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When is it necessary to wake a sleeping baby to eat and when is it OK to allow baby to sleep? Use common sense and follow your pediatrician's advice to help you decide.
There are a few reasons to wake a sleeping baby. These include establishing mom’s milk supply if she is breastfeeding, ensuring baby is growing appropriately, and helping baby learn the difference between day and night. Establishing Mom’s Milk SupplyThe first reason to wake a sleeping baby to eat is to ensure that mom’s milk comes in and supply is established. Ensuring that baby wakes to eat every 2 hours or so during those first few days of baby’s life outside of the womb will help trigger mom’s hormones to transition from providing baby with colostrum to providing milk. During those first few days of life, baby may be tough to waken or keep awake for nursing, but it is very important to do so. Some ideas to help waken or keep a sleepy baby awake long enough to finish a feeding include:
Ensuring Proper Baby GrowthBabies lose up to 10% of their birth weight before mom’s milk comes in, and then they must regain that and continue to grow at an appropriate rate to remain healthy. Your baby’s doctor will be the one to tell you whether your baby is growing appropriately or if you must wake your sleeping baby more frequently to eat. On average, babies need to eat every 2-3 hours during the first weeks of life. Some babies will tend to sleep longer during the night and others will continue to wake every 2-3 hours all day and all night to eat. If your baby wants to sleep through the night, you may or may not be able to let her do so depending on what her pediatrician allows based on her growth and overall health. Baby Sleeps All Day and is Awake All NightBy waking a sleeping baby during the day to eat, you will train your baby that day time is for playing and eating and night time is for sleeping. If your baby wants to nap for several hours during the day, you may choose to let her do so, but you risk her confusing her days and nights if you do not attempt to keep baby on a fairly regular feeding schedule during the day instead of allowing her to sleep as long as she would like to. If you are concerned about the amount of food your baby is getting in a day, talk with your baby’s doctor to find out how often you should be waking your baby up to eat. Also, trust your instincts. If baby continually has to be woken up for her next “scheduled” feeding time, maybe it is time to go 3-4 hours between feedings instead of waking baby every 2 hours.
The copyright of the article When to Wake a Sleeping Baby in Infant & Toddler Health is owned by Jennifer Wagaman. Permission to republish When to Wake a Sleeping Baby in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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