Tips On Breastfeeding A Newborn
3 min readWritten by Pradeep
The moment you hold your new born baby in the delivery room, you feel relaxed and contented. You realize that you are now a mother and have a really tiny life to nurture, protect and raise. The feeling of breastfeeding your new born child is also divine and fills you up with affection and love, though breastfeeding would also have its own challenges for the new mother. However, it must be noted here that breast feeding is the best for you as well as your baby. At the very beginning, your body would produce special milk known as colostrum which is important for your baby as it protects him/her from all sorts of infection.
How to start Breastfeeding
- Relax and sit comfortably. Lie on the bed or sit up.
- If you are new, ask a nurse to assist you to start breastfeeding.
- Turn the whole body of your baby towards you; understand it has to be chest to chest. Touch his/her upper lip to your nipple and as she/he opens mouth, pull the child onto your breast.
- Hold your breast for support. Ensure that his/her mouth should cover much of the aerola (the darker skin of the breast). Your small child would quickly latch and start sucking strongly.
Tips on breastfeeding a newborn
- The chin and nose of the baby should touch the breast and his lips should be curled out and not tucked in.
- Many a times, it takes multiple tries to allow your baby to latch well. If required, you can put your finger between his gums and allow baby to let go.
- Find the right breast feeding position that suits you and the baby.
How to End the Feeding
Have you seen babies sucking? Yes, they suck actively, then rest and again start sucking actively. Then they release when they think they are full. Always make sure to try burping him/her and then provide them the next breast. Let your nipples relax for some time to avoid soreness. First, start feeding with one breast and then the other one.
How often should the baby be fed?
You all know that new-borns are hungry often as their stomach is too small. They indicate that they are hungry by.
- Opening their small mouth and looking for milk.
- By sucking their hands.
- Fussing
Many of the new-born babies require feeding for about 10 to 20 minutes on each breast at timely intervals of about 1 ½ to 3 hours. Not all babies are the same though. Some babies feed for a little time while others for longer and many of them require coaxing to continue; while others feed after a long nap. It is important to understand that your new-born baby needs 10 to 12 feedings every 24 hours.
Tips to feed your new-born:
- A new-born baby requires his food every two to three hours. Your breast milk is the absolute food for infants. Analyse your baby’s reaction to hunger. Searching for milk, sucking his hands, lip movement are quite a few signs he is likely to make.
- Vitamin D is an essential supplement which your baby must intake. It provides essential nutrients and strengthens the bones. Breast milk might not be sufficient to provide enough Vitamin D. Therefore; you may look for alternatives or consult the doctor for same.
- While breast-feeding, take a look on your new-born and not the clock on the wall. Embrace your new-born closer to you and look in his eyes. Build a silent emotional attachment with him.
- Once your baby is done with feeding, try and make him burp after each feeding. While breast-feeding, baby might have inhaled some air which may cause him to puke. Therefore hold your straight and gently pat his back.
Enjoy your mother hood to the fullest!
Pradeep,
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