MommaMatch

One of the biggest concerns to new mothers is whether or not there baby is getting enough to eat! After all you may have just fed, but he has his hands in his mouth, he is rooting around, and he is crying! What now? Remember crying is your baby's way of communicating to you. It can mean he is tired, bored, cold, has a dirty diaper, is in pain, or plain just wants to eat! For a new mommy, these cues can be hard to interpret. Is he truly starving or does he just need to suck. There is a lot of research out to support the need of non-nutritive sucking, such as with a pacifier or a finger. However, it is important to never substitute a feeding cue with a generic need to suck. So there lies the trouble. How do you know the difference? And more important how do I know if the baby is getting enough? So here is a clear easy guideline to help you out...

SIGNS THAT YOUR BABY IS WELL FED

• Your baby is alert and active


• Your baby is happy and satisfied after breastfeeding


• Your baby breastfeeds at least 8 or more times in 24hour period


• You can hear and see your baby swallow when he/she feeds


• Your baby looses less than 7%of his birth weight during the first 5 days


• Your baby begins to gain weight after day 5 and is back to his birth weight by 10 days of age


• Your baby gains 4-8 ounces each week after the first week


• Your baby has three or more poopy diapers a day after day 1, and increases to four or more by day 5


• Your baby is peeing at least 6 times a day preferably more


• Your baby's poop changes from black to yellow by day 5


• Your baby has clear or pale yellow urine

SIGNS THAT YOUR BABY MAY NOT BE GETTING ENOUGH TO EAT

• Your baby is unusually sleepy


• Your baby is restless and fussy after breastfeeding


• Your baby breastfeeds fewer than 8 times in each 24 hours


• You can't hear or see your baby swallow when he/she breastfeeds


• Your baby loses more that 7% of his birth weight during the first 5 days


• Your baby continues to lose weight after day 5 and is below his birth weight at 10days of age


• Your baby gains less than 4 ounces each week after the first week


• Your baby has less then 3 poops a day


• Your baby still has black or green poop on day 5


• Your baby has red or dark yellow urine and less then 6 wet diapers a day after day 5 of life

If you start to notice any of these signs then it may be time to call your pediatrician and schedule an appointment with a lactation consultant. Keep in mind that ALL babies go through growth spurts at 2 weeks of age, 6 weeks, and 12 weeks. It is normal for the mother to feel as if she doesn't have any milk, I assure you that you most likely have plenty of milk your baby is just requiring more at this time. Remember your breast works on supply and demand, the more the baby feeds at the breast the more milk you will have. You can't overfeed a breastfed baby! When the baby is showing signs of being hungry go ahead and feed. It is much better to be a baby watcher rather then a clock watcher. Otherwise you will have a screaming kid on your hands. It is crucial that for the first 8 weeks the baby eats 8 or more times in a 24 hour period. Spend sometime getting to know your new little one, tune into what he/she is telling you, and before you know it feeding will become like second nature.

Copyright 2011 Danielle Gauss - JustBreastFeeding.com. All Rights Reserved.