Many new mums do not realise how much time will be spent simply feeding their baby. Newborns have very small tummies. At first the baby's full tummy is about the size of a ping pong ball. It cannot hold a large volume of food, consequently baby needs fed very regularly. This can be as often as every one or two hours to begin with. Breast feeding takes time to establish and frequently putting baby to breast encourages the creation of more milk to feed baby. The movement of baby's hand against the breast encourages "let down", and as this occurs baby and mum relax into the act of feeding and being fed.
After a few days baby's full tummy is about the size of a large egg and baby takes more food at each feeding. As a result there is a more time between feeds. As baby grows his tummy also grows, and soon he is looking for feeds at between 3-4 hourly. Every baby is different. Adults don't have a three course meal every meal time and baby's requirements also vary throughout the day so, naturally, some feeds take longer than others.
Formula is man's best adaptation of cows milk for babies. A great deal of research has gone into learning how to make a cows milk into a milk which will be a "good" substitute for breast milk. Not every woman can, and not every woman wants to breast feed. Choosing a formula feeding regime is just that, personal choice. With the best will in the world, even following a recipe, batches of formula feed are not exact copies of the previous batch, although that is the aim. Consequently mums may occasionally find that a variety of formula feed which worked well for baby before, is not working quite so well now.
Breast milk is also continually changing to reflect the environment and the calorific requirements of the baby. It is amazing that mum and baby can be in a public space, the supermarket for example, someone can sneeze near them and by the next feed mum has made antibodies to that sneeze! Kissing baby brings the "bugs" that baby has met, into mum and again allows breast milk to modify them to provide protection against these nasties.
Formula milk may appear to be more satisfying because babies may appear more settled on formula milks, but they are more difficult to digest. Breast milk was designed for babies and is easily digested, more easily than modified cows milk.
To begin with baby can see best at about 10 inches, roughly the distance between mum's breast and mum's face. Feeding encourages an intimate moment when eye contact is sought as a communication and as a reassurance. It is in baby's best interest to please mum. A parent who gets pleasure from their child is more likely to interact with them on a regular basis and to provide a nurturing environment.
It doesn't matter if baby is breast or formula fed, this moment of feeding, direct eye contact and being held close, is what baby needs to form an attachment to mum/dad/carer and to being the process of pre verbal communication. If baby is fussy at this stage, there is something wrong. Baby is trying to tell you that they are uncomfortable for some reason. The difficulty for the parent may be identifying the reason for baby's fussiness.
It can take some time before you feel that you have a definite feeding routine for your baby. Babies feed from a desire to refuel, and not always as a comfort, although being held closely can be comforting. Mums who opt to feed their baby on a formula milk should still be aiming for a feeding position which mimics breast feeding because this offers the closest, most natural, intimate time for pre verbal communication.
If you have difficulty with a fussy baby talk to a health professional. Most babies will be fine, the most common causes of fussing are simple to deal with.
After a few days baby's full tummy is about the size of a large egg and baby takes more food at each feeding. As a result there is a more time between feeds. As baby grows his tummy also grows, and soon he is looking for feeds at between 3-4 hourly. Every baby is different. Adults don't have a three course meal every meal time and baby's requirements also vary throughout the day so, naturally, some feeds take longer than others.
Formula is man's best adaptation of cows milk for babies. A great deal of research has gone into learning how to make a cows milk into a milk which will be a "good" substitute for breast milk. Not every woman can, and not every woman wants to breast feed. Choosing a formula feeding regime is just that, personal choice. With the best will in the world, even following a recipe, batches of formula feed are not exact copies of the previous batch, although that is the aim. Consequently mums may occasionally find that a variety of formula feed which worked well for baby before, is not working quite so well now.
Breast milk is also continually changing to reflect the environment and the calorific requirements of the baby. It is amazing that mum and baby can be in a public space, the supermarket for example, someone can sneeze near them and by the next feed mum has made antibodies to that sneeze! Kissing baby brings the "bugs" that baby has met, into mum and again allows breast milk to modify them to provide protection against these nasties.
Formula milk may appear to be more satisfying because babies may appear more settled on formula milks, but they are more difficult to digest. Breast milk was designed for babies and is easily digested, more easily than modified cows milk.
To begin with baby can see best at about 10 inches, roughly the distance between mum's breast and mum's face. Feeding encourages an intimate moment when eye contact is sought as a communication and as a reassurance. It is in baby's best interest to please mum. A parent who gets pleasure from their child is more likely to interact with them on a regular basis and to provide a nurturing environment.
It doesn't matter if baby is breast or formula fed, this moment of feeding, direct eye contact and being held close, is what baby needs to form an attachment to mum/dad/carer and to being the process of pre verbal communication. If baby is fussy at this stage, there is something wrong. Baby is trying to tell you that they are uncomfortable for some reason. The difficulty for the parent may be identifying the reason for baby's fussiness.
It can take some time before you feel that you have a definite feeding routine for your baby. Babies feed from a desire to refuel, and not always as a comfort, although being held closely can be comforting. Mums who opt to feed their baby on a formula milk should still be aiming for a feeding position which mimics breast feeding because this offers the closest, most natural, intimate time for pre verbal communication.
If you have difficulty with a fussy baby talk to a health professional. Most babies will be fine, the most common causes of fussing are simple to deal with.
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