Although my main goal in this blog is making baby food, I still believe the issue of newborn feeding is extremely important. It really is critical for his or her development. So I’d like to say a few words about this topic.
So what would be the most important aspect of newborn feeding?
Well I guess most people would say breastfeeding. It is the recommended newborn feeding method by most professionals. I know we’re definitely going to try it, but I think people have to remember it has to be comfortable for both baby and mom.
Breastfeeding has a few advantages:
- Most suitable food for newborns – full of vitamins and nutrients
- It’s probably the cheapest newborn feeding method
- Don’t need to carry around anything with you – just yourself, assuming you’re the mom
- Help getting back into shape by burning calories
- The skin-to-skin contact does wonders for the mom-baby relationship
However, formula feeding has a few advantages of its own:
- It’s not just the mom – everybody can help!
- A newborn feeding on formula sleeps longer since it’s takes longer to digest
- It’s easier to know how much the baby ate
Besides that you must remember that a newborn’s digesting system is still “under construction” and cannot hold anything but breast milk or formula. So for at least 4-6 months do not try to feed your baby with anything else.
Newborn feeding based on breast milk can be as often as 1.5-3 hours, which means 8-12 times a day. If you’re giving formula to the baby, it might take up to 4 hours between feedings. In any case, newborns are not supposed to go over 4 hours without a proper feeding.
If you’re baby is sleeping, gently undress her (leaving only the diaper) and get her close to you. The skin contact and the “rooting” reflex will do the job of waking her up and start feeding.
The best way of knowing if your newborn feeding is successful, is watching the baby’s weight and general development. Although babies tend to loose some weight after birth, they are expected to regain it after 2 weeks and then gain around 4 to 8 oz a week.
It’s very important to have regular checkups with your doctor to make sure the baby’s gaining weight, develops well and get any questions about newborn feeding you may have answered.