It's amazing how a mother's milk perfectly matches her baby's needs: it changes depending on the time of day, the baby's age and even his condition.

Breast milk contains a unique and artificially unreproducible complex of macro- and microcomponents. These components not only provide the baby with everything necessary, but also protect, strengthen the immune system, and act as a barrier against the penetration of pathogenic organisms.

Breastfed children are much less likely to suffer from diarrhea, bronchial asthma, allergic reactions, ARVI, inflammation of the middle ear and other diseases.

Therefore, breastfeeding is more than nutrition. This is essentially personalized medicine for the child.

Such periods of breastfeeding ensure the optimal formation of the child’s immune system and the development of its organs: liver, intestines, and brain.

About the organization breastfeeding It is useful to think in advance, even before giving birth.

In addition to receiving useful information about the peculiarities of breastfeeding, the expectant mother needs to strengthen and prepare her nipples, as well as collect a “breastfeeding support portfolio” for the maternity hospital.

The skin of the nipples is tender and vulnerable, but at the same time it has good stretching potential. You need to help her a little to increase her elasticity and hydration - after all, during the feeding process, the nipple stretches in the baby’s mouth to 2-2.5 cm in length.

Starting from the 36th week of pregnancy, apply extra-purified medical lanolin - PureLan100 - to the skin of your nipples. One molecule of lanolin holds up to 6 molecules of water. This unmatched moisturizing property of lanolin will significantly reduce the risk of cracked nipples.

Check to see if the selected maternity hospital has a breast pump. If they cannot provide you with a clinical breast pump, prepare your own, personal one. Read the instructions, sterilize and assemble it correctly - it can become your main assistant on initial stage breastfeeding.

In addition, in the maternity hospital bag you need to put: absorbent pads to prevent milk leakage, a nursing bra, Contact pads to facilitate latching on the breast in case of problems with attachment, PureLan100 nipple treatment, a nursing bra.

A nursing bra should have a number of useful properties: be elastic, well stretchable, have detachable straps for quick transition to feeding, have good hygroscopicity and breathability. In addition, it is important that underwear for expectant and nursing mothers does not have seams - such as the Eva bra. Sutures can put pressure on the breast tissue and interfere with the flow of milk, causing stagnation.

How to start breastfeeding in the maternity hospital

To start breastfeeding correctly, it is advisable to put your baby to the breast as early as possible - ideally in the first half hour after birth.

When attaching your baby, make sure that the breast is latched correctly: the nipple is located deep in the oral cavity, the baby's lips are turned out, the cheeks are puffed out, the chin is pressed tightly to the chest. At the same time, you do not experience pain, you hear throat sounds, but there are no extraneous sounds: smacking, squelching, whistling.

If latching on to the breast cannot be established right away, use the Contact silicone nursing pad to ensure successful feeding. But each time, start feeding by trying to give the breast correctly without a pad - then gradually everything will work out.

If too much milk has come in and you feel heaviness and bloating in your chest after feeding, express this excess milk with a breast pump to prevent milk stagnation.

You can also use a breast pump in the early stages of breastfeeding to further stimulate lactation if for some reason the baby is not suckling productively enough.

When returning home from the maternity hospital, continue to feed on demand: the baby himself determines when and how much milk he needs. Be sure to feed at night: night feedings activate the hormone prolactin, which is responsible for the formation of milk over the next 24 hours. Frequent feeding promotes good development of lactation and prevents milk deficiency.

If, however, you notice that there is not enough milk or a lactation crisis has occurred - a temporary period of decreased milk volume - take measures for additional stimulation. Express milk using a breast pump between feedings. Double pumping from both mammary glands increases milk volume and fat content especially quickly - for example, using a Swing maxi double breast pump.

To prevent difficulties from taking you by surprise, prepare a bank of breast milk in advance. For these purposes, you can use special Breast Milk Storage Bags.

Avoid traditional nipples and pacifiers - they are harmful to breastfeeding and can provoke breast refusal. To ensure that the baby returns to the breast calmly, use a soft spoon or Calma smart nipple for supplementary feeding. Calma has the ability to maintain the same sucking mechanism as the breast and therefore does not carry the risk of breast refusal in the future.

