Visual guide: this is how to tell if your newborn is hungry
Decoding a newbornโs body language can be tricky โ are they hungry, or tired? Are they beyond the point of being able to feed because theyโre so worked up?
This handy visual guide will help you figure out just how hungry your little one is, and we also have some expert tips on interpreting your babyโs feeding cues.
How to tell if your baby is hungry
This brilliantย visual guideย is a great way to work out if your baby is hungry, and just HOW hungry they are.
Developed byย Womenโs and Newborn Services Royal Brisbane and Womanโs Hospital, these are the movements and cries to look for.
Early cues
The baby will stir, their mouth will open, and they will turn their head as they seek out food. These are pretty early signs, and if you get onto a feed soon you should avoid a full-scale meltdown.
Mid cues
This is when baby is starting to getย really hungry. They will stretch, move more and put their hand to their mouth.
Late cues
If baby is crying, has agitated body movements and their face is turning red, they are very hungry and will need calming before they will be able to feed. A gentle cuddle, some skin to skin time, soft talking and stroking should be enough to diffuse the situation, and then feed.
Just how important are feeding cues?
International Board Certified Lactation Consultant Renee Kam saysย mums should make themselves familiar withย feeding cues.
โThings like when theyโre sticking their tongue in and out, theyโre turning their head from side to side, their mouthโs open, theyโre wriggling, theyโre making squeaky sorts of noises. And we encourage mums to respond to those cues by feeding their baby,โย Renee toldย The Healthy Mummy.
โWith breastfeeding, it works on supply equals need basis, so if we respond to our babies when theyโre showing feeding cues then our breasts will make the amount of milk that our babies need.โ
Renee saysย when it comes toย breastfeeding, look for your babyโs feeding cues rather than watching the clock.
โSome feeds theyโll take more breast milk than others. Some breastfeeds will be longer or shorter than others and thatโs all quite normal. And the length of time between feeds typically varies,โย she explains.
โAs babies get older they do tend to feed less often and tend to be more efficient, so donโt take as long to feed.โ
Renee says knowing theย difference between tired signs and feedingย cues is also really important.
โWhen a babyโs tired their body tends to be a bit more tense, their movements tend to be more jerky. More obviously theyโll yawn and then start to grizzle and cry and the crying gets louder and louder the more tired they get.โ
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As we all know, being a mum can be exhausting which can leave us too tired to eat the right foods and get the right nutrition in our diets. This is whereย The Healthy Mummy Smoothieย can help.
The Healthy Mummy smoothie has been created to help mums benefit from a wide range of nutrients which can also help support yourย healthy eating planย and exercise routine if you are trying to lose weight.
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