... including babies.

Personally I say that is no biggie. He is only 10 weeks old. My 4 month old nurses every 2 to 3 hours. I wouldn't worry but then again I do believe in feeding on demand.

should be getting 24-28 oz of formula a day and 6-7 wet diapers and bowel movement. As long as he doing that then all is fine. Is it cause he has to burp? then try to finish rest.

Breast fed babies are fed ever few hours as well.

I EXCLUSIVELY formula fed my son and I remember him eating small quantities at that age. Keep a list of how many ounces per day he is eating and review it with your pediatrician at your next visit. I remember stressing about small quantities, but the total amount he ate er day was right on the button with my ped's guidelines.
Your son probably knows when he has had enough and is full. No sense adding more to his bottle until he's eating more--you'll just waste formula!

I do not have a sense as to how much formula little ones typically take at any given age as I breastfed mine. Please do not take offense as I am in no way putting down formula feeding. But I know one of the advantages that are often listed with breastfeeding is the baby really controls the quantity of milk they drink. The mom doesn't really know how much the baby is taking so they don't feel the need to encourage the baby to finish an extra ounce or so. Babies are born with knowing how many calories they need to thrive and it's best to not disrupt this by encouraging them to go past the point of contentedness. This is one theory about obesity - we want to see food not wasted or see children eat the same amount regularly and so they learn to finish instead of listen to their body's needs. I have 3 little ones close in age - 1, 3 & 4. I realize it can feel like all you do is feed and clean up from feeding kids all day, but whenever possible, it is best to let them take the lead with the quantity of food eaten at a feeding within reason. Now if he'd start wanting to snack as often as less than every hour and is finishing bottles, then you want to increase what you offer, but 2-2.5 hours may be annoying, but doesn't seem unreasonable to me.