When your new baby comes home you want things to go as smoothly as possible. Knowing what your baby needs will become second nature to you and you should always follow your instincts and do what is right for your little one. That being said there are some tips that you can follow to help get you started.
Your baby will need to eat every couple of hours when they are first born. That is about every two hours from when they start a bottle, not when they finish one. At first it may seem like you are always feeding your baby. Do not worry because as they get older they will start eating their meals farther and farther apart.
One word of caution is to always make formula according to the package instructions. Either using too much powder or too little can both hurt your baby. Many people think that adding an extra scoop of powder will help their baby sleep longer at night, but this just is not true and it could make your baby very sick.
Your baby’s digestive tract is still growing and forming so solid foods are off limits for now. There are ways to tell if you baby is getting enough formula to eat. Babies eat when they are hungry and stop eating when they are full. This means that the most important thing you can do is read your baby’s hunger clues when you want to know how much to feed them. They may eat more during the growth spurts that occur at about ten days, three weeks, six weeks, three months and six months. When your baby is not feeling well they may want to eat less.
Babies will cry when they are hungry. You have to resist the urge to respond to every whimper with a bottle, especially if baby has just eaten. Your baby may also be wet, need a burping or just wants to be close to you. Another clue that they are actually hungry is smacking their lips, sucking or putting their hands in their mouths. If your baby is still hungry after a bottle he or she will quickly turn their head around looking for more. If you need to make more formula immediately after the first bottle try only making an ounce or two at a time. If you make too much additional formula you will just end up having to throw it out.