How Many Calories Does My Baby Need?

Parents are often concerned about how much formula their baby should be taking every day. Pediatricians recommend that babies between Newborn and 3 years old should have around 100 calories per kg of body weight a day. The following will help you determine how man bottles your baby should be taking in a day to meet normal calorie requirements.

Warning, there is a lot of math below. If you don’t want to do the math, there is a chart at the very end of this article that will give you a basic idea of how may bottles of formula your baby should take in a day. Keep in mind that this does not apply to breastmilk. If you are overly concerned about how much to feed your baby, please also see my notes about not being so worried about how many calories your baby gets in a day.

Now for all the crazy math. 

How to Figure Out Weight in kg

 In the United States we often weigh out babies in terms of lbs. At the doctor’s office they will also record your baby’s weight in kilograms (kg) for the purposes of scientific measurement. There is 1 kg in every 2.2 lbs.  To convert your baby’s weight from pounds (lbs) to kilograms simply divide the number of pounds your baby weighs by 2.2.

For example, a newborn baby weighing 6.5 lbs / 2.2kg/lbs =2.95 kg

How to Figure Out the Number of Calories Your Baby Needs

If your baby needs 100 kcal/kg of body weight, simply multiply your baby’s bodyweight by 100 to find out how many calories he needs.

For example, a newborn baby weighing 2.95 kg x 100 kcal/kg needs 295 or 300 kcal a day.

How to Calculate the Number of Calories in a Bottle of Formula

Below is a chart containing the calories found in each 100 ml or 3.38 oz of formula for each of the European brand formulas we carry on My Organic Formula. When you mix the formula you will take 3 oz of water and add 3 scoops of formula. This will equal about 3.2 or 3.3 oz of liquid, close to 100 ml of formula. So 1 3oz bottle will equal somewhere between 65 and 70 kcal. A newborn baby need around 6 bottles in a 24 hour period to meet the general requirements for calories in a day.

As your baby grows, you will be making larger amounts of formula for him. When your baby is 4 months old, he might weigh somewhere around 13 lbs or 5.9 kg. He should be taking in around 590 calories a day. If the formula you are using is 69 kcal for every 100 ml you will need, you would divide 590 kcal/day / 69 kcal/100ml to get  8.55 which needs to be multiplied by 100 ml to get 855 ml/day. 855 ml divided by 29.5 ml/oz equals about 29 oz a day to get 590 calories. To make it easier we will round this to 30 oz. If you are giving your four month old 6 oz bottles, that would be 5 bottles a day.

Here is another example:

Your 3 month old weighs 11 lbs. 11 lbs/2.2 lbs/kg = 5 kg

A 5 kg baby should be getting 5kgx100kcal/kg/day = 500 kcal/day

500 kcal per day / 69kcal per100ml = 7.246 x 100 ml = 725 ml/day

725 ml per day / 29.5ml per oz = 24.57 or 25 oz/day

25 oz per day / 5 oz per bottle = about 5 bottles a day.

There you go. Very complicated math that you don’t really need. As I said before, there is a chart at the very bottom of this article that will show you about how many bottles to feed your baby in a day. Keep in mind that the number decreases as your baby gets older and begins to get calories from other foods.

A Note About Being Concerned Over Calories

Unless your baby is very over or under weight, you really don’t need to be worried about exactly how many calories your baby is taking in during a day. The best way to make sure that your baby is getting what he needs is to follow his cues. If he is hungry, feed him. If he is not hungry, don’t force him to eat. Pay attention to wed and soiled diapers as well. Within good reason, this method works very well for getting your baby the amount of food he needs in a day.

The chart at the bottom of this page is a guideline only. It is the general amount that most babies take in a 24 hours period. If you have concerns about your baby being over or under weight, consult with your pediatrician. Otherwise, remember that every baby is different and thereby has different needs. Do what works best for your situation.

As promised, here is the handy chart that will tell you approximately how many bottles your baby should take in a day. Remember this is just a guideline. You can also find this information at the bottom of each page for the above listed formulas.