Breast Milk or Fomula

The first year of life is a time of more rapid growth and development than any other time of life. A baby usually doubles its birth weight within the first four months and triples birth weight by the first birthday. A 70-pound 10-year-old who did this would weigh 210 pounds at age 11.

For this amazing growth, the infant requires an adequate intake of calories and essential nutrients. Good nutrition alone will not guarantee normal development, but a loving environment is incomplete without proper feeding.

Your baby needs the same nutrients you do: protein, carbohydrate, fat, water, vitamins, and minerals. Over 40 different nutrients are needed by your baby for healthy growth and development.

Full-term babies are usually born with enough reserves of nutrients, especially water, to last the first few days. By the second or third day, your baby needs calories, water, and nutrients.

New mothers who want to return to work have often been able to combine breastfeeding with formula-feeding, especially after the first few weeks, when the milk supply has been well established.

The nursing mother usually needs an extra 500 kilocalories per day, along with 20 more grams of protein and 400 more milligrams of calcium. This can be supplied by adding a glass of milk, a slightly larger serving of meat, and an egg or a slice of bread. Drinking plenty of water will help provide the needed liquid.

FEEDING TIMES
The stomach of a newborn infant has a capacity of less than 1/4 cup. At 12 months the baby's stomach will be able to hold about 1 cup or 8 ounces. Because babies can eat very little at one time, they eat every two or three hours. Babies get hungry at irregular times during the first few weeks. As they grow, they will become more regular and will be able to go longer between feedings.

Feeding-on-demand has become more popular although some parents still prefer to set up regular schedules that are convenient for them and their babies. Each family must choose what's best for them.

WATER
Just like older children and adults, babies need water as well as milk. These daily fluids are necessary for the formation of urine to help remove wastes from the body.

Babies need about 1/3 cup of fluid per pound of body weight up to 18 pounds. At heavier weights, fluid needs are smaller. A 12 pound baby, for example, needs about 4 cups (1 quart) of fluid a day. Most of this should come from breast milk or formula.

Many babies may want additional water, especially in hot weather. If your baby cries soon after eating and you can discover no reason, try feeding a little water in a clean bottle (but make sure you boil then cool the water first). Be careful not to give so much water that the baby fails to get
enough milk.

Generally the vitamins and minerals in breast milk are in forms that are especially well absorbed and used by an infant. For example, there is little iron in breast milk, but it is present in a very usable form. In addition, a full-term baby from a well-nourished mother is born with iron stores large enough to last nearly six months.

Fluoride is known to be important for development of healthy teeth, but little research has been done to show how important fluoride is in the first six months of life. Formula-fed babies will get adequate fluoride from the water (if it's fluoride-treated) that is mixed with the formula. In areas where the water is not fluoride-treated, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a fluoride supplement of 0.25 mg per day for both breastfed and bottle-fed babies. Supplementation should begin two weeks after birth.

Reprinted with permission from the National Network for Child Care - NNCC. Schafer, E., & Fradgley, N.K. (1995). *Feeding your baby (Pm 862)*. Ames, IA: Iowa State University Extension.