4 hourly feeding routine baby

Moving to the 4 Hour Feeding Schedule (Babywise)

If you’re a Babywise Mom, then you know that the 4 hour feeding schedule is a time that you are looking forward to! It’s when all the tough work of the early days pays off!

Since before Brittlynn was born I was looking forward to the 4-hour schedule. It’s a big milestone in the life of a scheduled mama.

It means the baby will eat 4 times a day, 4 hours apart and once you reach the 4-hour feeding schedule it stays that way, like forever. It’s the last change in eating times until the baby is old enough to eat when the family eats!

Exciting stuff… and I was pumped about it… at least until it actually happened.

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When should I start the Babywise 4 hour feeding schedule?

Babywise says that baby’s between 3-6 months old will be ready for the 4 hour feeding schedule.

With Kye, we just pushed him into it when he was between 3 and 4 months old. My plan with Brittlynn was to wait and see when she was ready.

She has struggled with staying awake for her full awake time since birth and when you shift the schedule it means she drops a nap (down to three naps instead of four) and extends her awake time lengths.

I just didn’t think she was ready for that. Plus she dropped her dream feed ages ago and going to the 4-hour schedule would mean the last time she would eat for the day would be at 7!

My milk supply STILL hadn’t adjusted to dropping the dream feed, I didn’t want to deal with the overflow of milk I’d have by moving that last feeding time even earlier.

I also wanted to stay with her 3-3 1/2 hour schedule for the wedding. Casey and Jordan got married on March 31st and I liked that Britt would be eating at 5 (the time of the wedding) instead of sleeping at 5 (which is what would be the case with the 4-hour feeding schedule).

I, however, was not in control of any of this.

On March 13th I started keeping her up past 1 hour 30 min for awake times and she could usually stay up for about 1 hour 45 min.

She was sleeping soooo solid at each nap that I literally had to wake her up to eat or she would have just kept on sleeping. That’s a BIG sign that a baby is ready to shift the schedule, but I resisted.

The 3-3 1/2 Combo Schedule

I really, really enjoyed the 3- 3 1/2 combo schedule. Here’s what our day looked like:

7:00: start the day, change diaper, eat
8:00-8:30: change diaper, get dressed, awake time
8:30-10:30: nap
10:30-11:30: eat
11:30-12:00: change diaper, awake time
12:00-2:00: nap
2:00-3:00: eat
3:00-3:30: change diaper, awake time, alone time with Mommy
3:30-5:00: nap
5:00-6:00: eat
6:00-6:30: change diaper, awake time, family dinner
6:30-8:20: nap
8:20: awake, bath, put pjs on
8:30-9:30: eat, last feeding of day
9:30: put directly to bed after eating

In the beginning, I didn’t like her 2:00 feeding time because it was when Kye was sleeping for his nap and I was looking forward to having both of them napping together.

Once I got adjusted to the life of two though, I LOVED her 2:00 feeding. That special one on one time together with JUST her.

I also liked that we all got to eat dinner together at 6 and that she got more alone time with Zach and I for her bath after Kye was in bed.

Shifting to the new schedule would mean all of that would change, and I just wasn’t emotionally ready for it.

Britt started to eat quicker at each feeding and would get very fussy on the breast. She’d come on and off a lot and acted like she just didn’t want to eat.

She would barely eat at ALL for the 5:00 feeding. She’d fuss and cry and it was just obvious that she was ready to go longer between feedings. So I moved it.

We decided to move it on 3/17 because it was a Saturday and we had a wedding to go to that afternoon.

A busy day makes things easier when moving a schedule. You’d think it’d be easier to be at home all day but really, to me, it’s tougher without things to do.

I actually cried a little on the 16th. Knowing it was our last time just the three of us for that bath and last feeding of the day.

I was sad that those family dinners would be over for a while. I was sad that I would probably not get to tuck Kye into bed for awhile again either.

I was just an emotional mama not ready for the inevitable changes life brings!

On Saturday, she did awesome. She struggled to stay awake until 9:00 that morning so I did put her down 15 min early but then the rest of the day she rocked it.

No issues AT ALL.

She has never once been hungry prior to her next feeding time. She slept better for naps.

More solid. She ate better at feeding times (and went back to taking around 45-60 min…) and was happier overall. It was for sure the best move for her and that’s what matters most.

Moving to the 4 Hour Feeding Schedule

Here is what our new daily schedule looks like (it’s very detailed!):

7:00 (usually it’s more like 7:15…if they let us have those extra 15 min we take ’em!): awake for the day, change diaper, eat. Kye gets up the same time she does (usually one of us gets him and the other gets her) and Zach will fix his breakfast while I’m nursing

After breakfast: I always either do her tummy time (at least 10 min per awake time so three times a day) first thing during her awake times or her independent playtime (more on that in another post but she does 15 min of it per awake time so 3 times a day!).

If Kye doesn’t have school he’ll often play with her a lot during this awake time, especially in the pack and play right after her independent playtime. I get her dressed during this time and change her diaper.

If Kye has school and I have to take him then there’s a lot of rushing around for that. If he doesn’t have school and we don’t go anywhere that day then we go on a walk (more on that in a second).

If we have somewhere to be that day then usually I’m spending this time trying to get us all ready to get out the door!

