Baby Care

As your baby grows, she’ll need to drink more and more milk or formula to maintain this growth. But your baby’s stomach can only hold a certain amount of milk at each feeding; eventually, she will reach a point when she’s drinking to full capacity at each feeding, but still doesn’t have enough calories for her needs. Your baby will let you know that she needs more to eat by a change in her feeding habits. She may start to demand more milk and appear very unsatisfied after each feeding, or she may start demanding a sixth feeding, having previously been quite content on five. A classic case is a baby who has been sleeping through the night starting to wake for a night-time feeding. This is the time to introduce solids. Many babies do this at around four months, when their intense desire to suck lessens, though it can be later. You should be aware of the signs that your baby gives you, and be ready to follow her lead for the introduction of solids. The first tooth, if it appears at or after six months, definitely indicates the need for solids.

If your baby tends to bring food right back up – some babies never do – you may wonder if he’s keeping enough down. My youngest son was a child who had a tendency to spit up, and I worried that he wasn’t getting enough to eat. I simply followed my own instinct, which was to offer him more food. If he didn’t take it, I assumed that he had spat up an excess that he didn’t require. Babies usually spit up because of a normal gastroesophageal reflex, which is more pronounced in some babies than in others. Overfeeding can also cause spitting up, which is another reason to avoid insisting that your bottlefed baby finish his bottle.

Forcible or projectile vomiting, especially if it occurs after several meals, should be reported immediately to your doctor; vomiting is very serious in a small baby because it can quickly lead to dehydration.

Burping releases any air that has been swallowed during feeding. It’s unlikely that gas causes your baby discomfort, and many babies are not noticeably happier or more contented for having been burped. Swallowing air is more common in bottlefed babies, but you can prevent it to some extent by tilting the bottle more as your baby empties it so that the nipple is full of milk and not air. Disposable bottles cut down on the air the baby swallows, because air cannot enter the bottle as the baby sucks the milk.

The good thing about burping, whether you breast or bottlefeed, is that it makes you pause, relax, slow down, hold your baby gently, and stroke or pat him, and this is good for both of you.

Chubby babies can be cute, but fat cells, once produced, can’t be removed, and a fat baby may grow into a fat adult, with all the attendant dangers to health. Unfortunately, it is easy to overfeed a bottlefed baby. The reasons for this are twofold; first, it is tempting to put extra formula into the bottle, but you should always follow the instructions precisely; otherwise, you’ll be giving the baby unwanted calories. Second, in your anxiety to feed him “properly” you may want to see your baby finish every last drop of his bottle, but you should always let him decide when he’s finished. Introducing solids too early and giving sweet, syrupy drinks also cause overfeeding.

At first your baby won’t be able to sleep for more than two or four hours at a time without waking with hunger. Once he reaches a weight about 11 pounds (5 kilograms), try to stretch the time between feedings until you are getting about six hours of undisturbed sleep at night. Although your baby will have his own routine, it’s sensible to try to time his last feeding to coincide with your own bedtime, which should be as late as possible. You may find that your baby will still wake up and demand the early morning feeding, no matter how hard you try. If this happens you’ll just have to be patient and look forward to when he drops it.

Your baby will need feeding at least once during the night, and this break in your sleep on top of all the other things that you have to do to take care of him may make you extremely tired and tense. The problem isn’t so much the number of hours of sleep that you lose, but more the way in which your sleep patterns are broken over long periods. For this reason it is important that you get adequate rest, day and night, and since you are doing most of the feeding, try to get your partner to take on some of the other jobs.

Bottlefeeding is straightforward, but you will need to make sure that your baby can swallow properly, and that he is not taking in air with the milk.

• Never leave your baby with the bottle propped up on a pillow or cushion; it can be dangerous. He could become very uncomfortable if he swallows a lot of air with the formula, and he could choke. Moreover, he will miss the cuddling and affection that he should enjoy while he eats
• Tilt your baby on your arm. It is very difficult for baby to swallow when he is lying flat, so don’t feed him in this position; he may gag or even vomit
• If your baby has a stuffed nose he can’t swallow and breathe at the same time. Your doctor can give you nose drops to be used before each feeding
• Don’t change your formula without first consulting your pediatrician, even if you think your baby does not like the one you’re using. It is very unusual for a brand of formula to be responsible for a baby’s not feeding well; very rarely cows’ milk formula causes allergies in babies, and your doctor may advise you to use a soy-based formula
• Your baby knows when he’s had enough, so don’t try to force him to finish the bottle after he has stopped sucking

Bottlefed babies tend to be fed less frequently than breastfed ones. This is because formula takes longer to digest and contains slightly more protein, and therefore delays hunger longer. A four-hourly regimen of six feedings a day seems to suit most bottlefed babies after the first two or three days, whereas breastfed babies will probably take seven feedings a day. A newborn baby will probably not take much over 2 fluid ounces (60 milliliters) at each feeding, but as he grows he will take fewer and larger feedings.

Never feed your baby according to the clock; let him determine when he is to be fed. He will let you know quite clearly with cries when he is hungry. Your baby’s appetite will vary, so if he seems satisfied, allow him to leave what he does not want. Don’t feel that your baby has to finish the bottle at each feeding. He will only get overfull and spit it up; or worse, become overfed and fat. On the other hand, if your baby is still hungry, give him some extra from another bottle. If this happens regularly, start to make more formula for every bottle.

Some mothers like to warm the bottle, though it will be perfectly all right if it has simply been brought to room temperature. Many babies like their bottles cold. Don’t warm the bottle in a microwave; that may create “hot spots” in the milk that could scald your baby’s mouth.

Warming the formula Place the bottle in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes. You could also run it under the hot tap, shaking it all the time.

Testing formula temperature Try a few drops on your wrist: it should be neither hot nor cold to the touch.