When you first start breastfeeding your baby, you may wonder exactly how much milk he or she is getting, and maybe even worry about it. Don’t worry, here are a few tips you can observe to ease your worries.
Colostrum, your first milk, is produced in small quantities. In fact, it averages 27 ml in the first 24 hours, gradually increasing each day as your baby starts to suckle. Because newborns have very small stomachs, they will be satisfied with 7 – 14 ml of milk (a teaspoon is 5 ml). As your milk starts to come in full, your baby’s stomach expands to take larger amounts (from about 500 ml every 24 hours in the first months to about 750 ml every 24 hours by the end of 3 months).
As your bond develops, you will begin to recognize the different sounds and movements your baby makes. Your baby may make sucking sounds by putting his/her hands to his/her mouth, stick out his/her tongue and lick, turn his/her head from side to side as if looking for a breast (this is also called ‘searching’) or be fussy. Crying is an advanced sign of hunger.
Signs that your baby is sucking well:
- He rests his chin on your breast and takes the breast with his mouth full.
- It doesn’t hurt (except for tenderness during the first suckles).
- If areola is visible, it is more protruding from your baby’s upper lip than from the lower lip.
- Her cheeks remain rounded during sucking.
- Your baby releases the breast on its own when it has finished sucking.
Although it is not easy to determine exactly how much milk your baby is getting from the breast, continued weight gain (after the first two weeks) and agility are signs that your baby is getting enough. One way to tell if your baby is getting enough nutrition is to check your baby’s diaper. If the diaper is wet every time you open it, this indicates good fluid intake, while poop in the diaper indicates that your baby is getting enough calories. By the time your baby is four days old, you should be changing at least three diapers with a little poop (the size of a metal 1 lira) and about six wet diapers a day. Your baby’s poop color will change from dark black in the first few days to green and then to yellow. This mustard green poop is typically the consistency of thick soup, runny and shapeless. You can consult your doctor if you have any questions.