Little Tricksters!
This is a very common question! Babies can sometimes appear to give mixed messages about whether they are still hungry or not - they look like they are asleep but still want to eat when you try to pull them off, or they seem totally done but want to eat again 10 minutes later. Confusing little tricksters!
What is normal for their age?
The first thing to keep in mind is how much a baby should be eating in general. In the first few weeks this is hard to keep track of because it’s changing (increasing) constantly. Babies will start off by taking small amounts like .5-1 ounce feedings - you may be measuring them in milliliters at that point. Gradually, as their stomach grows and they get more coordinated at transferring milk, they will take more and more in each feeding until they reach a maximum of about 4 ounces per feeding. (Formula-fed babies may eventually take fewer, bigger bottles, but this doesn’t usually happen for several more months.) Regardless of how many ounces in each bottle and how many bottles per day, once babies reach the age of around 6 weeks, they are at their maximum amount of 32 ounces per day. This stays steady, 32 ounces per day, until they start solids around 6 months, at which point it will decrease as solid foods begin to take over part of their caloric input.
The Chicken Wing Test
As far as being able to tell if they have had enough in a feeding, one of our favorite ways to check to see if a baby who appears to be “done” and sleepy is actually done eating is called ‘the chicken wing test’. When babies start a feeding, you will notice that they keep their arms tucked in tightly close to their bodies. If you want to check to see if they are full, simply tug gently on their elbow (their little chicken wing!) to pull it away from their body. If they clench it right back in towards their body, they are not done. This will often stimulate babies to start sucking more vigorously again. If the arm flops open with no tone, they are all done! They may look like they were feeding, but they are actually out like a light. If they are somewhere in the middle - arm getting looser but still holding some tension, they are getting more full but probably still want to keep going.
The same response can be observed in their hands, which will start in a tight fist at the beginning of a feeding. As they eat, babies’ fists gradually loosen and their hands fall open. What you see in both these observations is that they start a feeding with tension in their body and they should end it completely relaxed. They are often asleep, but even if they aren’t, they should be a bit drowsy, very content, body loose and unclenched. Granted, they may tense everything back up again if you try to change their diaper or swaddle them - but they should at least initially have relaxed from the feeding. That’s the sign of a satiated baby.
Can I overfeed my baby?
You don’t need to worry about over-feeding a baby. Babies stop eating when they are full, so if they appear to be giving you strong hunger cues, you can continue to offer additional small amounts by bottle or continue to offer the breast until they are satisfied. If you know for a fact they have had plenty of milk, they may be fussing for other reasons - this is where a pacifier can be useful, if they just want to suck. They may need a distraction and some soothing strategies to ease them off the bottle/breast.
When to contact a Lactation Specialist
Finally, I just like to mention to people not to worry too much about short feedings. If all that Baby can do is 5 or 10 minutes before falling asleep again, then that’s just the best they could do that time, and you’ll want to try again sooner than later, but there were still some positive things that happened. First, the primary benefit to the milk supply is the INITIAL stimulation, which has occurred with even a 5 minute feeding - it doesn’t matter how long it lasted. So if the baby breastfed for 5 minutes, you’ve triggered the milk-making hormones for that session - good work! Secondly, if Baby was actively feeding for those 5 or 10 minutes, they probably did get the bulk of what they needed - often the rest of the time newborns are just snoozing or doing really intermittent sucking anyway. If it was a short time of active feeding, we’ll call it a win and try again soon. Try not to worry too much and keep feeding on the shorter end of the 2-3 hour window. If your baby is persistently unable to stay on the breast for longer than a few minutes for days/a week, and especially if there are concerns with weight gain, that is the point where we’d want to check in with a lactation consultant.
~ Naomi, Infant Feeding Expert*
*If you need help to schedule your bundled Infant Feeding session with Naomi…email Elizabeth Parish.
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