Right on Cue

Can You Breastfeed on a Schedule?

By Gwen Morrison

In a 1997 breastfeeding statement, which was confirmed and revised in2005, The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that newborns should be nursed whenever they show signs of hunger. Those signs include increased alertness, activity, mouthing or rooting. Some call this 'demand feeding', while others classify it as 'feeding on cue'.

Whatever they call it, letting Baby call the shots on feeding times might seem daunting for some mothers, especially those comforted by schedule. With the right information and preparation, even the most routine-laden mothers can lessen any anxiety they feel when feeding on demand.

Nancy Mohrbacher, an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) in Arlington Heights, Ill., and co-author of The Breastfeeding Answer Book (La Leche League International, 1997), explains that while milk production is being established during the first six weeks, research indicates that the more times per day the milk is drained from the breasts, the more milk is produced. "Limited feedings by following a schedule during this critical time can limit or reduce a mother's milk supply," she says. "Also, babies are not normally comfortable feeding at set intervals during their first six weeks, because their stomachs are so small."

According to Mohrbacher, the normal feeding pattern during this early period is called "cluster nursing." This means that babies tend to cluster their feedings close together, showing feeding cues every hour or less for part of the day and then going for longer stretches at other times of the day.

"New mothers who are unaware that this is normal often wrongly assume that they don't have enough milk," Mohrbacher says. "What's important during this period is not that babies go two to three hours between feedings, but that babies get the right number of feedings overall."

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