9:00: down for nap (Kye and I will sing to her, swaddle her, turn on her fan and put her down. She will typically “talk” for up to 15 min before falling asleep).

Often it’s closer to 8:45 as she gets sleepy early this awake time. While she’s napping, if Kye is home, we will eat my breakfast together and he’ll usually do some type of coloring activity.

Then he’ll go upstairs for his room time (45 minutes) and get to watch a movie while I nurse her at her next feeding.

11:00: Get Britt up (Kye LOVES to help both with putting her to sleep and waking her up). Change her diaper, nurse her.

If Kye’s home he typically watches a movie during this time. IF we are going somewhere…we go during this awake time. I will pump at 10:00, get her up early (like 10:40) then hop in the car and go.

I’ll feed her a bottle wherever we are and we are able to do plenty of stuff until we have to be home for both of their naps!

After feeding: If we’re home we do the same routine of independent playtime and tummy time.

What’s great is while she’s in independent playtime I can get mine and Kye’s lunch ready then she can get out and “eat” with us in her bouncer. Again I change her diaper sometime during the awake time.

12:00: Kye and I eat lunch. This is the hardest hour of the day for me.

Especially on the days that Kye has school because he won’t get home until close to 12:30 and naps at 1:00. It’s even tougher when Britt and I have to pick him up because we’re rushing in the door trying to get everything going for lunch!

I try to pack a lunch for Kye if I can on the days I pick him up so he can start eating in the car, it tends to speed everything up! I pretty much am a crazy person from 12-1 so if you call or text during this time, I WILL ignore you 😉

Once Kye gets fed I rush him to get a book and put on his pjs (he will not sleep in clothes!) and we’ll all three read it together, assuming he finished lunch in time.

If he takes too long to eat I’ll have to put Brittlynn down while he’s eating. If she’s still up for the story then we’ll all three say prayers together (or if we read the story and it’s time for her to go down we’ll put her down first.

Every day is kinda different on this routine). Then Kye will help me put Britt to sleep, he’ll go potty, and he’ll go to bed

1:00: Both kids down for nap! This is my big chunk of alone time! I typically will lay out for 30-45 min at least twice a week if possible so I can keep a little color.

Then I blog pretty much the rest of the time.

3:00: Britt’s up to nurse. Usually Kye sleeps until 3:30 but if he’s awake at 3 I just let him get up.

I’d rather him be up while I’m nursing then start crying and stuff while I’m feeding her and have to stop the feeding to go get him.

After feeding: We go in and wake Kye up at 4:00 if he’s not already up (he was struggling with naps for awhile…like wouldn’t sleep AT ALL and Babywise says to wake him up from his nap so I do that now).

We usually cuddle and play in his bed just the three of us, which I love. He changes back into clothes and Britt has her tummy time and independent playtime.

5:00: Zach typically gets home. Britt goes down for nap. I cook dinner (something that I was NOT able to do with the old schedule because she was eating at 5!

Thank the LORD for ALL the frozen dinners I pre-made while pregnant, Zach just heated stuff up so we could all eat at 6!). Usually, Zach and Kye play outside during this time.

6:00: The three of us eat. Usually, Britt wakes up crying around 6.

It’s the only nap of the day that she wakes up. Sometimes she’ll wake up at 45 min during the other naps but always falls back to sleep pretty quickly (yes, we do Cry It Out but she rarely cries).

This nap though she’ll often wake up at 6 and never go back to sleep. It makes dinner time frustrating because she’s fussing while we’re trying to enjoy dinner.

This is typical of babies though as the 6:00 hour is often called the “witching hour.” They are just fussy with no real reason why. If she doesn’t fall back to sleep we will get her up at 6:20.

6:40: Zach and Kye get Britt up for her bath. I typically finish cleaning up dinner

(Zach is great about helping but I WANT him to get that quality bath time with her so I’d rather do the cleaning up!). After her bath, I go in and massage her (Zach hates using the oil on his hands!)

7:00: I nurse Brittlynn, Zach gives Kye his bath. Kye used to go to bed at 7:15. When he started having the nap issues, Kelly suggested moving his bedtime later.

He now goes to bed at 7:45 and it’s really helped things. It took Zach and I awhile to adjust to the new bedtime because we weren’t sure what to do with him haha.

He takes longer baths now, which he enjoys. After his bath, Zach will read his story on the couch while I’m feeding Brittlynn. We all say prayers there together as well then Zach takes him to bed at 7:45 since Brittlynn is still eating then.

I very much miss getting to tuck him in at night and hope Britt will start eating faster so I can be part of that special time with Kye again.

She usually finishes somewhere around 8:00, sometimes later. When we think she’s close to done, we’ll swaddle her then I put her straight to bed.

She used to ALWAYS be asleep when she finished nursing, but now she’s often still awake so I’ll sing to her before laying her down and say a prayer with her too.

Rest of night: It’s ours! Usually, I will shower, I hope to get better about exercising prior to that shower! We’ll typically watch a show together while we have a snack.

I have to pump around 10:30 if I don’t want to be uncomfortable in the night. But even with the pumping I STILL wake up super full. I don’t think my milk supply will ever balance out! I try to be in bed no later than 11:00 for the night!

That’s what my average day looks like!!! While I was sad to switch schedules, there are LOTS of advantages to the 4-hour feeding schedule and I’m now used to it.

