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Q.
How
often should a newborn be nursed?
A.
You
should nurse a newborn no less than 8 times a day, depending upon how
long he
sleeps between feedings at night. If he
can go four hours between feedings, then you will probably feed him
twice
between 11pm and 7am. If you feed him
right before he goes to bed, then you may only have to get up one time
during
the night.
Q.
How
often should an older baby be nursed?
A.
Depending upon the age of your child, you should be feeding him every
3-4 hours
during the day. As your child gets
older, they will nurse less, but they will be eating more during each
nursing. If you are going to nurse after
your child is over 6 months old, you should not nurse less than 5 times
a
day. If your milk supply is decreasing,
then you may need to add a nursing or two to your day to help increase
your
milk supply.
Q.
How
do I go about dropping a feeding as my baby gets older?
A.
The
most common change that moms need to make is going from a every 3 hour
to every
4 hour routine, dropping a feeding in the middle of the night, or
dropping a
late-night feeding.
Most
of the time you will know when your baby is ready to change their
eating habits
by a change in their sleep patterns. A
baby that has been on an every 3 hour routine normally takes 3 naps a
day and
if they eat every 3,5 to 4 hours then they may drop the last nap of the
nap or
shorten one of the other naps considerably. Babies
are usually ready to do this at around 3 months of age.
Most
babies drop the feeding in the middle of night by themselves at around
6-14
weeks old. You will know that they are
ready when you awake in a panic in the morning wondering why your baby
did not
get you for a feeding. The baby will
require more food during the day though, and if you are breastfeeding,
your
breasts may feel full for a few days, but it is well worth it!
The
late night feeding is usually the hardest to let go of.
Some parents think that if they do not feed
the baby right before bed that the baby will awake in the middle of the
night. If you don’t think your child can
do without the late night feeding, then push it back in 15-minute
increments
until you are feeding him at the time you would like to.
If the last two feedings of the day seem too
close together, don’t worry. It will all
work itself out and you both will be much happier for it!
EXPOSURE
OF INFANTS TO OPEN AIR
The
respiration of a pure air is at all times, and under all circumstances,
indispensable to the health of the infant. The nursery therefore should
be
large, well ventilated, in an elevated part of the house, and so
situated as to
admit a free supply both of air and light. For the same reasons, the
room in
which the infant sleeps should be large, and the air frequently
renewed; for
nothing is so prejudicial to its health as sleeping in an impure and
heated
atmosphere. The practice, therefore, of drawing thick curtains closely
round
the bed is highly pernicious; they only answer a useful purpose when
they
defend the infant from any draught of cold air.
The
proper time for taking the infant into the open air must, of course, be
determined by the season of the year, and the state of the weather. "A
delicate infant born late in the autumn will not generally derive
advantage
from being carried into the open air, in this climate, till the
succeeding
spring; and if the rooms in which he is kept are large, often changed,
and well
ventilated, he will not suffer from the confinement, while he will,
most
probably, escape catarrhal affections, which are so often the
consequence of
the injudicious exposure of infants to a cold and humid atmosphere."
If,
however, the child is strong and healthy, no opportunity should be lost
of
taking it into the open air at stated periods, experience daily proving
that it
has the most invigorating and vivifying influence upon the system.
Regard,
however, must always be had to the state of the weather; and to a damp
condition of the atmosphere the infant should never be exposed, as it
is one of
the most powerful exciting causes of consumptive disease. The
nurse-maid, too,
should not be allowed to loiter and linger about, thus exposing the
infant
unnecessarily, and for an undue length of time; this is generally the
source of
all the evils which accrue from taking the babe into the open air. Read about how to cure Infant Colic .
Note:
While every
care is taken to provide medically accurate and up to date information
in this web site, it is to be noted that this advice is not intended to
replace the advice of your physician. Before undertaking the advice
contained in this web site, you should consult a medical professional.
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