Feeding Patterns
A newborn baby has to learn even much an elementary thing as how to satisfy his own feeding instinct. He will probably want to be fed every two or three hours at first. Some babies soon settle down to less frequent feedings; others keep up their two-hourly demand for some weeks. It is best for the mother to accept this. If you are breast-feeding, do not let it panic you into giving up or going on to supplementary bottles until careful weighing shows that he is not putting on enough weight. Some babies are just fussy.
Gradually a baby learns to tolerate near fullness and near emptiness. You should not let him become desperately hungry or anxiously push breast or bottle into his mouth every time he makes the smallest fuss. Let him learn that when he makes reasonable demands they will be met.
A two-month- old baby will usually have settled down to six feedings a day, about four hours apart. You can adjust the schedule to fit in with the life style or your family. Ten, two, six, and two o’clock are common feeding times in the day if the American family, but flexibility is important for all concerned.