Life after adjusting the 4 hour feeding schedule

Kye LOVES getting to spend more time with Brittlynn. I was a little nervous that her being around him more would bother him but he has yet to show a single sign of any jealousy. Even not having me tuck him in is fine!

Things get trickier when Zach isn’t home…what I will do is give Kye his bath at 5:00 when she first goes down for her nap.

Then we’ll read a story and he’ll play while I’m nursing her at 7 and he’ll go to bed after she goes to bed.

It means he stays up a little later on those nights, but what else can I do? If she’s not hardcore eating then I will stop her to go tuck him in. Again, he does great with whatever happens!

Once we all adjusted to the 4-hour feeding schedule, we started going on morning walks.

I used to LOVE going on walks with Kye when he was a baby and it’s so great to get out of the house! I will nurse Britt then pack Kye’s breakfast to take with us.

As soon as she’s done eating I’ll change, change her, and stick some clothes on him and we’re off! These are some pictures from our very first walk around the neighborhood (March 20th):

I may not be into big bows but I LOVE some big sunglasses!

We went on a 40 min walk…she stayed awake the entire time and never fussed about the shades 😉

TWINS!

Kye’s first time helping with Brittlynn’s bath (3/17)

I feel kinda like a pro-mom with this great routine I have down! I feel like I can handle anything…even more babies 😉

I seriously am SO thankful I have Babywise as it’s blessed my life so much. As a type-A personality, I need structure and it provides that for me.

My children have also done so amazing with this type of schedule and I truly believe that so many of Kye’s wonderful qualities have blossomed from being raised on a routine.

It was a tough emotional move for me, but now we’re here and I’m loving it!

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When and How to Move Baby to 4 Hour Schedule

When to Move baby to a 4 Hour Schedule. Once your baby is happily eating every three hours and you seem to always need to wake her up to eat, it may be time to move from a three hour schedule to the four hour schedule. Read on to see if your baby is ready.

Aaahhh. The four hour schedule. Any mom who has been there knows how wonderful it is. Any mom who hasn’t can only dream, but she is sure it is lovely. There are many wonderful things about a 4 hour schedule, especially if you are breastfeeding.

As lovely as it seems (and it is lovely), don’t rush into it. Wait until your baby is ready for it. The Babywise book says that “many a mother” is anxious to move to a 4 hour schedule (for good reason!), but there is no need to rush it.

When your baby is young, you will typically feed your baby every 2.5-3 hours throughout the day. As your baby gets older, he will be able to extend that time interval and eventually land at the 4 hour schedule. This post outlines when and how to implement a Four Hour Schedule for your baby. So how do you know if your baby is ready?

Post Contents

Signs Baby is Ready for a 4 Hour Schedule
Baby is Sleeping Through the Night
Baby Can Take Fewer Feedings
Baby is Always Sleeping When It is Time to Eat at 3 Hours
Become a Schedule PRO
Thank you!
Baby Is Not Hungry at Feeding Times
Baby Can Handle Longer Waketime Lengths
Baby is at Least 12 Weeks Old
Trust Your Gut
What To Do When Baby is Almost Ready for a 4 Hour Schedule
Consider Dropping the Dreamfeed
My eBooks
How To Move to a Four Hour Schedule
Conclusion
Poll Results of Poll Conducted on this blog
Related Schedule Posts On This Blog
FAQs 4 Hour Schedule Questions:

Signs Baby is Ready for a 4 Hour Schedule

How do you know when to move to a 4 hour schedule? Your baby might be ready for a four hour schedule when the following are true:

Baby is Sleeping Through the Night

Baby should be STTN (sleeping through the night) with no feedings. By STTN I mean 12 hours with no feedings. The Babywise book, however, says 9-10 hours before moving to a 3.5 hour schedule.

Watch your child and do what you think is best. You may or may not have a dreamfeed when your baby moves to a four hour schedule. Your baby should be going 8-12 hours at night without a feeding before you consider a four hour feeding schedule.

Baby Can Take Fewer Feedings

Your baby will likely be taking 5-6 feedings a day between 7 AM and 7 PM (or 7:30-7:30, depending on your waketime) before you are ready for the 4 hour schedule. 4 hours means 4 feedings.

You want to be sure your baby is physically ready. That is why I say don’t push. Some women need to do 5 feedings if they are BF (breastfeeding). Watch your supply if you are breastfeeding.

To know if your child is old enough to drop to four feedings in a day, see Your Babywise Baby First Year Overview. Once you are on a four hour schedule, your baby will eat four times during the day. You might have a fifth if you still have a dreamfeed.

Baby is Always Sleeping When It is Time to Eat at 3 Hours

If your baby is still asleep at every feeding on your current 3-3.5 hour feeding, there is a good chance it is time for a four hour schedule.

This is the biggest sign. Items 2 and 3 are taken care of, and now you watch for item 4. By always I mean most of the time.

Some babies (like my Brayden) will be able to have longer wake times and therefore will sleep later. Others (like my Kaitlyn) will have the same waketime length, but just sleep longer for naps.

I just wouldn’t move to a four hour schedule if the child wasn’t sleeping well. If you are entertaining them before mealtime on a 3 hour schedule, imagine what it will be like if you extend it to four hours.

With that said, there are moms who feel like it is time to move to a four hour schedule and it actually fixes baby’s sleep issues and baby sleeps better.

