Breastfeeding - Night Feedings

Don't forget to feed your baby at night!

• A breastfed baby may receive about one third of her or his nutrition from night feeding.
• A young baby will not know day from night. Expect to wake up frequently early on.
• During this frequent waking period, it is in the best interest of everyone to sleep with the baby. At least, have the baby in your room.
  • Nurseries are for the parents, not the baby. The baby would be much happier, safer, and better fed in the parents' arms or bed.
• Breastfed babies are said to wake up more often at night than artificially fed babies. Don't let this discourage you from breastfeeding.
  • If you sleep with your baby, it's easy to nurse at night. You don't even have to wake up fully. Just roll over and latch on your baby. When your baby is a little older, she or he may even manage to latch on and nurse without any help from you. No need to make a hungry baby wait for her or his food. It's always ready, always clean and safe and at the right temperature. Everyone is happy and relaxed when a nursing baby sleeps in the parents' bed.
  • Hormones that your body produces when you nurse your baby have a relaxing effect. These hormones help you sleep better. If you breastfeed at night, you may be surprised to find yourself better rested the next morning!
  • A formula-feeding parent would need to get out of bed and warm a bottle. Even with one of the expensive bottle-warmer gadgets, you need to wait for the bottle to warm up. Your baby might be crying frantically by this time. Then, you need to calm down the baby, hold the bottle, and burp the baby when she or he is done. Everyone is awake and upset by now.
  • Do you know why an artificially fed baby goes longer between feeds (around four hours) than a breastfed baby? It's because artificial breastmilk substitutes contain fats and especially proteins that are hard for the baby to digest. Your baby takes a long time to digest those proteins. Those are the same proteins that can cause food allergies and increase the risk of childhood asthma. Your artificially fed baby is in constant gastric distress. Are you sure you want to do this to your baby just so you get to sleep a little longer? Don't forget that if you breastfeed you'll definitely sleep better if shorter (see above)!
  • Don't even think of putting your baby to bed with a bottle of juice, milk, or formula! This may cause dental cavities and, especially if your child has asthma (which is more likely in a bottle-fed child), inhalation pneumonia.

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