For the breast-feeding mom, use these guidelines:
If you are getting those six to eight wet diapers, whatever you are doing is working! Breast milk is more easily digested than formula, therefore babies may feed more often. Also, personality differences are more obvious with breast-feeding - there are those who want a full meal, others who are snackers, and still others who are cluster eaters and feed frequently, seemingly non-stop for an hour or two, and then take a break.
Pay attention to your breasts. After a few days of breast-feeding, you will feel the breasts fill up: they will feel heavy and/or firm. After a good feeding, the breast should feel soft. Not every feeding will be the same. Your goal is to have more good feedings than fair or poor feedings. Fair feedings leave your breast feeling only somewhat emptied. After a poor feeding your breast feels no different after than it did before.
One phrase I hear quite often from breast-feeding moms is, "My milk isn't in yet." This somehow implies that until the heavier milk, which is perceived as the "real" milk, comes in, the baby has been starving. The milk that comes in during the first few days is called colostrum. It is every bit as "real" to the baby as the heavier milk that will come in shortly and make the breasts feel heavy. Its composition is different, but it is designed for the special needs of the just newly born.
Breast or formula?
The research on the benefits of breast-feeding is voluminous. The more it is studied, the more we learn about the intricate perfection of breast milk for an infant. Breast-feeding, even for a short time, still brings benefit to the newborn. However, the decision to feed by breast or use formula is a personal one.
There are many reasons why women choose one method over another, and it is important to understand and support whichever decision they make. If breast-feeding is too stressful for a particular mom, especially if she has little support around her and is lacking in self-confidence about her ability to breast-feed, then formula may be a better choice for her. Indeed, it may allow her to be more relaxed and therefore bond better with her newborn.
Conclusion
All new family units need support: emotional as well as the physical, chore-type of help. If you are a new family, ask. If you know a new one, give support. Each new baby makes the world a little bit bigger. Helping each other makes the world a little bit smaller.