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Baby Is Not Hungry at Feeding Times

Baby isn’t that hungry for each meal eating every three hours. They don’t show interest in it. If baby isn’t hungry yet at 3-3.5 hours, he might be ready for a longer feeding schedule.

Baby Can Handle Longer Waketime Lengths

Baby can have a longer waketime or longer naps. To have a four hour feeding schedule, your baby needs to be able to stay awake for 2 hours and then sleep for 2 hours, OR baby needs to be able to stay awake for 1.5 hours and then nap for 2.5 hours. Some babies might be up for 2.5 hours and then nap for 1.5 hours.

Baby is at Least 12 Weeks Old

Baby needs to be old enough to go 4 hours between feedings both for the length between feedings and also because going 4 hours between feedings means dropping the number feedings in a day.

Trust Your Gut

You will just know when your baby is ready. With my two older kids, they moved to 4 hours themselves, I didn’t move them. I had to let them, but that is a different post.

If you feel like it is time, trust yourself. Never discount your parental intuition. If you just really feel like it is time, give it a try and see how it goes. You can always go back to the 3-3.5 hour schedule if the 4 hour schedule was not right.

What To Do When Baby is

Almost Ready for a 4 Hour Schedule

Let’s say your baby can go longer in the morning but not all day, what do you do?

I say this is a sign that 4 hours is coming soon. Until then, let baby go 3.5 hours in the morning, then do 3 hours the rest of the day.

You can do a combination 3-3.5 or even 3-4 hour schedule. You can do some intervals at four hours, others at three hours, and others at 3.5 hours.

Consider Dropping the Dreamfeed

Sometimes you will have to decide between moving to a four hour schedule OR dropping a dreamfeed. Many babies can do one or the other at first, but not both at the same time. There is no one right order to go in. I did it one way with two babies and another way with the other two babies.

Read: When To Stop the Dreamfeed

If your baby is not ready, do not stress and push moving to the four-hour schedule. Your baby will get there when he is ready.

Also, remember a combo schedule is perfectly acceptable. You might find your baby can go four hours in between the first two feedings, but needs the remainder of the feedings to be every 3 hours. That is totally fine.

Ready to move? See these sample 4 hour schedules for baby

My eBooks

How To Move to a Four Hour Schedule

If you feel confident it is time to move to a four hour schedule, you might be wondering how to make it happen.

You will first need to either keep baby awake longer for playtime or let baby sleep longer for naps. This will ensure baby can get to a four hour feeding interval. If you try to keep baby awake longer and naps stop going well, go back to the 3-3. 5 hour schedule and try the four hour schedule at a later date.

You can initially let baby sleep longer and slowly add five minutes of waketime to each waketime until you find out how long baby can be awake and still take a good nap (or until you get to a 2 hour waketime with a 2 hour nap time. If you get there, stop and be satisfied).

Again, if you feel like some intervals need to be 4 hours but others need to be 3 or 3.5, that is perfectly fine.

Once you have moved to the four hour schedule, if your baby starts to be discontent, act hungry, or start waking early from naps or in the night, go back to your old schedule and try for the four hour schedule a later time.

Conclusion

Moving to a four hour feeding schedule is a glorious milestone. Watch for the readiness signs and give it a try when baby is ready. Do not push the schedule before your baby is ready for it. This is a developmental milestone just as walking is. You cannot successfully force it before baby is ready to do it.

Don’t feel pressured to move to a 4 hour schedule. Don’t measure your success by it. Kaitlyn didn’t move to 4 hours until she was almost 7 months old, and Brayden was older. They may have gone sooner if I had pushed them, but I let them set the pace and we all were peaceful, happy and relaxed. Don’t thrown one more thing into the mix to stress you out and cause you frustration.

Read more at The Babywise 4 hour schedule: More thoughts.

This post was originally published December 19, 2007

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Poll Results of Poll Conducted on this blog

What Age Did LO Move to 4 Hour Schedule (approximate)?
Results:

3 Months: 1 Vote
4 Months: 5 Votes
5 Months: 1 Vote
6 Months: 5 Votes
7 Months: 0 Votes
8 Months/Older: 3 Votes

Total of 16 Votes.

Breastfeeding patterns - what to choose

— Polina Alexandrovna, what is the difference between breastfeeding, mixed and artificial feeding?

- The differences between breastfeeding from artificial and mixed clearly explain why feeding regimens differ.

- Normally, by what month should the feeding regimen be established?

- The diet is constantly changing. The older the child becomes, the larger portion of milk he eats, the smaller the frequency of feeding.

After childbirth, when the mother is lactating, the child also develops its own diet. In the first weeks, everything is quite chaotic and there is no regime as such, and the mother makes sure that the interval between breastfeedings is not more than 2.5 hours (it can be half an hour or two hours) and the child does not remain hungry. From about the second or third week, the baby has more or less regular intervals between feedings. We can say that the regime has been established. But this mode gradually changes as the baby gets older.

- What is the benefit - and what harm can be from feeding by the clock?

pros

The child knows when it's time to eat - the body adapts initially. It's no secret: certain enzymes are needed to digest food. When food enters the child's body regularly, his enzyme system and gastrointestinal tract adjust to the regime, and it is much easier for the child to digest food.
A mode of wakefulness and sleep is being formed - at every minute of time, the child understands what will happen to him.
Parents are not "hostage" to the baby, they have the opportunity to plan their free time - especially mothers, who always do not have enough time. The feeding regime and the regime of wakefulness and sleep make the situation very easy - at every moment the mother knows what awaits her.

