The highlight of newborn babies’ life is to eat, sleep, poop and pee from birth to till three. If you are a first-time parent, then feeding your baby comes with many questions. If the baby is underweight, then the baby should be fed according to the prescription of the pediatrician. Most commonly, parents should feed newborn babies every 2 hours to 3 hours. Even at night, you have to wake up the baby and should feed it regularly in order to satisfy the baby and thus the baby can sleep peacefully. Or you can feed the baby little more heavily the time before the baby sleeps at night, and thus the baby remains satisfied for the long hours. In this case, the parent can feed the baby in demand during the night. The baby can sleep peacefully at night continuously for about 6 hours. It is better to know about the baby’s interest and to plan the feeding routine. The parents should make the baby eat during the regular intervals and should allow the baby to play during some time and should make it to sleep according to the routine. In a single day, the newborn babies sleep up to a maximum of about 16 hours.
Tips for feeding your baby
The baby feeding schedule is better to be followed on the advice of the pediatrician. The newborn babies should be given more care and attention in order to make them play, eat and sleep at the correct time based on their interest. Thus the parent should fix the routine and should know that during which time, the baby should eat, and during which time the baby should be awake, during which time the baby should play and during which time the baby should sleep. The parents should feed the newborn in the correct schedule and should make the baby sleep incorrect timings. Even though the parents are following the baby feeding schedule, in between the recommended timings if the baby shows some signs of hunger, then the baby can be fed in order to satisfy the baby. In the first few months of life, the baby should be taken care of in a precious style and should be satisfied.
How often should your baby feed?
However, every baby is unique, but one thing is constant, i.e. breastfeed your baby demand more than the babies who are on bottle-feed. That’s because the baby can digest the breast milk easily while formula milk doesn’t empty the stomach quicker.
Breastfed babies
According to the La Leche League International, mothers should start nursing their babies within one hour of birth and provide around 8 to 12 feedings in a day in the first weeks of your baby. It is essential to feed your baby after 4 hours at first. Mothers will likely to wake up from sleeping if necessary until breastfeeding is established properly and your baby is gaining weight properly.
- Newborn to 2 months:
- In the first week after your baby is born, he needs about half an ounce of milk per feeding. After some days, increase the quantity from 1 to 2 ounces. By the time when he is two weeks old, he should drink about 2 or 3 ounces milk at each feeding.
- 2-3 months: At this age, your baby may want about 4 to 5 ounces of milk per feeding.
Bottle-fed babies
Bottle-fed newborns should feed on demand just like breastfeeding babies. Feed them every 2 to 3 hours on average. The feeding schedule of the bottle-fed babies may look like this:
- Newborn babies: every 2 to 3 hours
- At 2 months: after 3 to 4 hours
When to give water to a baby
If your baby is 2 months old, nothing is there to stay hydrated your baby than breast milk or formula milk. So don’t give your baby water at this age.
How to get on a feeding schedule
For the new parents, feeding schedule is the Holy Grail. When your baby grows, he needs more formula or breast milk at one sitting. It means he will start to fall into the feeding schedule. This may start to happen between two and four months of age. Focus on learning on the hunger cues of your baby for now.
- Baby put his fist in his mouth
- Your baby will root around your breast and looking for the nipple
- Licking his lips
- Worrying that can intensify quickly
Once the baby is too young, you may introduce the feed schedule to your baby that works for your baby. For instance, your 3 months baby wakes every 4 to 5 hours for the feeding- means you feed him at 8 pm and he wakes around 1 a.m. But if you feed your baby at 11 pm before going to bed, he may not wake up until 4 pm and giving you a time of night sleep. If you have any difficulty in milk supply, use the hands-free pumping bra to avoid such issues. The best Pumping Bra is Momcozy hand free pumping bra that not only gives you ease but allows you to do multitasking.
When to Start Solids
Most of the parents ask when to start solids to babies. Your baby needs certain development before starting solid food to his diet. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), if you choose to breastfeed rather than bottle feed, then breast milk is enough to fulfil the daily nutrients until 6 months of his age. Here’s how to tell if the babies are ready for taking solid food.
- Babies can hold up their head and keep the head steady while sitting on the high chair.
- Babies put their toys or hands in their moth and reach out to food.
- When the birth weight of your baby has doubled or weighed at least 13 pounds
- Babies can take the food from a spoon, but they don’t dribble it out and swallow the food.