Nutrition in the first week of the postpartum period should not only be nutritious and high-calorie, but also hypoallergenic. In this case, the restoration of the mother’s physical strength will occur much faster and without harm to the health of the newborn. Let's look at the different categories of food products and start with what food you can bring to the maternity hospital after giving birth.

Food after childbirth

Cereals and cereals

The main source of carbohydrates and energy for a nursing mother is grains. A woman in labor should eat porridge (buckwheat, millet, rice, oatmeal, pearl barley), black bread, biscuits, crackers, crackers, and cookies. Sweet baked goods made from white wheat flour, especially factory-made ones, should not be consumed, as they can cause colic and increased gas production in the baby.

Meat

Meat products are the main source of proteins, which are necessary for the formation of breast milk, so they can be brought to the maternity hospital in small quantities. Preference is given to lean meats: young beef, chicken, turkey, rabbit. Pieces of meat are brought boiled, they are used to prepare cutlets or steamed meatballs, or you can bring rich meat broth with crackers in a thermos.

Fish

Boiled, baked and steamed fish, fish meatballs and cutlets - all this can be eaten by a woman in labor in large quantities. The type of fish doesn't matter. In addition, nursing mothers can eat both river and sea fish - both types of fish have a high content minerals, protein and unsaturated fatty acids. It is important to remember that before serving, the fish must undergo heat treatment. It is not advisable to eat fresh, dried or smoked fish.

Vegetables

An irreplaceable source of fiber, minerals and dietary fiber for a nursing mother is vegetables. They can be consumed fresh, baked, boiled or stewed. Vegetable juices from fresh products. The most beneficial foods for a woman in labor are potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, cabbage, celery, and green beans. It is better for a nursing mother to limit fresh onions, garlic, radishes and other vegetables with a spicy taste.

Foods that are prohibited for consumption after childbirth in the hospital

Since all products and things for a woman in labor at the maternity hospital are carefully checked at the nurse’s station, they must be collected with special care. Shortly before giving birth, a pregnant woman should make a list of prohibited foods as a hint for relatives and friends.

You should not bring the following foods and dishes:

1. Spicy, fried, smoked, pickled, highly salted, canned - this food should not be brought, it is prohibited during the entire period of breastfeeding.
2. Pastries: cupcakes, cream pies, pastries, meringues. These products spoil quickly.
3. There is no need to bring or take coffee, chicory, soda, kvass, or energy drinks to the maternity hospital.
4. Sweets: ice cream, chocolate, ginger cookies, waffles, chocolates. There is no need to eat these foods; they can cause allergies in the child.
5. Citrus fruits: oranges, lemons, limes, tangerines.
6. Vegetables with bright external color without preliminary heat treatment and vegetables with a characteristic pungent flavor.
7. Mushrooms are limited as they are difficult to digest and assimilate.
8. Legumes cause increased gas formation, which provokes an attack of colic in a newborn, so you should also avoid them.

Important! Before you go to the store, make a list of what you can eat in the maternity hospital after giving birth. In this case, it is difficult to make a mistake in choosing and preparing tasty and healthy food for a young mother.

Of course, homemade food tastes better. But you shouldn’t completely give up hospital food. The menu for food in the maternity hospital is compiled taking into account the physiological needs of the woman in labor; it is the most balanced in its composition. The young mother and her relatives will then not have to think about what food they can bring to the maternity hospital after giving birth. In addition, having looked at a couple of recipes for tasty and healthy hospital dishes, you can easily repeat them later in your kitchen at home.

From the first minute of life, it is necessary to provide the child with adequate nutrition for his normal development and growth. Regardless of the way you eat, feeding newborns for the first time days should fully satisfy the need child's body in microelements and vitamins.

Modern medicine practices placing the baby on the mother's breast immediately after birth. In some situations this cannot be done; in this case, the first application occurs 6 hours after birth.

In maternity hospitals, nursing staff explain feeding rules to young mothers. In addition, they teach women how to do this correctly so as not to harm the baby and themselves, what position the baby should take for feeding and then to regurgitate excess air, features of caring for a newborn.

To feed a newborn in the first days, the mother needs to take a comfortable position, sitting or lying down. The baby should be placed in your arms so that the head is located on the forearm. There is no need to bend over the baby, you need to bring him to your chest.

