How Often Should An Infant Breastfeed?

This is an important question that arises in the mind of new mothers, with babies nursing at irregular intervals both during the night and day.

Some interesting points that help you decide on this factor:

• Most infants or young babies nurse up to 8 times or more after the first few days; you may find him/her asking to be fed every 90 minutes to an hour. This may seem cumbersome, but it is best to know that when the baby nurses more often, more milk is produced in the breasts.

• Make sure that the infant gets enough milk by making sure he/she is properly latched to the breast; your baby need to take a mouthful of your breasts to be able to work the milk down. This ensures that the infant gets the thicker and creamier milk and it moves down smoothly in the baby’s system. Your midwife could help you regarding the best position for breastfeeding.

• It is significant to understand that during growth spurts from time to time your baby would be hungrier and need to breastfeed more frequently or for longer periods. Allow the baby to nurse for a longer period or more frequently; soon the supply of milk will go up to suit the baby’s requirement.   

• Many babies nurse longer or more frequently at night; it is quite normal as your body produces the hormone prolactin that makes milk at night. Your baby’s more frequent and longer nursing would stimulate the body to produce more milk.

• Understand that the baby will require more frequent and smaller feeds in the first few months; the newborn baby’s tiny stomach can only digest, absorb and accommodate only small amounts of milk.

• Your infant will soon learn how to regulate the feeds according to his/her appetite. Let your infant finish off one breast before he/she starts another; this enables him/her to get the thirst-quenching milk as well as the creamier, thicker milk that comes at the end of the feed.

• It is best to understand that one of the breasts, especially the right one may produce more milk than the other and the infant will feel more satisfied nursing on this breast. Your infant could definitely benefit by nursing on the left breast and top it up with milk from the right breast.  

• With practice and as an infant grows, he/she will tend to nurse at longer intervals. They soon get interested in the surroundings. Also when babies start off on solid foods, they would soon be satisfied with just 2 to 3 breastfeeds per day.  

• Lastly feed the infant whenever he/she demands to be fed; you would then ensure that he/she gets all the milk one wants.