Advice on Choosing The Best Feeding Routine For Your Baby
A big baby feeding issue many first time parents face is deciding how to approach introducing and establishing a feeding routine for their baby. When should you start trying to establish a routine, from birth or weaning? How do you establish a feeding routine and how will you know that your baby is getting an adequate amount of nutrients and vitamins. Are they eating enough for their age? Are they gaining enough weight? And so on.
There is a lot of conflicting advice about this issue, some parents believe that a routine should be established immediately while others believe that a baby should be fed “on demand” for the first few month. It is generally understood that the average baby will need to fed roughly every four hours. After birth it is advised that your baby should be fed throughout the night also. At what stage can you stop giving night feeds?
It can be hard to decide, but in truth, your baby is the best person to tell you when he or she needs to be fed. Some babies thrive on four hourly feeds while others seem to need to be fed little and often. Breastfed babies in particular seem to cope better with smaller regular feeding schedules.
Baby formula is a slightly more substantial liquid and in many cases it has proven to keep baby satisfied for longer, meaning that your baby can wait longer between feeds while breast milk is said to be higher in nutritional benefits, but less filling leading to more frequent feeds.
Some babies find comfort is suckling, bottle or breast and will often feed for comfort rather that hunger, so how can you tell which is which?
Babies are all unique individuals, they do not come with manuals and their requirements also vary, trying to impose a routine that does not agree with your baby can lead to sleepless, troubled nights, and a baby who appears less content, which in many ways may be the case.
What should a new parent do? The best method I have found for baby feeding routines, is to let your child show you how they need to be fed, for the first few months at least, most babies will settle into a routine on their own and once there is a clear pattern showing, parents can tell what is most suitable for their baby, leaving baby and parents contented in knowing that all their needs are being met, without having to worry about the common issues associated with setting a routine.