THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT NEWBORN FEEDING AND SLEEP

BREAST FEEDING

Do exclusive breast feeding for 6 months
Learn the breast feeding techniques before getting discharged from hospital
Try to get a proper lactching at breast during feeding at breast, it is important to achieve a proper weight gain and keeping the mother comfortable while feeding
Frequent sucking at breast will improve the milk secretion
Feed every 2-3 hours till the baby reaches birth weight (8-10 feeds/day)
Once weight gain is appropriate feed the baby on demand every 3-4hours once
Always try to feed in each breast for 15 to 20mins empty the breast on one side inorder to get the foremilk and hindmilk and shift to other breast
Keep the feeding duration maximum of 20 to 30mins.Prolonged breast feeding during each feed will cause weight loss due to excessive sucking in newborn, more air enters the stomach resulting in colicky pain and regurgitation of feeds/spitting of milk through mouth and nose.

NOT SUCKING WELL AT BREAST

If baby is not latching well at breast kindly consult the paediatrician/lactation consultant to learn the feeding techniques
Give expressed breast milk through paaladai / open cup.
Do not introduce feeding bottle as early as one month, inorder to avoid nipple confusion in babies.
Feeding from a bottle is much easier rather than feeding directly at breast. Hence avoid early usage of feeding bottle in newborns inorder to make the baby learn effectively to latch and suck at breast and promote a successful breastfeeding jouney.

WEIGHT LOSS / WEIGHT GAIN IN NEWBORNS

Newborn term babies tends to lose 10% of birthweight during first week of life
By second week around 10-14 days they will reach the birth weight
Following which baby needs to gain 20-30gms / day
By 45days when baby taken for primary vaccination baby should have reached 800gms to 1kg
If baby is not gaining weight adequately consult your paediatrician.They will assess and give a solution, might consider alternative feeds in the form of formula feeds which is safe for baby.
If breast milk is not adequate consider topping up one or two feeds / day with formula as adviced by doctor rather than starting cows milk on you own.
Cows milk is strictly contra-indicated as a drink till one year of age.

BURPING AFTER FEEDS

Keep the baby in propped up position for 20minutes post feeding because baby tummy is small and they regurgitate the milk through mouth and nostrils if made to lie down on back immediately after feeding.
Consider burping the baby for 10-15mins by placing the baby high on your shoulder supporting the neck of baby or by placing the baby on your lap supporting the chin and burping at the back effectively.
Spit up of milk is normal in newborns till 3-4 months of age, if baby is gaining weight adequately shouldn’t treat the regurgitation with medications.

URINE OUTPUT AND STOOLS IN NEWBORN

Baby post delivery will pass urine within 24 hours of life.
First stools passed by baby is termed as meconium which is dark green or black in color and usually passed within 48hours of life.
Gradually the color of stools changes to yellow/Seedy by 3-7days of life
Baby who is on exclusive breastfeeds will not pass stools even for 7-10days which is completely normal if baby takes feeding properly, abdomen is soft and passing flatus/gas
For initial 3 days baby will pass Urine only 2-3 times and gradually increased by day 4-day7 atleast 6-8 times / day or between every feeds. If Urine ouput is adequate it indicates that baby is feeding well adequately.

HICCUPS IN NEWBORN

Hiccups are normal and usually don’t hurt or cause any discomfort to babies
Hiccups occurs due to overfeeding, milk flow is too fast while breastfeeding, swallowing alot of air while feeding
They need to kept in propped up position for 20-30mins,feeding needs to be slower for them, burping the baby well post feeds, rubbing the baby’s back will help and ensuring that the baby’s mouth is latched over the whole nipple.
Kindly do not give them plain water/gripe water
If baby cries more often than usual particulary during feedings, arching their back excessively during or after feedings, spit up of milk is increased more often than usual it would be a sign og gastro-oesophageal reflux causing more hiccups, kindly meet the paediatrician if you notice the above symptoms.

ROOM FOR THE MOTHER AND BABY

You must select a room which is warm, well-ventilated, quiet, and comfortable for the mother-baby duo.
It should be relatively quiet and the light should not be bright.
Room should be thoroughly cleaned before the arrival of the baby. Wet mopping or vacuum cleaning is a better method of cleaning the room than dry dusting. Baby’s room should be smoke-free.
Keep the mother-baby bed away from window and door, and also not directly in front of cooler or under fan.
During summer, if using an air conditioner, ensure that temperature is set at least 25°C or above and the baby is clothed adequately with two to layers of clothing, cap, socks, and mittens. In winter, keep the room warm with radiant heater or oil-filled room heater.

VITAMIN D3 DROPS

Babies don’t get enough vitamin D through breast milk
Hence it is essential to supplement the newborn baby who is on breastfeed / partially breastfed with vitamin D3 drops 400IU/day from birth till one year of life.
Should be given in morning and it can be mixed in breastmilk
Vitamin D is essential to your newborns health inorder to absorb calcium and phosphorous.
Vitamin D deficiency causes rickets which leads to softening / weakening of bones, bowing of legs as they grow, delay in walking/crawling and soft skulls.

NEWBORN SLEEP

The bed of the baby should be clean, dust-free, and the mattress should be firm, not fluffy.
Place your baby on her back, not on the stomach or side. Cover the mattress with a snugly-fitting clean sheet.
Use mosquito curtain, if needed.
Keep toys, pillows, blankets, and other things out of your baby’s area of sleep.
Dress your infant suitable for the room temperature at night.
Hands and feet should be just warm to touch. Change diapers at night, if wet or soiled.
If the mother is comfortable, there is no need to use a separate cot/crib/ bassinet for the baby. It is better that the mother-baby duo shares the same bed. It helps in keeping the baby warm, and breastfeeding becomes easier for the mother. It also ensures better emotional bonding between the baby and the mother. However, the mother should remain alert that the face of the baby does not get covered.
There is no set schedule of sleep in the initial few days. Generally, newborns sleep for a total of about 8–9 hours in the daytime and about 8 hours at night.
The sleep cycles of a baby are shorter than adults and they tend to wake or stir about every 40 minutes in both day and night. Every 2 or 3 hours, they would need a feed and attention. You can help your baby sleep by recognizing signs of sleep readiness (yawning, fussing, crying, or becoming quiet) and provide the right environment for safe and comfortable sleep
Swaddling the newborn baby during sleep promotes a better sleep.

SWADDLING THE NEWBORN

Help your baby sleep long stretches at night.
Purpose of swaddling is to reduce the “startle or moro” reflex.
Always swaddle the baby for night sleep and nap time.
Once the baby started to roll over, stop swaddling them
Use a muslin material to swaddle the newborn because it is soft,breathable material, gentle on newborn baby.
Swaddling the baby with one or both arms out is perfectly safe, because many babies prefer to keep the arms out and suck at fingers while sleep.

About Us

CradleMoon is an initiative by Dr.Aswini to give qualitative clinical service for the children by the way they love… our clinic is an experience centers which will make the child pre-occuipied and entertained with the lovely play area.

Quick Links

Recent Publishing

All Post
Pediatrician

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT NEWBORN FEEDING & SLEEP

December 14, 2022

BATH & SKIN CARE OF NEWBORN

December 14, 2022