Trouble with Latching?

Trouble with latching?

Are you in pain?

When you first start breastfeeding your breasts may feel tender, but it shouldn’t be painful. If breastfeeding hurts, your baby may be sucking only on the nipple. 

To find out, check what your nipple looks like when it comes out of your baby’s mouth. Your nipple should not look flat or compressed. It should look round and long, or the same shape it was before the feeding.

If your baby is only sucking on the nipple, gently break their suction by placing a clean finger in the corner of their mouth, then try again to get your baby to latch on wide, around the areola.

Are you or your baby frustrated?

Take a short break and hold your baby in an upright position.

Try holding your baby between your breasts with your skin touching their skin. Talk or sing to your baby or give them one of your fingers to suck on for comfort. Try to breastfeed again in a little while.

Does your baby have a weak suck or make only tiny suckling movements?

Your baby may not have a deep enough latch to suck the milk from your breast. Gently break your baby’s suction and try again.

Could your baby be tongue-tied?

The lingual frenulum is a piece of tissue that keeps the tongue attached to the bottom of the mouth. If it’s too tight or too short, it can make it hard for a baby to breastfeed. This is often described as being “tongue tied”.

This can cause slow weight gain in the baby and nipple pain in the mother. If you think your baby may be tongue-tied, talk to your healthcare provider.

Feeding a 6-7 Month Old

Feed solids with a spoon and from a bowl, never from a bottle.

Feeding a 10-12 Month Old

Breast milk is the most important source of nutrition for your baby, even after you start offering solid foods.

Feeding a 8-9 Month Old

Feed solids with a spoon. Never put cereal in a bottle.

Tips

Mom new born home

Breast milk and formula feeding:

Around 2-3 weeks, 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months of age, babies may experience a growth spurt when they feed more often.

As they grow babies can hold more milk, so feedings may become further apart and take less time.

To prevent choking, always hold your baby when feeding. Never prop up a bottle to feed.

Start offering whole milk when your baby is one year old.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months and that breastfeeding continue for at least 12 months and beyond.

feeding solid foods

Feeding solid foods:

Wait to offer solid foods until your baby:

  • Can sit up and hold up their own head.
  • Opens their mouth when they see food.
  • Can close their lips around a spoon.

To prevent choking, always hold your baby when feeding. Never prop up a bottle to feed.

Try one new food at a time. Wait 5 days before trying another new food to watch for allergies. Food allergies may include wheezing, rash, or diarrhea.

Introduce peanut butter around 6 months. Spread a small, thin smear of peanut butter or nut butter thinly on a cracker.  Watch your baby for any reaction for the next 2 hours.

Babies under one year should NOT have honey due to the risk of botulism. Also, babies should not have foods that can cause choking like nuts or whole grapes.

All babies are different. Talk with WIC or your baby’s healthcare provider about your baby’s needs.

Feeding Cues

Feeding a 4-5 Month Old

Before teeth come in, wipe gums with a soft, clean wash cloth after each feeding, especially before bed.

Feeding a 0-3 Month Old

Newborns have tiny tummies and need to be fed often. In the first few weeks, you may need to wake your baby to feed if they sleep longer than 4 hours.

Growth Spurts

Many babies are fussy during a growth spurt and will want to nurse longer and more often. This is called cluster feeding. This is your baby’s way of helping you increase your milk supply so that you can keep up with their needs. Remember, the more your baby nurses, the more milk your body makes.

Growth spurts can happen at any time, and every baby is different.

They often happen at these ages:

two-three-weeks

2 to 3 Weeks

6 Weeks

three-months

3 Months

six-months

6 Months

What foods can I get?

Authorized Food List
Authorized Food List

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