With the other hand, you need to lean the breast against the baby's mouth. When he opens it, you need to offer the breast. The child must grasp the mammary gland so that its entire halo is in the mouth, and the nipple lies on the tongue. When breastfeeding, you should pay attention to the newborn’s ability to breathe through the nose.

You should monitor your baby while sucking. It should produce sucking movements, which are accompanied by characteristic sounds of food absorption.

It is necessary to complete the feeding of the day by pulling the nipple out of the baby’s mouth with a gentle movement. Then it needs to be slightly removed from the chest.

Breastfeeding the first day of life

First breastfeeding occurs after a few hours of the baby’s life. Initially, it is not milk that is released from the breast, but colostrum, which is thicker in consistency. Colostrum is ideal for a baby after childbirth. After all, in the womb he ate differently, and his digestive system is not prepared to accept a large volume of food. It contains many microelements that help normalize intestinal microflora and strengthen the immune system.

The key to proper feeding of a newborn in the first days of life is the correct attachment to the breast. He should grab the entire aureole of the breast with his mouth and begin to suck the milky liquid there too.

3-5 days after birth, colostrum begins to turn into breast milk. In order to have enough milk and avoid discomfort in the mammary gland, you need to express yourself periodically. In order to get rid of painful sensations during breastfeeding, you should first soften your breasts with massage movements.

You also need to adhere to the following rules:

• correct attachment of the baby to the breast;
• frequent and prolonged feeding;
• use both breasts;
• take a comfortable position.

In some cases, the baby still fails to latch onto the breast correctly. As a result, mother has to stop breastfeeding and switch to artificial.

In the first days there is a problem with the right choice baby food. It is denser in consistency and different from breast milk, so your baby's digestive system will need more time to process it.

Between meals it is necessary to maintain a time interval of 3.5 hours. During this time, baby food will be processed and absorbed by the body.

With artificial feeding a newborn in the first days It is necessary to strictly observe the dosage of food in grams and monitor its consistency. There is no need to overfeed the baby. In addition, it is necessary to keep children's dishes clean and sterilize them.

Baby food must be at a certain temperature so as not to damage the baby's digestive organs.

In the first days of feeding, the newborn should be placed in a lying position, a bottle should be placed in his mouth and held at an angle so that he can easily absorb liquid.

Feeding schedule in the first days

Schedule A newborn's food intake depends on the method of feeding.

When breastfeeding, the schedule is set by the baby's need to eat. Depending on his age, the gap between meals ranges from one hour to six.

The frequency is about 7 times per knock, that is, approximately every three hours. At night, you should not wake your baby up and force him to eat. If the child needs food, he will wake up and let you know about it.

With normal child development, the period between meals increases to 4 hours. If this time period is within 2 hours, this indicates that the baby is not getting enough and the amount of food needs to be increased. If colic begins, it is recommended to use dill water.

With the right approach, after a few weeks the child develops a feeding schedule.

When a child is bottle-fed, it is necessary to strictly adhere to the schedule. Three hours should pass between meals. If the child is sleeping or does not require food, there is no need to force him or force feed him. The number of meals in such children is about 7 times every 24 hours.

With this method of nutrition, it is necessary to carefully adhere to the norms and portion sizes. For newborns, this volume is about 60 grams. With further development, this number changes and depends on the age of the baby.

Feeding for the first time after caesarean section

When labor ends with a caesarean section, problems arise with breastfeeding. In this case, it is not possible to feed the baby a few hours after birth, because ks happens under anesthesia and mom will need some time to come to her senses.

After caesarean Establishing breastfeeding is more difficult and requires more effort than after a natural birth. In this case, you need to follow some recommendations:

1. After the woman in labor has stabilized, she needs to put the baby to the breast;
2. If the baby sleeps during the feeding period, there is no need to be afraid of waking him up. The main task in this case is to develop the sucking reflex in the newborn and to activate the flow of milk.
3. After feeding a newborn, drowsiness and lethargy may be observed in the first days. It's normal after a c-section.
4. In the first days of life, it is not recommended to use sweet water or tea for feeding. This can cause the baby to refuse the breast.

If the baby is separated from the mother for breastfeeding feeding newborns in the first days It is necessary to express colostrum from both breasts. When dating your baby, it is necessary to regularly offer him the breast, and it is better to give expressed colostrum from a spoon.

