Unless their doctor tells you otherwise, let your baby sleep – they'll let you know when they need to eat! If, however, your baby hasn't yet surpassed their birth weight, or if they were premature or aren't growing as expected, you do need to rouse them to eat anytime they sleep for more than four hours straight.
Newborns who sleep for longer stretches should be awakened to feed. Wake your baby every 3–4 hours to eat until he or she shows good weight gain, which usually happens within the first couple of weeks. After that, it's OK to let your baby sleep for longer periods of time at night.
Whether you should wake a sleeping newborn for feedings depends on the baby's age, weight and overall health. Most newborns lose weight in the first few days after birth. Until your newborn regains this lost weight — usually within one to two weeks after birth — it's important to feed him or her frequently.
Newborn babies who are getting formula will likely take about 2–3 ounces every 2–4 hours. Newborns should not go more than about 4–5 hours without feeding.
Newborn babies must eat every 3-4 hours, but it's usually every 1-3 hours. Newborns are growing very fast and therefore must feed early and often. Waiting too long to feed your newborn can lead to rapid weight loss, jaundice, and other health issues down the road.
Don't worry, baby will ask to be fed as usual as soon as his stomach feels empty again. Your baby may be constipated and appear less hungry than usual, however once this passes everything will go back to normal. Or it may just be that your baby was enjoying the sleep and took longer to wake up.
As a guide, many babies sleep 14-20 hours a day in the first weeks. By 3 months many are settled into a pattern of longer sleep times – perhaps 4 to 5 hours at night. When a baby sleeps about 5 hours straight, this is considered 'sleeping through the night'.
All babies are different, but it's very common for babies not to feed all that much in the first 24-48 hours, and some don't attach at all. However, from day 2-3 days babies should become much more awake and feed in more frequent (but probably irregular) bursts at least 6 times in 24 hours.
When should I be concerned about baby sleeping too much? If your newborn is sleeping so much that she isn't waking to eat every two to four hours, talk to your pediatrician. When your newborn is 3 weeks old or younger, you'll typically need to wake her regularly to eat if she doesn't wake up on her own.
At 1 month old, your baby may begin to sleep for longer stretches at night, perhaps including one long block of three to four hours. It's during this time that your baby's circadian rhythms are forming, and they're getting used to the difference between day and night.
5-Week-Old Baby Feeding
“Babies can still breastfeed on demand—usually they will want to breastfeed every 2-4 hours at this stage,” she notes. “But sometimes they will want to feed every hour and other times will not eat for 5 hours.” All of this is common, she says.
As long as your baby is happy and healthy in all aspects, this won't be a problem. They may sleep five or more hours without waking up for food if they are taking at least 8 daily feedings of milk every 2 or 3 hours, they're wetting about 6 diapers a day, and gaining weight.
But the fact is, newborn baby's tummies are small, and they need to wake up every few hours to feed. It would be a cause of concern if they didn't! Unfortunately, this means that your own sleep will be incredibly disrupted for the first few months.
Once your baby begins to fall asleep, switch sides so that there is a fresh supply waiting for them. You can repeat this several times (switch back and forth between breasts) because you have more than one letdown per feed.
Contrary to popular belief, sleeping through the night isn't when a baby sleeps from 7 pm to 7 am, it's actually when a baby falls asleep and stays asleep for six hours or more. Your child may wake briefly, but they are able to self-soothe and fall back to sleep.
Not enough milk: Your baby may sleep to conserve energy if they are not getting enough food. They may also sleep longer that is good for them if they are apart from you.
Circadian rhythms gradually develop within the first few months of life, with sleep starting to accumulate at night (this is often why babies tend to get the hang of nighttime sleep before daytime sleep/naps!) [2].
SIDS has no symptoms or warning signs. Babies who die of SIDS seem healthy before being put to bed. They show no signs of struggle and are often found in the same position as when they were placed in the bed.
First is the developmental window of vulnerability. SIDS is most common at 2-4 months of age when the cardiorespiratory system of all infants is in rapid transition and therefore unstable.
How often does my newborn need a bath? There's no need to give your newborn baby a bath every day. Three times a week might be enough until your baby becomes more mobile. Bathing your baby too much can dry out your baby's skin.
Generally, newborns sleep a total of about 8 to 9 hours in the daytime and a total of about 8 hours at night. But because they have a small stomach, they must wake every few hours to eat. Most babies don't start sleeping through the night (6 to 8 hours) until at least 3 months of age.
Fortunately, unpredictable newborn patterns don't last long – though it may seem like an eternity when you're sleep deprived. Some babies consistently sleep for longer stretches by 3 or 4 months, and many will sleep through the night by 6 months. Others won't until they're older.
They're Full. This is the simplest and most obvious reason. Newborns typically doze off at the breast when they're satisfied after a feeding or when their tummy is full and they are warm and comfortable. In fact, it's almost impossible to keep breastfeeding babies awake when their tummy is full for the first few months ...