Minuses

Mom keeps a feeding schedule, but doesn't stick to a sleeping schedule - and sets herself a trap. She can get into a situation where the baby is sleeping, and it's time to feed him. And it is not clear whether to wake the baby or let him sleep. If you choose a regimen, then it must be observed both in feeding and in laying down.
There are situations when it is difficult to feed the baby on time (for example, you are far from home and you do not have formula). But it is worth foreseeing everything, and there will be no problems. You just need to be able to plan everything correctly.

— How to painlessly accustom a child to an hourly feeding schedule?

For a child, the regimen is not something painful, and if we build a clear daily routine, then, believe me, it becomes comfortable not only for the mother, but also for the baby. This is absolutely normal. But in order to build a regimen, you need to understand what it should ideally be - you must plan what intervals between feedings you want to come to.

The next step is to evaluate where you are right now. For example, you would like to make the interval between feedings three hours, but the baby eats every hour and a half. Of course, if you just suddenly start to pause between feedings at three hours, nothing good will come of it - it will be very stressful for the child.

Therefore, you need to act smoothly:

determine point A, from which you are going, and point B, which you must come to;
gradually adjust to the mode that we would like to have ideally.

Transition diagram

Now the breaks between feedings are 1.5 hours, and we want 3 hours. We add five minutes each time so as not to injure the child, and at some point we take a break not at 1.5 hours, but at 1 hour 35 minutes, then at 1 hour 40 minutes and so on. The amount of food will also change a little.

- If we talk about night feeding with an hourly schedule, is it necessary to wake the baby when it's time to eat?

- Night feedings are normal for a child up to a year old.

Newborn has no division of day into day and night - there are approximate three-hour cycles. He woke up - ate - slept, woke up - ate - slept. And so every day. For a newborn baby, night feedings are the absolute norm.

For a 1 year old child Feeding 1-2 times a night is normal. But a child of a year may not eat at night.

In order to understand whether it is worth waking up and feeding the baby, you need to know how much he eats per day. Each child at each age has a certain norm - the amount of food that he should eat per day (we always count not per day, but per day).

If a child has eaten his norm during the day and sleeps at night, then he does not need to be awakened.
If child for day ate about 70% of his norm , then at night it is advisable to wake him up and feed him.

We always evaluate nutritional adequacy by weight gain.

If a child in one month has gained weight and height within the norm for his age, then he receives enough nutrition.
If a child does not gain weight and height , then he needs to be offered food more often at night so that he fits into the norm.

- If there are too many nighttime feeds on an hourly or on-demand basis, what to do about it?

- Night "snacks" do not always indicate the child's need for food. When a child asks for a breast at night, mothers mistakenly think that this is only hunger and nothing more. In fact, a child may worry at night due to a violation of the regime or the so-called negative association for sleep (when he can only fall asleep with a breast).

When there is no regime, the child "does not get enough sleep" of the daily allowance and there is a so-called accumulated fatigue, his nervous system is in a very strong excitation. In such a situation, nightly feedings every hour often indicate that the baby has a violation of the regime - it is difficult for him to get up, his nervous system is overexcited, he physically cannot fall asleep without his mother's breast.

Such night feedings can be identified easily:

the child wakes up every 40 minutes - 1 hour at night and asks for food, and during the day he usually eats every 3-4 hours - which means that he is unlikely to experience hunger;
the child eats very little at night - he kissed his breast or a bottle, ate 10-20 g and fell asleep. This means that the baby performed a certain ritual: he waited for his mother, satisfied the sucking reflex, and thanks to this he fell asleep - in such a case, he did not have a goal to eat.

With these night feeds, you need to pay attention to two factors:

Sufficiency of nutrition - it is worth making sure that the child receives the required amount of food during the day, does not starve during the day and does not get at night the amount of food that should have been received during the day .
Correct mode - you need to make sure that the child is all right with the mode, there is no accumulated fatigue and a negative association with sleep.

Is it normal for a child not to eat at night or very little?

“This reverse situation may or may not be the norm. It all depends on the age of the baby and on whether he receives enough food in the daytime feeding.

Newborn

It is not normal for a newborn child not to eat at night, he must eat every 2. 5-3 hours. When breastfeeding, this is critically important - for the mother to establish lactation, and for the baby to replenish the reserves that he needs.

An unpleasant situation can happen in the first couple of months - the mother is glad that the baby sleeps well and does not wake up at night, and on weighing it is clear that the child not only gained a little, but did not add at all in one month, that is, he is clearly starving.

Newborn babies have this feature: if they receive very little food, they do not have the strength to ask. Therefore, it is extremely important to ensure that a newborn baby eats both day and night!

Infant

A child older than 1.5-2 months adds weight and height within the normal range, eats all the amount of food he needs during the day, feels great, is not crying or irritated, and at the same time sleeps at night - let him sleep to his health. The most important thing is that he gains weight and height - these are the main indicators by which we can assess that the child has enough nutrition.

— If a mother prefers on-demand feeding, what is the most gentle way for her to organize it?