Feeding a newborn in the first days after maternity hospital at home

After the maternity hospital, the baby needs to adapt to the home atmosphere. Mom should change her underwear, clothes and wash off the smell of the hospital from her body. For water procedures It is advisable to give preference to showering without using scented products; it is better to use soap.

For feeding a newborn in the first days At home, you must follow the rules of hygiene: wash your hands and chest thoroughly with soap.

Before putting your baby directly to the breast, it is recommended to express a few drops of milk, which may contain pathogenic microorganisms.

The duration of feeding is about 20 minutes, but in the first days it can reach half an hour. To feed, the mother needs to take a comfortable position, sitting or lying, so that the process does not cause discomfort. When the baby has eaten, he needs to be placed in an upright position until he burps up the air that got in during feeding.

There is no need to panic if the amount of milk at home has decreased slightly. This is a temporary phenomenon as a result stressful situation. After a few days at home, the volume of breast milk will be restored.

First feeding of newborns Komarovsky video

Breast milk is the most energy-rich, rich in microelements and vitamins, and easily digestible. Breastfeeding helps normalize digestive processes, strengthen the immune system, and normal development and growth of the baby.

For feeding newborns in the first days, Dr. Komarovsky identifies several options:

1. Feeding with strict adherence to temporary breaks, which are 3-3.5 hours.
2. On demand, that is, with crying or sucking movements.
3. The free option is to feed the baby throughout the day with a break of 2-3 hours.

When breastfeeding, the baby should be put to the breast after a few hours. In the first days, the mammary gland produces colostrum, which becomes milk after 2-3 days. You need to make sure that he captures the entire nipple aureole with his mouth.

A video with recommendations from Dr. Komarovsky can be a visual aid for caring for a child for the first time in his life.

If all the rules are followed correctly, according to him, by the age of one year the child will have developed a clear schedule for eating, sleeping, and walking.

Save the information.

The first days after the birth of a child are very difficult. The baby finds himself in a new unfamiliar world, where not only a loving mother awaits him, but also an incredible number of previously unfamiliar microbes and viruses. Already in the first minutes of his life, a newborn will have to learn to breathe and eat. The right one will help the baby adapt to new conditions.

Rodes: newborn careimmediately after birth

So, let's talk about how to ensure caring for a newborn in the maternity hospital after birth. The first few hours of a baby's life are spent in the delivery room. Immediately after the baby is born, the doctor cuts his umbilical cord, and the umbilical cord is clamped with a special clamp. Midwife clears the airways baby and puts drops in his eyes to prevent infection with gonococci.

If the newborn can breathe on his own, he is placed on the mother's breast within the first 30 minutes after birth. On the first day, something very valuable and useful for the baby is released from the mother’s breast. colostrum. Unfortunately, there is very little of it, so not a single drop should be wasted.

Important! The more often you put your baby to your breast, the faster real breast milk will appear.

The first day:newborn care in the maternity hospital

On the first day after birth, the following procedures are performed:

• washing a newborn's hair running water using baby soap;
• treatment of skin folds with a 2% solution of iodine or salicylic alcohol;
• removal of vernix lubrication and residual amniotic fluid using oil.

Ppostpartum care for newborns must be performed by a qualified nurse.

Pfirst days of a newborn's life: maternity hospital care

After the newborn is transferred to the children's department of the maternity hospital, he comes under round-the-clock supervision of medical personnel. The child is examined daily by a specialized pediatrician, assessing the condition of the baby’s skin and mucous membranes, his motor activity, muscle tone and the degree of development of unconditioned reflexes.

An integral part of the pediatric examination is treatment of the umbilical cord in an infant. Processing is carried out in two stages. At the first stage, the umbilical cord residue is treated with an individual cotton swab dipped in a 95% alcohol solution, and then a 5% solution of potassium permanganate is used.

Attention! In case of suppuration or poor mummification (drying) of the umbilical cord wound, it must be treated with a 5% solution of potassium permanganate with each swaddling.

ABOUTBasic principles of postpartum care for a healthy newborn

Daily care for a baby in the maternity hospital includes such mandatory procedures as:

• treatment of the baby's skin and mucous membranes;
• washing the child;
• changing a diaper.

