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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Basic Questions - Top Ups and Sleeping Though

3 replies

BabiesEverywhere · 28/01/2008 09:29

Just a couple of basic questions.

  1. If breasts never run out of milk, why are top ups ever needed ? Why can't another 'side' be offered ?
  1. When is the biological normal age to sleep though the night, in an exclusively breastfed baby ?
I know it isn't 6 weeks I just wondered what was 'normal' in non formula societies.
OP posts:
tiktok · 28/01/2008 09:39

Babies - question 1 is hard to answer, because sometimes, breastfeeding has not got off to a good start, and supply is already dwindling. Offering another side is a crucial part of addressing this - the more often breastmilk is removed, the more quickly it is made and this of course means overall, more milk. But in the short term, in very extreme cases, a temporary top up may be needed if a baby's dehydrated, or clearly under-nourished....I think top ups are suggested far too casually, and any formula given to a bf baby should be seen as an intervention, and the pros and cons carefully weighed up.

It would be better for the baby to have a top up of donated human milk, or expressed mother's milk - this can be useful if the baby is losing interest in the breastfeed, as the top up of EBM can re-ignite this interest.

I don't know the answer to no. 2. I expect the real answer is that it is normal for all humans to wake in the night, sometimes several times, but they can learn to get themselves back to sleep with varying degrees of speed and 'skill'. So in pre-industrial society, where it was/is normal for families to sleep together, babies and young children probably breastfeed on and off in the night to help themselves get back to sleep. When they gradually stop bf, a snuggle into whichever body is closest probably helps them get back to sleep!

Olihan · 28/01/2008 09:42
  1. Because most HVs and HCPs have no idea how bf works and 'top up' is the first solution they offer.

Desperate mums who also may not know how bf works and who have a screaming baby on growth spurt/ baby not gaining weight then doubt their bodies' ability to feed their babies and place too much trust in the HVs/HCP.

  1. Elizabeth Pantley in the No Cry Sleep Solution says sleeping through is classed as a 5 hour stretch after midnight and that some babies still need night feeds up to 12mo of age.

There's also something to do with melatonin centres in the brain that regulate night/day cycles and isn't fully operational until around 18mo. I'm a bit hazy on the actual science though - sorry!

BabiesEverywhere · 28/01/2008 10:43

Thanks Olihan and Tiktok

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