It is important to understand that one should not go to extremes.

First extreme:

the child sleeps for a very long time, the intervals between feedings are 5-6 hours. It seems to mom that everything is fine, but weighing shows that the child is underweight. Mom waited too long and missed the moment when the child simply stopped asking for food due to exhaustion.

Second extreme:

A 7-month-old baby eats every hour, that is, about 20 times a day. This is, of course, an abnormal situation.

When we talk about feeding on demand, we mean that there is a certain interval between feedings. It varies depending on age:

for a newborn baby it is about 2 hours;
for a child older than 1 month - approximately 3 hours;
closer to 4 months - 3-3. 5 or 3.5-4 hours, each baby individually.

NORM - from 2 to 4 hours during the first year of a child's life, and you can deviate from this norm +/- for half an hour. If the intervals between feedings become very short (every hour) or very long (5-6 hours), we adjust them in order to stick to the norm and not go to extremes.

— If a child eats little, but often enough, then what regimen is more relevant for him?

- Little, but often - this is not quite normal. It is important to observe the daily amount of food. If a child consumes a daily norm that he needs by age, and at the same time eats little, but often, it means that either the mother does not have enough milk for the child to eat more and, accordingly, withstand long intervals, or the child is simply already used to it - He can't eat more at one time. In both cases, you need to try to slightly increase the intervals.

We can feed both on demand and on schedule - there is no fundamental difference here. But most likely, if we stay on demand, the baby will continue to feed every hour and his amount of food at a time will be quite small for his age. Therefore, you need to try to maintain a slightly longer interval between feedings and watch how much he will eat.

- There are situations when a child's regimen is disturbed for some reason - allergies, gastrointestinal upset. How soon can you return to your normal routine?

- By and large, the sooner you return to normal mode, the better. Do not worry too much if the child does not eat for several days according to the regimen, this will not affect your condition or the physical condition of the baby in any way. The most important thing is not through force and not aggressively, but very gently to return the child to the regime that he had. The clearer and longer the regime was, the easier it is to return to it.

— Why is it important to observe the feeding regimen?

— It is important to observe the feeding schedule:

For parents — so that the mother is not a “hostage” of the child and understands what will happen in the near future, could plan something or leave the house. This, it would seem, is not so important for the child, but it is important for the general climate in the family, so that the mother feels relatively free, not “tied hand and foot” to her baby.
For a baby - I am always for the regime and always urge parents to comply with it, because for a child everything should be predictable - he gets used to the order, is drawn into the regime and feels as comfortable as possible. Parents are comfortable when they know what will happen to them - and the baby is much easier when he knows that food or sleep is on schedule - his body begins to adjust accordingly.

— In what cases is it possible to move away from the usual feeding regimen?

— If it is possible not to deviate from the regime, then it is better not to deviate. But if this happened, do not worry, do not blame and do not reproach yourself, nothing critical will happen, even if the child does not eat according to the regimen for a couple of days. Just get back to your routine as quickly as possible and you'll be fine.

- Polina Alexandrovna, please give examples of the feeding regimen and daily diet for babies of different ages.

— There are a few things to consider when planning your baby's feeding schedule and diet.

The amount of food that the child should receive per day.
Many mothers, unfortunately, mistakenly believe that the daily volume depends only on the age of the baby. But there is no universal portion, it is more in line with the weight of the baby. So, two children of the same age, but of different weights, will need different amounts of food per day. Therefore, it is quite difficult to find clear instructions on how many milliliters at a time a child should eat in each case.
Feeding frequency.
In order to calculate the amount of food at one time, you need to know how much food you need per day and how many times the mother will feed the baby - that is, the frequency of his feedings. In this case, you should always focus on children's weight. I recommend scheduling meals with your pediatrician so that everything is tailored to your child's specific needs.
- for a 2-month-old baby - 6-7 times a day and +/- 120-150 ml of breast milk eaten per feeding,
- for a child 5-6 months - 5-6 times a day +/- 180-210 ml of breast milk eaten per feeding,

Feeding babies have larger servings, depending on weight and frequency of feedings. And you need to remember: complementary foods are not an additional amount of nutrition, it must fit into the daily norm, which corresponds to age and is redistributed between complementary foods and breast milk and / or mixture in different percentages.

A breastfeeding, formula-fed or formula-fed baby regimen is a great helper for mom and baby. The regime should not lead to additional difficulties in the family - sit with a stopwatch near the baby, wake him up at night when three hours have passed after feeding. If you adhere to the correct diet and sleep, then both the child and you will have an understanding of what will happen next at any given moment. This will make life easier for the whole family.

* Breast milk is the best food for babies. WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of a child's life and continued breastfeeding after complementary foods are introduced until the age of 2 years. Before introducing new products into the baby's diet, you should consult with a specialist. The material is for informational purposes and cannot replace the advice of a healthcare professional. For feeding children from birth. The product is certified.

Mode. Our child.

Content:

What is meant by strict and flexible regimen
Some parents misunderstand the flexibility of the regimen
How to establish a regimen
How to do it
Another regimen 9023 Feeding
Three Hour Interval
Night Feeding

The content of this chapter usually elicits an equal amount of positive and negative feedback. This is understandable: the tips and schedules below are categorically inappropriate for mothers who feed on demand and follow a natural style of child care. However, there are both regime babies and artificial children whose parents can learn something here. And we advise everyone, without exception, to read the very beginning: where did the four- and three-hour feeding regimen come from? The breath of history is immediately felt, and the half-century age of the book ceases to be its advantage - after all, today much more is known about children.

