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A good rule of thumb is, one ounce of milk/formula for every pound he weighs, per feeding. Or, just let him eat til he's not hungry any more. 4 ounces seems like a lot, but you gotta keep in mind - b___st milk is VERY easy to digest, and he's growing very quickly. Plus, the more he eats, the more he sleeps - which is good news for you, the mommy.

Jamie, I don't agree with your rule of thumb. If that were so her 3 week old who might weight 9lbs would eat 9 ounces per feeding!!!? yikes thats way too much for a little one. My 4 month old doesn't even eat that much in one feeding. I think a more accurate measurement is (on average) 2 ounces per pound for the whole day divided by the amount of feedings they want. Of course some babies will take a little more some a little less. If your baby is showing you signals that he is ready for that extra ounce than you can give it to him, just follow his cues.

4 is pretty average for a 3-4 week old. boys seem to eat a lot more than girls for some reason, so it sounds fine to me. my daughter was already on 4 oz by the time she was a month old. if your baby wants to eat more, its ok - if he shows he is hungry an hour later, great too. he is 3 weeks old and is going through his first growth spurt. there is one at 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, and again at 6 months.

You're right, Jenn - I was re-reading my post, and that IS a lot for a newborn. I have a chart somewhere that shows how much a baby should eat - I'll look for it and post it.

Thanks everyone. sometimes he wants 2 oz, others 4, its so varied. but he doesnt sleep well, only about 2 hours at a time at best, so i am wondering if giving him 3 oz more reliably would encourage him to sleep somewhat better at night? i also have problems getting him to b___st feed, he falls asleep.. perhaps because we are feeding him too often before he is really hungry? wow- its soo confusing, this feeding and sleeping schedule...

my three week old takes anywhere from 4-4.5 ozs per feeding. he has been doin this since about 1.5 wks old.

it is 2.5 ozs per pound of body weight per day. a ten pound baby would need to drink 25 ozs per day.

thanks everyone, its so weird tho.. last night i b___st fed him for an hour, THEN he still cried and wanted more, wouldnt take the pacifier, wanted to eat. after the hour b___st feed he then went on to still take a 4 oz bottle, whats the deal??