FEEDING PATTERN
Breast feeding
Stomach capacity has never been given much
importance while telling a mother how to feed her baby. This results in mothers either
force feeding or getting unnecessarily worried about baby not taking enough.
Stomach capacity(0 – 4 months): 30 – 86 ml (6-14
tsp.)
No top feeding / Supplementary foods at all as:
- Breast milk alone can supply all requirements
- Solids given close to breast feed can reduce the absorption
of nutrients from milk
- Ability to move food and chew does not develop before 3 - 4
months
- Poor head control and cannot hold neck up for swallowing
- Food digestion is poor as stomach is small (30 - 86 ml)
Foods:
Exclusive Breast feeding on
demand without water, honey or any other liquids at least till 3 months of age.
Introduction to bottle
At 3 months of age, one bottle feed
can be introduced in the daily schedule apart from exclusive breastfeeding to make the
baby accustomed to the bottle and not reject it later. To ensure that baby does not give
up breast feeding, in the initial phase, bottle is to be given towards end of breast
feeding, if mother feels breast milk is not enough. The child can alternatively be fed 20
– 30 ml warm, strained orange /mosambi juice only along with ½ teaspoon of sugar.
Care should be taken that the bottle has
been sterilized.
Night feeding
Till the age of 3 months, the baby is
breastfed on demand. After the age of 3 months, if the baby wakes up at odd hours at night
after being fed satisfactorily according to the schedule during the day, warm water (20
– 30 ml) with ½ teaspoon sugar can be fed to the baby in a sterilized bottle so that
he sleeps off. In this way, the baby will slowly adjust to no milk feeds at night. Also,
the baby will slowly get used to bottle feeding.
But, cow’s milk should not be
introduced through bottlefeeding at least till 4 months of age. |