The pediatrician will explain what kind of diet your child needs. It will depend on the child's weight, his appetite, his sleep schedule, and his need for food. Your pediatrician can help you set up a routine that is right for you and your child. In what follows, I want to discuss only the general principles of nutrition.

What is meant by strict and flexible

Children used to be kept on a very strict diet. A newborn weighing 3. 5 kg was fed strictly at 6.00, 10.00, 14.00, 18.00, 22.00 and 2.00, neither earlier nor later, regardless of whether he was hungry or not. Doctors did not yet have a clear understanding of the causes of severe gastric diseases that afflict tens of thousands of newborns every year. It was believed that these diseases were caused not only by bacteria in the milk (for example, on dairy farms kept in unsanitary conditions, or due to the lack of refrigerators, or under unhygienic conditions at home), but also by the irregularity in the amount and time of eating.

Doctors were so afraid of irregular eating that they finally came to condemn it from a psychological point of view. They assured mothers that irregular eating habits lead to spoiled children. The most zealous defenders of the strict regime advised mothers to approach the child only at precisely set feeding times, and to ignore him at all other times. Some insisted that children should not be kissed or caressed, as this would supposedly spoil them.

Most children adjusted to the strict regimen as they could drink enough milk not to feel hungry for the next 4 hours; this is how the digestive tract of a newborn normally works. A person quickly gets used to everything at any age. If we are always fed at precisely set hours, then it is at these hours that we will feel hungry.

But there have always been children who found it very difficult to adapt to a strict regime in the first months. These are children whose stomachs could not hold enough milk for a 4-hour break, or those who fell asleep before they had time to get enough, or restless children, or those who were tormented by gases. They screamed desperately for several hours a day, but their mothers did not dare to feed them or even take them in their arms outside the schedule. The poor child had a hard life, but it was even harder for his mother, who listened to the cry of her baby, bit her nails in despair, tried with all her heart to console him, but did not dare to disobey the doctor, who assured that a strict regimen was the key to the health and happiness of the child.

Mothers of today are lucky that doctors have allowed them to follow their natural aspirations.

Moreover, severe gastric disorders have become rare, thanks to the pasteurization of milk, its proper storage and hygienic care of the child. It took many years before doctors decided to try a flexible feeding schedule. When a large number of observations were made, it turned out that the irregularity in nutrition did not lead to gastric disorders or indigestion, nor even to spoilage, as many feared.

The first experiments were carried out by Dr. Preston McLendon and Frances Simsarian with her child. The purpose of the experiment was to find out what regimen the breastfed baby himself would establish if he was fed as soon as he seemed to be hungry. In the first few days, the child did not wake up very often. Then, as his mother's milk arrived, he began to wake up too often, up to 10 times a day. By the time he was 2 weeks old, he had switched to six or seven meals a day at irregular intervals. By 10 weeks of age, he needed only four meals a day. When the results of this experiment were published, many parents breathed a sigh of relief and switched to a more flexible regimen, which had a positive effect on both children and parents.

Some parents misunderstand the flexibility of the regime

Some young parents who think they are very progressive have gone to the opposite extreme. They fed their child any time he woke up and never woke him up for the next feed, as if they were doing a science experiment, believing themselves to be experts in feeding regularity.

This approach will not be harmful if the child is calm, with good digestion and if this does not disturb the mother's regimen and she does not mind getting up to the child at night. But, if the baby is restless and cries often, then this can lead to too many feedings, so that during the first few months the parents will not know the rest. And some children may even at the end of the first year require milk at night. Such a situation may scare a young mother, and she will curse flexible mode.

I heard mothers talking about their children, and one of them said in a tone that allowed no objection: “My child is on flexible mode, and the other in exactly the same tone answered: “But mine is not!”. When parents reason

And the main thing is that the diet is necessary for the benefit of the child, on the one hand, and for the convenience of the parents, on the other The schedule saves you time and energy Flexibility means reducing the number of feedings to a reasonable amount at more or less certain hours and stopping nighttime feedings as soon as the baby is ready for it, otherwise the parents will be too tired to give the baby anything more than just what is good and convenient for parents is good and convenient for their child, and vice versa.0005

Since there is no need to follow a strict regimen, you can first obey the child's requirements, and then gradually establish a regimen that is convenient for both you and him.

If a mother chooses to feed her baby without a regimen for many months, there will be no harm to the baby's digestion. It will not harm the mother either, if she does not like schedules at all. But, if she sticks to the routine in everything else, and if she has many other things to do besides caring for the child, then does she really think that the more she gives up her comforts, the better for the child? Does she really think that in this way she proves that she is a good mother? Such self-sacrifice may eventually lead to other difficulties.

How to set up a routine

It is important not to make the baby cry for too long. He doesn't mind being woken up 3-4 hours after the last feeding.

Every child can get used to the routine and it will happen sooner if the mother helps him. In addition, the intervals between feedings increase as the baby's weight increases. A baby weighing 2.5 kg to 3 kg usually needs to be fed at 3-hour intervals, while those weighing 4-4. 5 kg usually have enough feedings with a 4-hour break. Most babies go without night feeds after 1-2 months. Between the fourth and eighth month, babies begin to prefer the 5-hour interval and at the same time they stop waking up for evening feeds.

