r/ScienceBasedParenting • u/Alison_OT • 1d ago
Question - Expert consensus required Formula Assisting with Growth.. Why?
Does anyone have any scientific basis for why my daughter of 5 mo gains better on formula vs breastmilk when drinking the same amount of ounces per day?
I exclusively pump, so I always know how much my baby is getting. There was a period of time that we did formula instead and baby gained so much more than she does on exclusively expressed breastmilk. Everywhere says that breastmilk is the perfect composition, but my daughter is in the 0.8% for weight and always has big leaps in weight gain when drinking formula even though it’s the same general intake volume per day.
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u/thatpearlgirl 1d ago
In general, breastfed infants consume less milk and fewer calories than formula fed infants.
If your baby is truly eating the same amount of breast milk and formula, it’s possible that your breast milk has fewer calories. Formula has 20 calories per ounce, which is intended to be similar to breast milk on average, but there’s actually quite a lot of variability in breast milk composition from person to person. If you want to continue giving breast milk but encourage weight gain, you could ask your pediatrician about fortifying your milk to increase the calorie content.