Transcript What does baby-led feeding really mean?

Gill Rapley, MSc
 Demand feeding
 Cue-led feeding
 Needs-led feeding
 Ensures customised milk production and
respects baby’s innate appetite control
 Prevents complications for the mother
 Cuts out the guesswork
BUT: the emphasis is still on the baby’s
nutritional needs
 Demand feeding
 Cue-led feeding
 Needs-led feeding
 Baby-led feeding
 Responsive feeding
Breastfeeding works best when it’s:
Frequent
Effective
Exclusive
on Demand
Skin to skin (in the early weeks)
 The first breastfeed
 Positioning and attachment
 Demand / cue / needs-led feeding
 Baby-led weaning (solid foods)
 Child-led weaning (off the breast)
Mothers don’t breastfeed
– babies do!
The mother provides the
opportunity – the baby
does the rest
They have innate reflexes and instincts to:
 locate the breast
 use their head, arms and
legs to orientate themselves
and adjust their body position
 root, attach effectively,
and suckle
... are triggered or enhanced by skin-toskin contact and a laid-back maternal
position
They need the freedom to experiment
and time to practise, to get it right
(Christina Smillie)
Mother and baby
fine-tune the
mechanics of
breastfeeding
between them –
with the baby
leading
Babies haven’t read
the books – they are
very adaptable when
it comes to positions
for feeding!
 Choosing to breastfeed
 Initiating breastfeeding
 Sustaining breastfeeding
 Incorporating other foods
 Deciding when to stop
... provided they are given the opportunity
 “There are only a very few mothers who
cannot breastfeed – but there are many
who are not enabled to”
(Belinda Phipps, CEO, NCT)
 There are only a very few babies who
cannot breastfeed – but there are many
who are not enabled to
 Culture
 Technology
 Expectations
 Family
 Friends and peers
 Health professionals
 Media – advertising
 Media – impressions of
‘normal’
a pram/buggy
a playpen
 A hospital birth? Skin contact? Nursery care?
 Input from health professionals?
 Advice from parenting ‘gurus’?
 Concerns about spoiling the baby, or being
used as a dummy?
 A safety pin, to help her remember which
breast to use first?
 Formula and bottles?
 A full-time paid job
 A multi-function car seat
 A baby monitor / CCTV
 A mobile phone – with apps
 Facebook & Twitter
 A BabyNes
 To breastfeed unaided soon after birth (before
anything else happens)
 To touch and smell their mothers, as well as
hear and see them, 24/7
 To feel warm and safe, day and night
 To be able to feed easily, whenever and
wherever they want
 To be understood and responded to without
having to cry
 Recognise babies’ innate abilities
 Understand how to facilitate (and recognise)
effective feeding
 Get to know all our babies’ signals, not just
the feeding cues
 Focus on using breastfeeding to comfort
and calm – nutrition will take care of itself
 Have a ‘babymoon’
 Shut out the 21st century; surround
yourself with real supporters
 Listen for your instincts – and follow them
 Keep your baby close, day and night
 Get to know his signals, and what he
needs to do to breastfeed
 Experiment with different ways to hold him
 Take every opportunity to ‘sit down for a
rest’ – with your baby, skin to skin
D AD
“Hospital routines should not be
deemed as more important than
parents for babies’ wellbeing;
parents should only ever be denied
access to their baby on occasions where it
is judged to be in the baby’s best interest.”
(UNICEF UK BFI guidance, 2012)
We can support mothers to:
 have a babymoon
 hold their baby whenever, and for as long
as, they wish
 keep their baby close – day and night
 discover how to help their baby to feed
himself at the breast
 offer the breast for comfort (and food)
 Babies are vulnerable, but they aren’t
incapable – or passive
 They can be trusted to know what they
need and how to get it
 Being baby-led makes breastfeeding –
and parenting – easier
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