Skin and mucous membrane care

The skin of a newborn is different from that of an adult. It is very thin and hypersensitive, so it cannot fully perform protective and thermoregulatory functions. This is why the baby quickly overheats and freezes, and his skin requires delicate care.

Daily care caring for a baby in a maternity hospital is impossible to imagine without such procedures, How:

• washing;
• eye care;
• cleaning the ears and nasal passages;
• processing of natural folds.

All of the above procedures are carried out in the morning, after the baby sleeps. Washing a newborn is carried out using a sterile cotton swab, which is moistened in warm water. Wipe the baby's face with a cotton swab, after which the remaining moisture is removed with a clean diaper. Separate cotton swabs are used to wash the eyes.

Important! To avoid infection of the conjunctival membrane, it is necessary to wipe the child’s eyes from the outer corner to the inner.

Newborn ears clean using hand-twisted cotton pads or special swabs with a wide cotton ball. Since a newborn's ear canals are too short and the eardrum is located very close to the outer edge of the ear, using regular cotton swabs to care for a baby's ears is unacceptable.

To remove contaminants in a baby's nasal passages, it is best to use cotton wool that you can twist yourself. If dry crusts appear on the baby's nose, you can remove them using a twisted flagellum and baby oil.

Treatment natural folds completes the baby's morning toilet. This is done using baby cream or powder. If there are signs on the baby's head milk crusts, they can be removed using special cosmetics. However, in most cases they disappear on their own in the first year of the baby’s life.

Washing the baby

The child is washed after each bowel movement with regular running water.

Attention! The optimal temperature for washing and bathing a newborn is considered to be +34 +37ºС.

In case of severe contamination, you can use baby soap when washing. The skin of newborns is very delicate, so pediatricians do not recommend using soap more than 1-2 times a day. At the end of the procedure, the baby’s skin must be carefully wiped with a diaper, and the area of ​​the intimate organs must be sprinkled with special talcum powder or lubricated with baby cream.

Changing diapers

Diapers need to be changed as they become dirty, but not less than once every 4 hours, and also after each bowel movement of the newborn. Since the navel has not yet fallen off, the diaper must be worn in such a way as to ensure sufficient air circulation in the navel area.

To prevent diaper rash, pediatricians recommend:

• change diapers on time;
• provide the child with mandatory air baths after each wash;
• choose “breathable” diapers of the right size;
• treat every fold of the baby with baby oil or cream;
• dress the newborn, taking into account the air temperature in the room.

Usefulvideo: newborn care in the maternity hospital

What should it be newborn care in hospital in the first minutes of his life, experienced specialists will tell you in the story “Caring for a baby after birth.”

Proper skin care for a newborn

Every mother wants her child to be healthy and develop according to his age. But already during pregnancy, a woman begins to have disturbing thoughts that she will not be able to cope with the baby and organize his life so that he does not need anything. The first problems may arise already in the maternity hospital, when you need to put your baby to the breast for the first time.

First breastfeeding of a newborn in the hospital

Typically, a first-time mother experiences a number of difficulties with her first attempt to put her baby to the breast. You need to remember that determination and patience are your allies at this stage. On the first or second day, you release colostrum, which you must feed your baby. Each woman is different, but usually by 3-5 days colostrum is replaced by regular breast milk, at this time the body temperature may rise, the breasts may swell and it will be necessary to relieve its condition by pumping. You do not need to express all the milk, but only until you feel no lumps. This will have to be done for about several days, and sometimes only once, until this system will not improve its work. This will happen quite quickly, but the speed depends on the number of times the baby is latched to the breast. Feeding on demand during the day and at night will lead to the fact that there will be no need to pump, and the baby will receive all the necessary dose of nutrients for normal development.

If there is no milk in the first days after birth

The appearance of breast milk 3-5 days after birth is normal and nature made sure that the baby had enough colostrum at this time.

