What to do if your newborn doesn't eat

The physical health of newborns is an issue that parents are most concerned about. If there is a problem with the newborn, the parents will definitely be very worried. Therefore, we recommend that parents and friends must protect the physical health of newborns in daily life. Once the newborn has an abnormal condition, it should be taken seriously and treated in time to avoid the disease from worsening and making treatment difficult. Below we will explain what to do if your newborn baby refuses to eat.

Breastfeeding is increasingly advocated now. Studies have shown that breast milk contains calories, protein, fat, calcium, iron, vitamins, etc., and is the best choice for infant growth and development. It is the best golden food for babies after they are born, especially the nutritional value of colostrum is even more precious. But many new mothers have encountered this situation: the more you want to feed your baby, the less he eats. Old people like to say "the child doesn't recognize milk", but there are actually many reasons why children don't recognize milk.

Nipple problem: Babies do not have strong sucking ability when they are just born. If the mother's nipples are inverted, the baby will give up sucking if he fails to suck milk after many attempts. At this time, the mother can press the areola when breastfeeding, trying to expose the nipple so that the baby can suck it. It is best for mothers to pay attention to nipple care during pregnancy. If they know they have inverted nipples, they can apply a hot towel every day and then pinch the nipples with their fingers and pull them outwards. Repeating this many times will change the inverted nipples.

Too early exposure to formula feeding: In the first two or three days after giving birth, milk secretion is low, and many parents are afraid that their children will be hungry, so they feed their babies formula with bottles early on. The nipple of a bottle is easy to suck and produce milk, but the mother's nipple is difficult to suck and produces little milk. If the baby sucks the mother's nipple, he will reject it. During the first week, even if there is very little breast milk, try not to use milk powder to supplement it. Because once the baby starts eating milk powder, his ability to suck milk will become weaker, and as a result, the amount of breast milk will become less and less.

If you encounter problems with milk secretion, new mothers should check whether the mammary ducts are blocked. If the breasts are swollen, and in severe cases lumps can be felt with water, and the nipples do not produce milk or produce less milk, then it is possible that the mammary ducts are blocked. You can apply a hot towel to your breasts, gently massage your breasts with your hands, and then use a breast pump to pump a few more times. After the baby is born, you should let the baby suck the nipple frequently to stimulate the mammary glands to secrete milk.

Get adequate nutrition. The baby's food needs to be provided by the mother. The body needs to be supplemented with nutrition after delivery. It is necessary to eat more foods rich in protein and various nutrients, especially drink more nutritious soups. Produce plenty of breast milk to meet the baby's needs.

The nipple has an unpleasant odor. Normally, mothers only need to use clean water to clean their nipples. Washing with soap or applying lotion will have a pungent smell, and the baby will be repelled after smelling it. New mothers may experience nipple cracking when they first breastfeed. If they need to apply ointment, they must clean them with clean water before breastfeeding. Because the nipple is in direct contact with the baby's mouth, it prevents the baby from sucking it into his mouth.

In the above article, we introduced something that parents are very concerned about, that is, the physical health of newborns. We suggest that our friends should pay attention to protecting the bodies of newborns in their daily lives. The above article introduces in detail what to do if the newborn does not eat.