Infant feeding

Your baby will let you know when they are hungry, this is not based on any schedule as we are all different. Things to watch for are -

• rooting
• wriggling
• sucking
• waving
• eye movement
• little noises

Try to respond before your baby cries as this is stressful for a baby and can make it more difficult for them to feed. If you have chosen to breastfeed, you can also offer feeds if your breasts feel full, for convenience, or if you want to -

• sit down
• rest
• cuddle your baby

You cannot overfeed a breastfed baby. You will notice that your baby will suck and swallow along with regular pauses during the feed. Let your baby finish one breast, then offer the second.

When feeding a formula fed baby we would recommend paced bottle feeding, watching for fullness cues to avoid overfeeding.

You can read more about infant formula and responsive bottle feeding.