There is a whole world in my mother's breast.
For him, this communication, protection, tenderness and a huge range of pleasant sensations. Even in a dream, he makes sucking movements, this indicates that food for him now is the main joy in life. That's why doctors attach such importance to breastfeeding, because sucking on the maternal breast is very important for the psychoemotional comfort and development of the child. Sensation of warmth, mother's smell helps to adapt to infants in a new, unfamiliar world. The first idea about life and about people the baby receives from the environment in which he feeds, from the person who feeds him. For quite a long time there was an opinion that babies from birth should be accustomed to strict daily routine and fed only at the agreed hours. It was believed that irregular eating leads to gastrointestinal disorders, and also provokes the development of such qualities as selfishness, spoiled. However, supporters of strict regime always had an opposition - moms, who fed the kids not by watch, but on demand. At the same time, the children were no more sick than their "regime" brethren, they were quite full and happy.
In protection of newborns
One of the main needs of infants is the need for nutrition. And, like an adult, every little man has his own desires and possibilities. The stomach of the crumb is very small, it is not yet able to immediately digest a sufficient amount of milk (enough to not suffer from hunger for a long time). In addition, sucking for crumbs is not an easy job, and some babies get so tired that they fall asleep without having enough time to eat. Therefore, a break of 4 hours may be too large for a baby. It is more convenient for him to eat in small portions, but more often. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends feeding the baby on demand. That is, pay attention to the signals that the child himself gives, and put it on the breast in time. And the feeding should not be limited either in duration or in quantity in accordance with the principles of "natural parenting" in the first time after the birth of a crumb, the behavior of the mother should be based on instincts, and not on a strictly regulated regime.
Benefits for Mom
During the first days of life, the baby can be applied to the breast very often. After all, every feeding for him is also an act of communication: he then sucks intensively at the breast, then slowly sucks it in half-sleep. Thus, the crumb stimulates natural lactation. It is known that the amount of mother's milk directly depends on the activity of the child. The more sucking babies, the more milk is produced. This means that the lactation period is prolonged. Breastfeeding on demand is useful not only for the baby, but for the mother. It is noticed that often breastfeeding moms almost never have milk stagnation. In addition, due to the stimulation of the breast, the uterus rapidly contracts and, as a consequence, its complete recovery after delivery. In addition, intense sucking burns extra calories, and Mom quickly loses kilograms collected during pregnancy. So for mom in feeding crumbs on demand solid pluses.
Why do you need a habit?
Of course, it is more convenient for mom when the baby lives with her in the same rhythm. In this case, she practically does not have to adapt to the child. Mom-owl will feel more comfortable if she moves the feeding to a later time, and mum-lark is more convenient to feed early. Naturally, the baby can be accustomed to his regime of the day, the baby will quickly form a conditioned reflex. However, in this case, the crumb will ask to eat not because he was hungry, but only because he was so used to it. Doctors have found that such an "optimization of the process" inevitably leads to a change in the natural balance in the baby's body. The consequence may be a metabolic disorder, the emergence of chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. The baby will grow up, and the bad habit will remain with him. He can not really appreciate his appetite and will start "revenge" from the table all indiscriminately, or fall into the other extreme - he will only choose "tasty". Experts of the European Association of Psychotherapists, studying the issue of breastfeeding, came to this conclusion: if the baby is fed strictly according to the regime, then in time he will begin to lose appetite and begin to protest, in order to avoid unwanted feeding. His curiosity for life will begin to disappear, and he will have an installation: "Life is a struggle." You can trust or not this statement, in any case, one thing is obvious - feeding the crumb costs only when he is really hungry. And he will "tell" you about this, most importantly, monitor his reaction. Let the food remain for the kid pleasure, but not a regulated process.
Individual approach
How to be in this situation, can you take into account the wishes of both mother and baby? Of course, you can, but you need to do this gradually. Each child needs different time to get used to regular nutrition. In the first months of life the baby will eat often. The baby should be applied to the breast 15-20 times a day. But do not worry, this does not mean that it will have to be fed all day and night. All feedings will be different in duration. For example, if the baby wants to drink, he will suck his breast for only 5 minutes. So-called front milk is low-fat and perfectly quenches thirst. If the baby is hungry, the feeding can last 2 hours. Do not worry that miss the moment when the baby is full. He just stops sucking and falls asleep. Also, you should not be reinsured and hurry to offer a second breast to a crumb. The baby can get less "late" milk, the most nutritious, rich in fat, and therefore, not eat. In addition, a full sucking of one breast supports a good work of the intestine crumbs. Observe the measure in everything.
It's too early to go to the regime if:
• The baby is passive and falls asleep very quickly during feeding;
• The baby is restless and often wakes up with weeping;
• The mother does not have enough breast milk.
To regular food, crumbs are taught very carefully. If he sleeps longer than 4.5 hours, gently wake and nourish the crumbs. However, if the baby wakes up very hard, its behavior is dissatisfaction, wait. Hence, he is not yet ready for your daily routine.
Almost adult life
Many moms are worried: suddenly the baby is undernourished. There is a simple formula that will help to understand if enough milk is eaten by the baby: the child must recruit at least 500 grams per month. If so, then the baby is full, healthy, and you should not worry. Feed him when he asks: a little man feels hunger no worse than you. Here is the scheme of feeding the baby on demand: After 3 months, most of the children are already developing their own regimen. Mom becomes much easier to navigate and adjust to the rhythm of life crumbs. Already at this age the child's character begins to manifest itself: the energetic sanguine person eats often, but slightly (about every 2 hours), the slow phlegmatic person eats thoroughly, at once a lot, but much less often (every 3-4 hours). Most of the children begin to dispense with this time without night feeding. And by 5-6 months the interval between feedings increases to 5 hours. The baby is very sensitive to any changes, be it a weather change or a change in the mood of the mother, because of this, even the established regime can go astray. But if the mother is attentive to her child, the habitual regime will be preserved. When the baby grows a bit, it will be enough for him to have 5-6 feedings per day. In addition to eating, he will have many interesting and exciting activities. He will begin to study the surrounding world more actively, to communicate. To calm down, he will no longer need to be attached to the mother's breast, enough to embrace her, and he can communicate with the pope and other close people. Listen to your child and trust your instinct, he will not let you down. And the baby will grow up happy and healthy.