Every parent wants to do everything within their power to safeguard their child’s health. Breastfeeding is crucial to ensuring that your baby grows up strong and healthy. Breastmilk is considered the best food for a newborn, which contains a range of nutrients, such as vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, and protein.
However, breastfeeding doesn’t always go smoothly, especially if you’re a new mum. In such a case, it’s highly recommended that you employ the help of either a full time or part time confinement nanny in Singapore to assist and guide you on the ins and outs of caring for a newborn.
One of the questions you may ask your confinement nanny is how to know if your baby is receiving sufficient breast milk. This article briefly discusses some of the most important things you need to know about breastfeeding, particularly the different signs that your newborn needs more breast milk.
How much breast milk should a newborn consume?
Following their first sleepy 24 hours, most newborns nurse at least 8 to 12 times daily, every 2 to 3 hours. If your newborn falls asleep in the middle of breastfeeding, you may need to gently wake them up to feed them. You should also do this if your baby has been asleep for over 4 hours since their last feeding.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and other pediatric experts, it’s highly recommended that you feed your newborn every time they show early indications of hunger, such as rooting around for your nipple or smacking their lips.
The length of time that a baby nurse at every session varies individually. Some babies will fill their small tummies in as quick as 5 minutes, while others may take an hour or more to finish feeding. Nonetheless, breastfeeding babies generally nurse for up to 20 minutes or more on either or both breasts, while the older ones usually take 5 to 10 minutes on each breast.
Warning Signs Your Baby Is Not Getting Enough Breastmilk
There are numerous ways to tell if your newborn is getting adequate breast milk. While most mums can provide their newborns with all the milk they need, there are still times when the babies do not get enough. If the issue is not addressed, a newborn can suffer from dehydration or may fail to thrive – problems that do not often occur but are serious.
If you’re concerned that your newborn is not getting sufficient milk, you should consult a doctor immediately. Here are some of the significant warning signs that your newborn is not getting the adequate amount of breastmilk they need:
1. Not wetting their diapers often
Your doctor, midwife, or confinement nanny would probably advise you to monitor your newborn’s diaper changes. This is because the number of times your baby wets their diaper in a day is a good indicator of whether they’re receiving sufficient milk. Generally, during the first few days after delivery, babies should wet their diapers at least twice or thrice daily.
After the first 4 to 5 days, your baby should be able to wet at least 6 diapers daily. If they’re already one week old, their urine must be pale yellow or colourless. Pale or clear urine indicates that your baby is getting enough liquid. Conversely, if their urine is more concentrated, it’s likely a sign that your newborn is low on fluids.
2. Fewer bowel movements
One of the crucial things you must monitor is your baby’s bowel movements. In their first two days, your newborn must have at least 1 or 2 bowel movements per day, and their stools should be black and tarry. On their 3rd and 4th days, your newborn should then have at least 2 bowel movements with stools that are green or mustard yellow in colour.
Your newborn should have a minimum of 3 to 4 bowel movements each day by the time they are one week old. At this point, their stools must also be loose and yellow in colour.
Basically, as you increase your milk production, your newborn may also take a dump after each feeding.
3. Not gaining weight
Most babies lose up to 7% of their weight at birth, which they typically gain back by the time they’re 2 weeks old. After regaining the weight they initially lost, your baby should continue to grow in weight. Newborns typically gain around 6 to 8 ounces per week during their first 4 months. From their 4th to 7th months, your baby should acquire around 4 to 6 ounces each week.
Your child’s weight should be doubled by the time they’re five months old. By their first birthday, they should be thrice the amount of their birth weight. To ensure that your newborn is growing at an appropriate and steady rate over time, their doctor will likely chart their weight on a growth chart.
Conclusion
Breastfeeding is undoubtedly an essential part of a newborn’s growth. Breast milk is the most appropriate, nutritious, and excellent food your baby needs, especially in the first year of their life. Because of this, it is essential to ensure that your precious newborn gets sufficient breastmilk, which their body requires to grow healthy and strong.
Part of ensuring that your baby gets enough breast milk is making sure that your milk supply is adequate. In any case, if you’re not producing enough milk, it’s a sure sign that your baby isn’t receiving the nutrition they require either. For this purpose, you might need the assistance of a reliable confinement nanny. Aside from caring for your newborn, a confinement nanny can also help prepare all the foods required to increase your milk production.
To find the most knowledgeable and trusted nanny, NannyStreet is here to help you! We are a seasoned confinement nanny agency in Singapore with an elaborate hiring process that assists parents in finding the most ideal nannies for their needs. Don’t hesitate to contact us anytime to learn more about how we can help you!