The milk requirements for infants (under the age of 12
months), by age, whether from breastfeeding or milk formula, are:
4 -6 months: 4 to 6 feedings per day or 800 to 880
mL per day
7 months: 3 to 5 feedings per day or 850
to 990 mL per day
8 months: 3 to 5 feedings per day or 850
to 990 mL per day
It is not uncommon for some infants
to exhibit a decreased milk intake with the introduction of solid food and the increase
in the amount and variety of food items, due to a number of reasons:
1- The offered portion of solid food is
large – large enough to make the baby full, so naturally, the baby will refuse
to drink milk, and keep in mind that milk is a full meal, rich in calories.
2- The child starts experimenting with the new,
various and more intense flavors of solid foods, especially if you add salt or
sugar, so the taste of mil becomes bland, less palatable and boring.
3- Some children have a hard time
getting used to eating with a spoon while concurrently maintaining their
suckling skill.
To make sure you are not overfeeding
your child, check the below average recommended daily intakes of the different
solid food items by age:
Dry infant cereal with iron
4 -6 months: 3 to 5 tbs. single grain iron
fortified cereal mixed with formula
7 months: 3 to 5 tbs. single grain
iron fortified cereal mixed with formula
8 months: 5 to 8 tbs. single grain
cereal mixed with formula
Fruits
4-6 months: 1 to 2 tbs., plain, strained/1 to 2
times per day
7 months: 2 to 3 tbs., plain,
strained/2 times per day
8 months: 2 to 3 tbs., strained or
soft mashed/2 times per day
Vegetables
4-6 months: 1 to 2 tbs., plain, strained/1 to 2
times per day
7 months: 2 to 3 tbs., plain,
strained/2 times per day
8 months: 2 to 3 tbs., strained,
mashed, soft/2 times per day
Meats and protein foods
7 months: 1 to 2 tbs., strained/2
times per day
8 months: 1 to 2 tbs., strained/2
times per day
Juices, fresh
7 months: 120 to 180 mL from a cup
8 months: 120 to 180 mL from a cup
If you are indeed offering too large
a meal according to age to your child, decrease the amount of solid food a bit,
the milk intake will go up again naturally. If however this is not the case,
you may want to mix milk with the meals, like offering milk and rice (أرز بالحليب أو مهلبية)
cooked with the infant milk formula and preferably no or very little sugar, to
make up for the decreased milk consumption.
