Infant Feeding

Family

Feeding and Nutrition Health and Safety Infants and Toddlers

As a child care professional, families may look to you for advice about their child both inside and outside of the classroom. Feel free to use the below information to share with families via newsletters, emails, or other opportunities to support them as caregivers themselves. Indiana 2-1-1 is also an easy way to connect families to local organizations to meet their unique needs.

Feeding your growing baby

In the first year of your baby’s life, your baby will eat a variety of foods that will support growth and development. Offer breast milk or formula at regular times; your baby’s job is to decide how much to eat. Feeding based upon cues, rather than a schedule, ensures you are feeding when you know your baby is actually hungry. Reading their cues of hunger and fullness is the first step in feeding “on-demand.”

Birth to six months

Feed your baby either breast milk or iron-fortified formula only for the first six months of life. Consider whether to breastfeed or bottle feed carefully. To start and continue breastfeeding can be challenging, but don’t give up! If you need support, you can rely on lactation consultants, WIC (800.522.0874), or breastfeeding support groups.

Six to 12 months

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends introducing foods other than breast milk or formula when your infant is about six months old. Introducing foods such as purees to get baby comfortable with the texture and taste of foods and the developmental skills of eating, like self-feeding. Around eight months, you can begin to transition baby from pureed foods to finger food. Even after starting foods beyond breastmilk/formula, you should continue breastfeeding and formula feeding until age one.

12+ months

At 12 months, baby should be eating all table food and self-feeding. Ensure you cut up solid foods appropriately to avoid choking hazards. Unless you continue breastfeeding, serve whole milk after 12 months of age. By 18 months, baby should be eating three meals and two snacks per day, using utensils, and drinking all milk from either a sippy cup or the breast.

Bottle Feeding

Recommended feeding amounts

How you feed your newborn is the first nutrition decision you make for your child. These guidelines on breastfeeding and bottle feeding can help you know what’s right for you and your baby.

On-demand

Breastmilk

Breastfed babies typically feed on demand every 1.5 – 3 hours, consuming roughly 24-32
ounces per 24 hours.

See KellyMom.com‘s milk calculator to get a range of how much breastmilk to put in a bottle.

Scheduled feeds

Formula

Formula-fed babies begin with roughly two ounces at each feeding, increasing incrementally to eight ounce bottles as they get older.

One month: 14-20 oz. daily
Two months: 20-28 oz. daily
Three+ months: 26-32 oz. daily

Feeding Your Newborn

On-demand feedings and reading baby's cues

Feeding based upon cues, rather than a schedule, ensures you are bottle feeding when you know your baby is actually hungry. Reading their cues of hunger and fullness is the first step in feeding “on-demand.”

Signs of Hunger
- Rooting: newborn reflex that turns the head toward a breast or bottle to feed
- Clenched fists (breastfed)
- Sucking on fingers or a fist
- Moving, smacking, or licking lips
- Excited arm or leg movements
- Fussing or crying (late feeding cue)
Signs of Fullness
- Sealing lips together, decreasing sucking, spitting out or refusing the nipple, or pushing or turning away from the breast or bottle
- Milk begins to run out the side of baby’s mouth
- Open fists (breastfed)

Finger Foods and Purees

Transitioning to solid foods

The American Academy of Pediatrics no longer recommend cereals as baby’s first food. Instead, you can serve various foods from a variety of different groups. Starting with real foods (like avocado, sweet potatoes, and bananas) gives baby the opportunity to try out different tastes and textures and also provides more nutrients than fortified cereals.

Readiness Signs

You can look for these signs that your child is developmentally ready for solid foods:

Your child can sit with little or no support.
Your child has good head control.
Your child opens their mouth and leans forward when you offer food.

Foods/drinks to avoid

According to the CDC, you should steer clear of the following:

Honey (before 12 months)
Cow’s milk (before 12 months)
Juice (before 12 months)
Foods with added sugars
Foods high in salt
Fish high in mercury
Unpasteurized drinks or foods
Caffeinated drinks

High-allergen Foods

Generally, you do not need to delay introducing allergenic foods to your baby. However, if you have a family history of food allergies, talk to your child’s doctor or nurse about food introduction. The only food that is truly off limits to a baby is honey!

Common high allergen foods:

Milk
Eggs
Fish
Shellfish
Tree nuts
Peanuts
Wheat
Soybeans

Talk to Your Pediatrician

For questions about feeding your baby, especially if you have concerns or history of allergies, speak with your baby’s pediatrician. They can also help you understand how to introduce solids and whether your baby may need supplements such as Vitamin D.