Breast Milk Feeding Guide: From Newborn to Weaning

Supporting your little one's feeding journey is both rewarding and challenging, especially if you’re a breastfeeding parent. Sometimes it can feel like you’re shouldering the bulk of the feeding responsibilities if you’re exclusively breastfeeding, which is why many parents choose to utilize a bottle full of breastmilk to help lighten the load. Or perhaps you want the benefits of breast milk but no longer want to or cannot breastfeed, so a bottle is your best option. No matter the reason, giving your baby breastmilk in a bottle is very common. 

However - it can be tricky to know exactly how much milk to use when you’re going with breast milk versus a measure, mix, and go formula! Let's talk about milk quantities, pumping strategies, and ways to maintain a healthy milk supply throughout your feeding experience.

(To be clear, we here at Beautiful Births & Beyond believe that “fed is best”, in whatever way that works best for you and your family. Breastfed, bottle-fed, formula-fed… it’s all wonderful, valid, and healthy for you and your baby!) 

How To Calculate Milk Amounts by Body Weight

For the first 3-4 months, babies generally need 2.5 oz of milk per pound of body weight throughout a day of feeding. For example, if your newborn baby weighs 7lbs, they will need to consume around 17.5 oz of milk or formula throughout the day. That breaks down to roughly 1.5 - 2.2 oz per feeding, depending on how frequently they are feeding. If your baby weighs 10 lbs, they need 25 oz total per day, so on and so forth. 

Now, we’re not suggesting you get out the scale and the calculator for every feeding necessarily, but generally following this formula (no pun intended!) helps to ensure your baby is eating enough over the course of a day. Especially when it comes to breastfed babies, knowing how to calculate how much you’re pumping vs. how much they’re getting from the breast and knowing how much to shoot for as a goal number per day is key! 

Note: it’s completely okay to supplement with formula if you’re a breastfeeding family, especially if your supply starts to decrease as your baby gets older. However, if you’re looking to keep your supply up or increase your supply, try some of the following tips! 

Pumping Tips for Success

Building Your Supply

- Pump every 2-3 hours during the day and once at night to establish supply

- Try power pumping: pump 20 minutes, rest 10 minutes, pump 10 minutes, rest 10 minutes, pump 10 minutes

- Stay hydrated and aim for an extra 500-700 calories daily from nutritious foods - breastfeeding and pumping takes A LOT of energy! 

Maximizing Output

- Look at photos or videos of your baby while pumping

- Massage breast tissue before and during pumping to keep glands flowing and stimulated 

- Keep a regular schedule - your body responds well to routine, and keeping to that routine as much as possible will help your body know when it’s time to produce

- Use properly fitted pump parts and replace them regularly to ensure the best fit and function

Storage Solutions

- Use breast milk storage bags or bottles designed for freezing to keep a supply on hand at all times 

- Label everything with the date and amount pumped for easy reference 

- Store milk in 2-4 ounce portions to minimize waste 

- Fresh milk lasts 4-6 hours at room temperature, 4-8 days refrigerated, 6-12 months frozen! WOW! 

Maintaining Milk Production

Helpful Habits

- Feed or pump during the night when prolactin levels are highest

- Try lactation-supporting foods like oats, fenugreek, and dark leafy greens

- Get as much rest as possible - fatigue can affect supply greatly! 

- Consider a nursing necklace or bracelet as a visual reminder to pump

Common Challenges and Solutions

If your supply dips, don’t panic! Instead:

- Check pump parts for wear and tear to ensure they’re working at their top potential 

- Ensure proper flange fit - a too-small or too-large flange could interfere with pumping efficiency 

- Try skin-to-skin contact with your baby to stimulate production 

- Consider meeting with a lactation consultant for personalized support

Weaning Tips

There are many reasons and ways to wean your baby from breastfeeding. While most studies show the benefits of breastmilk are highest in the first six months, we’d like to reiterate again that fed is best, and any amount of breastmilk for any time is beneficial. If you can make it to 6 months exclusively breastfeeding, that’s great. If you need to supplement with or switch completely to formula before then, that’s also great! Whatever is best for you and your baby is what is healthiest and safest for your family. 

Either way, babies are exclusively breast or bottle fed for the first 6 months of life, after which you can start introducing solid foods. At this time, some families purposely or naturally begin weaning their babies. 

When you're ready to wean your baby from breastmilk, there are a few techniques to try:

- Gradually drop one feeding/pumping session every 3-7 days

- Start with the least preferred session (the one your baby usually fights) and work your way up to the high-value session (usually before nighttime/naptime) 

- Consider mixing breast milk with other milk in bottles to ease the transition after speaking with your medical team to ensure this is safe for your baby 

- Be patient - weaning can take weeks or months! It’s important to listen to your baby’s cues as well as your own cues and feelings around weaning. It can be sad, exciting, frustrating, beautiful, and heartbreaking all at the same time! 

Remember that every feeding journey is unique. What works for one person might not work for another, and that's perfectly okay. Trust your instincts and don't hesitate to reach out to healthcare providers or lactation consultants for support as you navigate the many ways to breast or bottle feed your child! 

Most importantly, be gentle with yourself. Some days will be smoother than others, and that's also normal. You're doing important work nourishing your little one, regardless of how you choose to feed them. Once again, fed is best, and as long as your little one is getting the nourishment they need, you’re doing everything exactly right! 

If you’d like to talk more about bottle feeding, breastfeeding, or any other aspect of feeding your baby, reach out to Beautiful Births & Beyond today! We’d love to hear more about it!