A few tips to help the breastfeeding process:

• Give your baby breastfeed every 1-2 hours. Let him suckle on the small amount of colostrum that you have at the moment.
• Do not panic. During this period, colostrum is enough for a newborn to meet his needs.
• If you are unable to organize your newborn's breastfeeding, ask your midwife to help you, there is nothing wrong with that. All women experience problems for the first time and there is no need to be ashamed of it. If you are financially able, then after arriving home you can call a lactation consultant to your home. Phone numbers can be easily found on the Internet. But usually this is not required.
• Don't despair if your baby can't latch onto the nipple. Sit or lie down comfortably with your baby, grasp the nipple between your fingers at the border of the areola and the breast. Tickle your baby's lips or cheek with it (As shown in the picture - Step 1). When the baby opens her mouth, you can start feeding (Step 2). Make sure that the baby captures with his mouth not only the bulge of the nipple, but also a little of the areola around it (Step 3). It didn't work the first time, try again and again. There are no women who cannot breastfeed (or rather, there are, but there are less than 1% of them and this is due to physiological characteristics), but there are mothers who lack perseverance. Do not join their ranks, try, and you will definitely see the result. You need to stop sucking not by tearing the breast out of the baby’s mouth, but by slightly opening his mouth (Step 4).
• Drink more warm liquids. It is better to give preference to weak tea or mineral water no gases.
• Do not give your baby water, formula, or milk.

How often should I feed my baby and what intervals should I maintain between feedings?

Literally 5 years ago it was recommended to breastfeed a child with a break of at least 3 hours. At the moment, there is probably no pediatrician who would recommend establishing a strict breastfeeding regimen. Perhaps only grandmothers who fed their children using outdated methods insist that if you feed a newborn when he asks, overeating and health problems will arise.

WHO (World Health Organization) standards state that breastfeeding should be done on demand.

At the same time, it is very important that the mother can understand her baby. A child may cry and demand attention not only in case of hunger. There may be other reasons:

• wet diaper,
• the diaper is pressing or the baby is too big,
• intestinal colic,
• the child is hot or cold,
• the need for mother's warmth and communication.

Now let's look at the situation in practice. The newborn is crying and you must determine the reason for the crying. If the baby is in a clean diaper, at the moment he is unlikely to be bothered by any inflammatory processes, then take him in your arms and carry him a little. If the baby wanted your communication and participation in his life, then he has achieved his goal and the crying will stop. A hungry child will not stop demanding food. So it’s worth feeding him now. Do not listen to grandmothers who will confidently repeat that if a newborn asks for breastfeeding every hour, then he does not have enough milk. It happens that babies literally “hang” constantly on their chest. Treat this with understanding and don’t be afraid that you will spoil your baby. If this happens, it means that he now really needs a loved one nearby, and who is even closer than his mother.

Feeding at night

I don’t want to upset you, but newborns also ask to eat at night. The gastrointestinal tract of such young children does not allow them to go without food for a long time without harm to their health. Therefore, you will have to wake up for feeding. Some mothers practice co-sleeping so as not to have to get up to the crib, but to immediately offer the breast as soon as the baby wakes up. Other nursing mothers are afraid of harming their baby while sleeping, so they prefer to sleep separately. There are no right or wrong decisions in this aspect. It all depends on the parents. Don't forget about dad's opinion. If he prefers to spend the night with his wife rather than with his child, then you should meet him. Some fathers don't mind co-sleeping. Remember that a favorable atmosphere in the family is very important for the child.

How often to breastfeed at night? Be sure to feed the baby several times between 3 a.m. and 9 a.m. At this time, the process of breastfeeding in the mother’s body is being established. At other times, feed as many times as the newborn asks.

Basic comfortable poses

It doesn’t matter in what position the mother prefers to feed the baby, the main thing is that they both feel comfortable. There are now special pillows for feeding on sale, but you don’t have to buy them. Many mothers do without them and the process of breastfeeding is no less enjoyable.

Lying position

It is most comfortable to feed a newborn in a lying position on its side. You can use the lower breast and the upper one. In the latter case, the baby should be placed on a pillow so that you do not have to sag.

There are several other feeding options, but they are not suitable for newborns. The only position worth mentioning is "Jack". The mother lies on her side, and the child is nearby, but only his legs are extended along the mother’s head. You need to know this position so that when the milk arrives on days 3-4, the baby will help cope with congestion in the upper part of the chest.

Sitting position

You can sit on the bed cross-legged, or you can sit on a chair or rocking chair. IN in this case Under the child’s head is the forearm on the side of which the baby will be offered the breast. Sometimes the mother can use her hand instead of her forearm (for example, if the baby is weak and the sucking process needs to be corrected). When your baby gets older, he will be able to eat while sitting on your hip.