How do I know when my baby is hungry?
For most healthy, full-term infants, knowing when to feed them means looking for hunger cues. However, if your baby was born prematurely or with any medical conditions, check with their medical team to understand if they recommend scheduled feedings rather than feeding on demand.
Baby Hunger Cues
Some typical hunger cues in babies include the following:
- Licking or smacking their lips
- Sticking the tongue out
- Rooting (moving jaw and mouth or head in search of breast)
- Putting their hand to their mouth repeatedly
- Opening the mouth
- Fussiness
- Sucking on their fist or other objects
Crying tends to be a late sign of hunger. Once a baby starts crying, they may have a hard time calming down enough to properly latch and eat. This can make them even more frustrated and hungry. It’s best to identify hunger cues before they escalate to crying.
Breastfeeding Schedule for Newborns
Newborns grow and develop at an incredible pace. This means that they require a constant source of nutrition (breast milk or formula). However, it’s important to know that growth isn’t always linear. Newborns go through growth spurts, and during these times they may require more milk or formula than other times. Frequent feeds close together are called cluster feeding. While they might feel crazy, thay are perfectly normal.
Just pay attention to signs of hunger and continue to feed on demand. If it feels like a lot, that’s because it is! Just remember that this stage is temporary. As your baby grows, they will be able to eat more at once which will increase the time between feeds. Make sure you’re supporting yourself along the way by continuing to take your prenatal vitamins and considering additional supplementation to support the increased needs that come with breastfeeding, like increased protein and hydration.
Your baby’s healthcare practitioner may have a recommendation for whether or not to wake baby at night to feed. This is largely dependent on weight gain and other signs of growth.
Feeding Schedule for Formula-Fed Newborns
Signs of hunger are relevant to formula fed newborns, too. However, it’s helpful to know how much to put in each bottle.
Start with about two ounces (60 milliliters) of formula per feeding. As baby starts to consume a full bottle and still wants more, typically around 4-6 weeks, add an ounce to each bottle. Don’t worry if they don’t finish it.
Feeding Schedule for 3-Month-Olds
As baby continues to grow, their feeding needs will change. Here’s what things may look like around 3 months. But remember, every baby is different!
For Breastfed Babies
At 3 months, your baby’s body and belly is still growing quickly. So while their nutrient needs remain high, they’re stomach is also getting bigger. This means that they might start to breastfeed less often. Many babies start to nurse every three to four hours around this time. This might also mean that your baby starts to sleep longer stretches at night.
For Formula-Fed Babies
Just like breastfed babies, formula-fed babies will eat more during each feeding and eat less frequently. You may also need to switch the nipple size on your baby’s bottle to allow milk to flow more quickly.
Feeding Schedule For 6-Month-Olds
At this stage, your baby might be ready to start to introduce solid foods. We discuss some signs of readiness and tips for getting started in the next section. Just keep in mind that breastmilk or formula should still be offered before solids at this age.
Tips For Complementary Feedings (After 6 Months of Age)
Drinks
Offer only breast milk or formula in bottles until 6 months of age unless your baby’s healthcare provider specifically recommends otherwise.
At 6 months, you can begin offering breast milk and/or formula in a cup. You can also start to offer small sips of water.
Avoid any other drinks like cow’s milk, alternative milks, sugar-sweetened beverages, or fruit juice.
Solid Foods
Just like you look for hunger cues in a newborn baby, look for signs of readiness in a baby when considering Introducing solid foods to your infant. For many babies, this is around 6 months of age. Infants are ready to start eating solid foods when they:
- Can sit up on their own without support
- Have lost the tongue-thrust reflex (they don’t automatically push food out of the mouth with their tongue)
- Have good head control (does not bob or nod when unsupported)
- Are developing a pincer grasp (picks up food or other objects between their thumb and forefinger)
- Are interested in food and eager to participate in mealtime (they may watch you as you eat, lean into food, or try to grab food off of your plate)
Choose a time to introduce solids when baby is calm and only slightly hungry. Make sure that the environment is also calm and that baby is sitting upright and supported in a high chair.
Here are some other tips to set you up for a successful feeding journey:
- Exposing infants to a wide variety of flavors and textures during early feeding can help set them up for a lifetime of healthy eating.
- Maintain the division of responsibility when feeding. This means that the parent/caregiver is responsible for what to eat and the child is responsible for deciding what and how much of it to eat. Avoid forcing foods on your child, or pressuring them to try something or finish a serving.
- Remember that many babies and toddlers need to experience a new food multiple times before accepting it. Just because they reject it the first time doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t offer it again. Keep trying!
- Know that you don’t have to commit to any single feeding approach. Baby-led weaning (BLW) is a popular approach to introducing solids. It can be convenient and is great for introducing new textures. However, purees are a great way to pack nutrient dense foods into a convenient form for feeding baby.
- Avoid honey in any form during your child’s first year. Honey, even when baked, can cause infant botulism.
- Introduce allergens separately and watch for signs of reaction. Continue offering allergenic foods once they are initially introduced.
- Don’t restrict fat and cholesterol (unless advised by your child’s health care provider for a medical condition). Babies need fat and cholesterol for the development of their brains and nervous systems.
- Include foods that contain the nutrients babies need, like Iron, Zinc, Choline, and DHA. Good sources include liver, beef, sardines, eggs, and salmon.
How do I ensure I’m not overfeeding my baby?
Overfed babies are not common, especially when breastfeeding. Infants who are bottle fed may be more likely to overfeed, because drinking from a bottle tends to be faster and easier than breastfeeding. Bottle fed infants also may not pull away or raise their hands as much to indicate that they are full. Taking regular breaks while feeding a bottle can allow them to pause to decide they’re full.
Once solids are introduced, a baby will indicate they are full by turning their head away, pushing food away, or closing their mouth.
How do I know if my baby is getting enough to eat?
Concerns about getting enough to eat typically come in the early days of feeding when baby is getting only breast milk or formula. Here are some things to look for.
Daily diapers
To see how much is going in, take a look at how much is coming out. In the first few days after birth, babies should have at least 2 to 3 wet diapers each day. After the first 4 to 5 days, a baby should have at least 5 to 6 wet diapers a day.
Poop frequency varies more. However, by the fourth day your baby should be having at least 4 dirty diapers each day. After about 6 weeks, poop frequency may decline to once per day.
Growth charts
Your baby's weight changes and progress on their growth chart is one possible indicator of whether or not they are getting enough breast milk or formula as a baby. While not foolproof, babies who stay in healthy growth percentile ranges are probably getting a healthy amount of food during feedings.
Weighted feeds
It can be hard to know how much an exclusively breastfed baby is taking in when they eat directly from the breast. Lactation consultants and other healthcare practitioners may have scales so that baby can be weighed before and after eating to see the difference. While this can’t answer whether it was “enough” it can at least tell you how much milk was transferred.
The bottom line
No matter how you feed a baby, it can be a demanding and exhausting process. Remember that the cluster feeding and night wakings are only a phase, and while difficult, they will pass. It’s also important to remember to continue to feed and nourish yourself as you feed and nourish your baby. That means keep taking your prenatal for at least 6 months postpartum, or as long as you’re breastfeeding.
If you have more questions: Check out our Q and A with lactation consultant Madeline Givens.
