Breastfeeding

Your newborn baby will need to breastfeed 8 or more times in 24 hours. Your baby will show you signs when they are hungry. These signs are called feeding cues. Learning to recognize your infant’s more subtle, early feeding cues can reduce your child’s need to cry to let you know they are hungry. Responding earlier can also help your child feel well cared for, can strengthen your bond with your baby, and often results in calmer feeding times. Early feeding cues, include:

• Awakening
• Soft sounds
• Mouthing (licking lips or sticking tongue out)
• Rooting (turning the head and opening the mouth)
• Hand to mouth movements.

You can breastfeed your baby for as long as your baby wants to feed. The time of each feeding will vary depending on the time of day, your baby’s level of hunger, and the number of distractions in their environment. Some babies feed for 20 minutes, other babies need more time to complete a feed.

At each feed, offer your baby the breast they finished on during their last feed. Switch to the other breast once your breast is empty or when baby is no longer sucking actively. It is important to allow your baby to completely empty one breast before switching to the other breast to ensure they are getting the nutrient-dense hind milk. Having your baby feed from both breasts regularly is important for establishing and maintaining your breast milk supply.

Breastfeeding should not be painful. If you are experiencing pain with breastfeeding, contact a breastfeeding professional for support. Pain with breastfeeding is often the result of a shallow latch. Follow the steps below to improve your baby’s latch.

Look for the following signs to make sure your baby is getting enough breast milk:

• Your baby feeds at least 8 times every 24 hours.
• Your baby is active and has a strong cry.
• Your baby has a wet, pink mouth, and bright eyes.
• Your baby has enough wet and dirty diapers, according to their age (see chart below).

   This chart is available in multiple languages here.

Your baby’s primary healthcare provider (i.e., doctor or nurse practitioner) will also track their growth as another way to make sure that your baby is getting the right amount of breast milk. Your baby’s growth should be monitored one to two weeks after birth and at two, four, six, nine, 12, 18 and 24 months of age and every year after age two. Your baby’s primary healthcare provider may monitor your child’s growth more frequently if there is a feeding concern.

If you notice signs that feeding is not going well, especially if your baby is not producing the recommended number of wet and dirty diapers, seek medical attention.

For information about hand expressing, pumping, and storing breast milk safely, review the following fact sheet:

Expressing and Storing Breast Milk (Best Start, 2020). Also available in French.

Note: you will need to scroll down past the Breastfeeding Matters resource to access the fact sheets. 

For information on preventing and managing these breastfeeding challenges, review the following fact sheets:

Blocked Ducts (Best Start, 2020) This fact sheet explains what causes a blocked milk duct and what you can do to help.

Breast Infection (Mastitis) (Best Start, 2020) Outlines the signs and symptoms of mastitis, when to seek treatment, and other tips to help.

Thrush (Best Start, 2020) Describes the signs, symptoms, and treatment for thrush.

Note: you will need to scroll down past the Breastfeeding Matters resource to access the fact sheets.

Sore Nipples (international Breastfeeding Centre, 2021).  This is a resource, from Dr. Jack Newman, outlines the most common causes of sore nipples and what you can to do to help.