What To Watch For Early On

When you bring your first newborn home from the hospital, it can be pretty overwhelming, to say the least. As a new parent, you have probably purchased many things to help with your baby like diapers, fancy trash cans, car seats, strollers, and so on. It’s safe to say you’re pretty well prepared for handling those aspects of taking care of a tiny baby. However, what can you buy that will help you prepare for understanding when your baby is hungry and needing food? We wish we could tell you that there is a fancy new gizmo that will help you learn exactly when and how much to feed your newborn, but there just isn’t. Until that day comes, the next best thing is to learn the signs yourself and go from there. That’s exactly what today’s blog is about! We’ll walk through the common signs of hunger in a newborn and offer tips for feeding success in those early days and weeks. That’s less stress for you and for baby! A true win-win. 

Common Early Hunger Signs in Newborns

It’s important (if you don’t know why already, you will soon!) to recognize the signs that your baby is hungry as early on in the cycle as possible because feeding them BEFORE they get upset and crying makes the feeding session both easier and calmer for your child and for you. Getting your baby fed early or “just in time” helps to support healthy weight gain and goes a long way to establishing a healthy feeding routine and promotes parent-child bonding, which is another crucial development milestone. 

Ok, we know WHY it’s important to stay on top of your child’s feeding needs, but let’s talk about the HOW. 

• • Look out for “rooting” activity in your baby. Rooting is a natural reflex that compels your child to seek out a source of food. They will start to search for a finger or a breast/nipple while sometimes opening and closing their mouth in a sucking motion in anticipation. If you see them “looking around” for something, then that is probably them rooting around for food. Help them find success!

• They will make sucking or lip smacking motions and noises. Similar to the rooting, they may start passively making a feeding or sucking motion. That is them telling you they are getting hungry! They may also open their mouth and stick out their tongue 

• Baby gets restless. If you notice your little one getting a little squirmy or restless, then they are probably getting hungry. Head that off at the pass before it turns into a full blown fit!
• Increased fussiness. Similar to the restlessness tip above, if you notice that your baby is getting easily frustrated or mildly crying out of nowhere, then they are probably hungry.
• Frantic or jerky arm and leg movements. It may seem like your baby is just goofing around, but more often than not it is a sign that they are getting very hungry and need a top off soon
• Crying. If your baby starts crying and it doesn’t seem to be stopping through regular soothing methods, then they are most likely very hungry. Offer a breast or bottle and they should calm right down after a snack.
• Final tip: if you’re not 100% sure if your baby is hungry, but they seem a little restless or fussy, then it couldn’t hurt to offer a nipple or bottle to confirm. Every baby is different and you may have to learn your child’s individual cues that are unique to them. 

Before You Go

We hope you enjoyed learning about tips for understanding the signs of hunger in your baby. If you would like to know more about this, our sleep learning, consulting or training programs or any of our excellent newborn care services or overnight newborn support, we are happy to help. Just contact us and we can go over your options and help you find the best path for your little one. 

We hope these tips have helped you along your journey. If you have any questions about helping your baby to sleep better, or about your baby in general, please reach out to us HERE. We are experts in all things baby and sleep and would love to help!

The content contained in this blog is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended as medical advice or to replace the advice of any medical professional. It is based on our opinions and experience working with newborns and their families. Other’s opinions may vary. It does not represent the views of any affiliated organizations. The reader understands that the term “Babynurse” is often a word used to describe a newborn caregiver. However, unless otherwise disclosed, we are not licensed nurses in any state. By reading and/or utilizing any information or suggestions contained in this blog, the reader acknowledges that we are not medical professionals and agrees to and waives any claim, known or unknown, past, present or future. This blog may contain affiliate links.

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