The mother can help the child to achieve regular and reduced feedings. After waking him up 4 hours after the last feeding, the mother instills in the child the habit of a 4-hour gap in eating. If two hours after the last feeding, the baby begins to whimper, do not approach him for a while, give him the opportunity to fall asleep again. If he continues to cry, give him water or a pacifier. In this way, you will help his stomach to adjust to longer feeding intervals. If the mother feeds her baby immediately as soon as he moves, even if it has been no more than 2 hours since the last feeding, she will maintain his habit of small portions and short intervals.

Different children take different times to get used to regular meals. Most babies will switch to a 4-hour feeding interval by the age of one month and skip nighttime feedings if they are getting enough milk during the day and if they suckle well and are relatively calm. On the other hand, if the baby is inert in the early days and falls asleep in the middle of feeding, or, conversely, he is restless and often wakes up crying, or if the mother does not have enough breast milk at first, then it would be better for both you and the child not to rush into establishing a strict regimen. But even in this case, mothers should very gradually and carefully accustom the child to more regular meals with an interval of 4 hours.

How to do it

A calm baby, weighing 3.5-4 kg at birth, usually has intervals of 3.5-4 hours if he has a full stomach, and starts with six or seven feedings a day. Parents may have in mind a rough 4-hour meal schedule (6:00, 10:00, 14:00, 18:00, 22:00, 2:00), but they should be prepared to feed the baby earlier if he is clearly hungry: an hour earlier with heavy formula feeding and even 2 hours earlier when breastfeeding, if the mother does not yet have enough breast milk.

If your rough schedule is around feeding time and your baby is still sleeping, you can wake him up. You don't have to force him to eat. A child woken up four hours after the last meal will feel hungry in a few minutes.

But suppose he woke up an hour before the scheduled time. No need to feed him as soon as he starts whimpering. He himself is not yet sure whether he wants to eat. But if after 10-15 minutes he is screaming desperately from hunger, I would not wait a minute. But what about the regime then? Maybe he'll sleep longer next time and go back into night mode instead of daytime. If he always wakes up hungry an hour early, he may not be getting enough milk for the 4 hour interval. In this case, when breastfeeding, feed him more often, even after two hours, if he is clearly very hungry. More frequent emptying of the breast will stimulate its fullness, in a few days you will probably have enough milk and the baby will be full longer. If, when formula-fed, he drinks the entire portion and still regularly wakes up ahead of time, consult with your doctor about whether to increase his portion of milk.

When is the next time to feed the baby

I have already said that if the baby usually calmly maintains an interval of 4 hours, but sometimes wakes up after 3-3.5 hours, then he can be fed immediately, without waiting for the set time. But suppose he woke up an hour after his last meal. If he sucked the usual portion of milk, then he is unlikely to be hungry. Most likely he woke up from the fact that he was worried about gases. Help him burp air or give him water or a pacifier. I wouldn't feed him this early, but you can try if nothing else calms him down. You can't be sure that a baby is really hungry if he tries to suck his fist or drinks milk greedily. A child with gas usually behaves this way. It seems that the child himself cannot distinguish between hunger pains and pains caused by gases.

In other words, it is not always necessary to feed the baby as soon as he cries. If he cries often, try to find the reason, talk to your doctor.

Other feeding times

You can, of course, set other feeding times if your child does not mind. For example, 7.00, 11.00, 15.00, 19.00, 23.00 and 3.00. The trouble is that most children start their day between 5 and 6 o'clock in the morning, whenever they are fed at night. There are happy mothers whose children calmly wait for the first feeding until 7 o'clock in the morning, and then follow the usual schedule: 10.00, 14.00, 18.00, 22.00. This is also normal.

Three-hour interval

If your baby drinks as much milk as he wants and still wakes up after 3 hours, leave him on this mode for now. Usually a 3-hour interval is needed for children weighing less than 3.5 kg. But it is not always the case. Some children weighing about 3 kg can easily withstand 4 hours. And others with a weight of 4 kg in the first two weeks do not withstand an interval of more than 3 hours.

Most children who need a 3-hour interval during the day can survive 4 hours at night with a weight of at least 2.5 kg. In this case, the schedule will be approximately as follows: 6.00, 9.00, 12. 00, 15.00, 18.00, 22.00, 2.00.

Night feeding

The most important rule - do not wake up the child for night feeding, let him wake you up if he gets hungry. A baby who needs a night feed will first wake up almost exactly at 2 am. Then one day he will wake up around 3-3.30 am. Feed him at this time and consider it a nighttime feed. In the morning he will probably wake up at 6-7 o'clock. The next night he may sleep until 4:30 or 5:00 am. Feed him, but count it as a six-hour morning feed, and hope that the next time he wants to eat around 10 hours. It usually takes two or three nights for babies to get out of the habit of night feeding. When this happens, increase his daily portion of milk so that the total amount of it remains the same.

Skip night feeds

If the baby is already a month old and weighs about 4.5 kg, but still wakes up for night feeds, I think it would be wiser not to rush to him with milk as soon as he moves, but to let him cry 15-30 minutes, after which he may fall asleep again.