Posted by
qwerty123
18 yrs ago
at the moment our baby - 5.5 weeks old and about 9lbs can go about 4-4.5 hours in the night without a feed- we then wake him to eat....is this necessary or should i leave him to sleep till he wakes? most o fthe time he will wake us every 3 hours or so but other times he sem shappy to sleep -
what age can you leave them to sleep for as long as they like...without waking for a feed?
thanks!
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I would not leave them to sleep at 5.5 wks - far, far too early. I think 3 months is about right. The thing is - the baby at that age can only take it a fairly small amount of milk at a time so they need to take it regularly - every 3-4 hours, depending on the baby. It is a bit like catch 22 - I remember our doctor at the time saying that if they dont drink/eat enough, they will have less energy and sleep more. So it might seem that is it great that your baby sleeps longer, but that is not necessarily a good thing - it might be because they are a little bit weak from not taking in enough milk - so hold off with letting him sleep longer than 4 hours for a few weeks more! I did 4 hourly feeds till our babies were 3 months old..
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thanks - i realise that 5.5 weeks is way to early but was just wondering when i could leave him a bit longer! thanks for your input...3 months sounds like a magic time for everything!!!
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cd
18 yrs ago
Personally I never use to wake any of mine for feeds, the last one slept through the night from 7 weeks, but the last 3 all weighed close to 9lbs or over at birth, so by 5 weeks were quite big and could go longer between feeds. But I don't think letting him go 4 -4.5 hours is too long between feeds. Maybe 5 or 6 hours would be too much though until he is a bit bigger.
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As baby's mature and grow they may have longer periods between feeds. If your baby is feeding 8 to 12 times per 24 hours and gaining weight well (20 to 30 grams per day or more) then feed your baby on demand. Assess weight gain at a well baby clinic or when your baby has his regular scheduled vaccinations.
Matilda International Hospital
Well Baby Clinic - 2849 1500
Hong Kong
http://www.matilda.org
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