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Should babies be put on feeding schedules or fed on demand?

Results so far:

Schedules		33%	278 votes	Total: 845 votes
On demand		67%	567 votes	Total: 845 votes

Schedules

1 of 10

by Emmy Daniels

Like many things in life, feeding your baby takes common sense.

There are many people who advocate feeding on a strict schedule. To them, the clock makes the decision, and they wait until the appointed time, even if their baby shows hunger signs before then.

On the other side are the demand feed crowd. To them, a baby should be fed each and every time they are hungry, whether it has been three hours or 30 minutes since the last feeding.

I believe that feeding a baby is best done with a combination of these methods. A schedule should be made to allow the baby to regulate a hunger pattern, but a baby's hunger cues should not be ignored, even if they don't follow a schedule.

For example, a newborn baby needs to be fed every two and a half hours or so, if breastfed, and every four hours or so if bottle fed. This is a good goal to work with. A newborn should not go longer than the two and a half hours between meals, lest the mother's milk supply get too low.

However, newborns are very sleepy. Therefore, it is sometimes difficult to get a newborn infant to eat a full meal without falling asleep. What often happens is that the baby will nurse for a few minutes and then fall asleep. He will sleep for an hour or less, and then wake up hungry again. This happens on and off all day, and the mother ends up nursing her baby every hour on the hour.

This was the case with my firstborn. As a new mother, I was told to feed on demand. I thought that meant every time the baby cried, I had to feed him. This is the main problem with the "demand feed" idea. Inexperienced mothers have a hard time determining if the baby is really hungry or if he is crying for some other reason. I ended up with very little sleep, and both me and my son were unhappy.

Finally, I read a book about this subject, and there was some advice that I followed that literally changed my life. The book, "On Becoming Babywise" by Gary Ezzo, suggests that the mother try to keep the baby awake long enough to take a full feeding, and then she should keep her baby awake for a short while after eating. When the child is put to bed, he should be awake.

This system does several things. First, it allows the baby to get a full feeding during the mealtime, instead of having small "snacks" all day. This is good for baby and mother. The baby feels satisfied for longer periods, and the mother's milk comes in better when her breasts are emptied during a feeding.

Second, it allows the baby to regulate his sleep and hunger. Although babies do know, to some degree, when they are hungry, snacking all day confuses a baby's system. So do taking small naps all day as opposed to longer, more restful naps.

And third, it teaches a baby how to fall asleep on his own. Babies who are nursed to sleep have a hard time learning how to fall asleep without a "prop," as the book calls it.

Once I starting using this method, I was amazed at the difference. At first it was hard to keep my son awake for the full half-hour feeding time, but it was worth the effort. Within two weeks, my son was eating on a two and a half hour feeding schedule and taking good naps. By just over two months of age, he was sleeping seven hours at night, and by three months old, he was sleeping ten to twelve hours a night.

I was happier, because I could actually get some sleep, and my son was happier because he was well-rested and well-fed.

The biggest caution I have with this, though, is to make sure you are not ignoring your baby's hunger cues. There were some times, such as during a growth spurt, that my son would be hungry a little bit sooner than the two and a half hours. I would feed him when he was hungry and adjust his schedule. Usually, after a few days, he would get back on his normal schedule. Just make sure that you don't feed your baby just because he is crying. Learn to read your baby. Some babies cry when they are over stimulated or held too much. With time, you will be able to recognize your baby's cues and can act accordingly.

It is possible to have a schedule and to feed your baby when he is hungry. Having a schedule helps to get the baby on a healthy feeding routine, and as long as you are following his cues, I believe it is the best way to feed your baby.

Learn more about this author, Emmy Daniels.
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On demand

1 of 31

by Sangay Glass

As a lactation coach, I've taught many new mom's how to breastfeed their babies, and a major concern for them is how or when to schedule feedings.

Let's look at the concept of how scheduling came in to practice.

Prior to the 1950s women mainly delivered in the home and breastfed their babies. The idea to schedule feedings didn't even cross a new mom's mind because it was common knowledge that when a baby cries it's hungry, soiled, hot, cold, or tired. Take care of these needs and you were golden.

Then the baby boomers came up with the notion that moms needed to be placed on bed rest after birth which gave the emerging formula companies a great idea. Nurses could bottle feed the newborns giving mom a well deserved rest which would boost sales.

How is that?

The thing about nurses is that they adhere to schedules to make sure they get things done. And knowing that babies often cried about 2 hours for food, it only made sense to use that as a base.

The thing about breastfeeding is that if mom doesn't do it for a few days her milk dries up, and if a baby is given a bottle before learning to suckle it will prefer the free flow of the bottle's nipple compared to the hard work of sucking.

By the 1960's more and more rested mom's were being sent home with plump bottle fed babies on strict schedules and breastfeeding became socially unfashionable.

I'm glad to see the breastfeeding has made a comeback.

In 2001 Matthew Gillman, MD, associate professor at Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care did a study that showed breastfeeding significantly protects babies from obesity later in life.

The reason for this is that scheduled feedings (most commonly associated with bottle fed babies) interrupts a baby's natural instinct to eat when hungry and stop when full.

There is no doubt about it that by not learning to recognize hunger and satiety our society has gotten bigger since the hitting the bottle.

Scheduling feeding is unnecessary and not beneficial to a child's health in infancy and later in life when they begin to make verbal demands for food. Especially since toddlers use these very same schedules to turn feeding time into means of controlling their environment.

So without schedules how can you tell if your infant might be hungry before they cry?

1)Their mouths open wide and their head turns toward your hand when you touch their cheek.
2)They wiggle around moving their limbs restlessly.
3)They make sucking or smacking sounds.
4)They suck on their fingers or hands.
5)They give fussy warning cries that stop when you go to them.
5)Older babies may grab or point to things associated with food (cabinets)

Now there are times you might want to bring the baby to breast before he/she is hungry.

Say you're going shopping and leaving the baby with someone for a short time. It's fine to make sure the baby is fueled up before leaving.

Another very important time is if the baby is sick. Always consult you pediatrician about fevers and diarrhea. Still, offering the breast more often will help keep the baby from dehydrating since a sick babies may prefer to sleep more than eat.

Also, it is recommended that mothers don't stop feeding during "milk fever" or breast infections that occur a few days after the milk begins to flow. Even though you may have to start antibiotics consult both your obstetrician and pediatrician so they both are aware of the situation and can provide the safest method of treatment.

Allowing your infant to feed on demand will create a happy healthy adult who understands their body's signals and listens to them.

Don't put you baby's health on the line by putting their feedings on a schedule.

Learn more about this author, Sangay Glass.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.