As a newborn, your baby’s day includes sleeping two-thirds part of the day, waking up hungry either for food or to pee and poop. Your baby sleeps most part of the day and this can raise questions in your mind about the feeding schedule of your sweet pea. We understand that it’s rather confusing to understand their feeding schedule. Therefore, we have prepared one for you. The schedule is based on the age group and will also help you figure out all the questions about when to feed your baby.
- 1-3 months old: Your baby’s tummy is the size of a marble at the time of their birth. They are unable to hold more than one or one and a half teaspoons of liquid at a time. Therefore up to the first two weeks, feed them 14 ml. to 30ml. at a time. You can increase the quantity up to 60ml. to 120ml., after two weeks. And then afterwards it can be increased up to 175 ml. You can feed your baby 7 to 9 times a day (24 hours). As their tummy is developing, they can’t hold solid food and anything other than formula and/or breast milk.
- 3 to 6 months old: Your munchkin’s stomach muscles are more developed and they can eat more than they were able to previously. You can feed them 120 ml. to 235 ml. , six to eight times a day. You don’t really need to introduce them to solid foods yet. But, if they are able to hold up their heads on their own, you can go for pureed food like vegetables and fruits.
- 6 to 8 months old: This is the right time for you to introduce your little one to new, solid food. Start slowly with soft foods like one-grain cereal, pureed vegetables and fruits. Then proceed to mashed food and then you can let them eat chopped fruits and vegetables (not big bites and they need to be in thin juliennes). You can alternate it with breast milk. This is also the time you introduce them to water. Now your little one will need to be fed about 6 times a day.
- 8 to 12 months old: Now that your munchkin gets its nutrients from solid food, you can feed them about 230 ml. of breast milk about 4 to 5 times a day.
Feeding your sweet pea can be really simple and easy if you keep the following in mind:
- Don’t feed them anything other than formula or breast milk unless they reach the age of 4 months. This can upset their stomach as their digestive system is not that strong.
- Introducing water around the age of 4 months works well.
- Solid food can be introduced if
- Their head muscles are well developed and can hold their heads up on their own.
- Reach out for food.
- Show interest in what you eat.
- Weigh at least 5.8 or more kgs.
- Do not feed them honey. It’s warm and heavy on a developing digestive system and can result in an upset stomach.
- Understand the signs for when your little one is hungry
- rooting around your chest, looking for a nipple.
- putting their fist in their mouth
- smacking or licking their lips
- fussing that can escalate quickly
- Overfeeding is also a concern for most parents, but this can only be a case when you are bottle-feeding your munchkin. In that case, talk to your doctor or paediatrician about it.
We hope that this answers all your queries on your baby’s feeding schedule. It may seem confusing in the beginning, but slowly things will fall in place and you will be able to adjust your baby’s feeding schedule accordingly. Breastfeeding your baby will also help you bond with them as a mother. In case of confusion, talk to your paediatrician. It is always better to get a consultation when you are getting confused on what and how to feed your baby.
