Hi All
I have recently been doing some research for a book chapter I am writing.  I have discovered 2 separate papers reporting large high quality studies and that demonstrate that median feed frequency in exclusively breastfed infants is 10/day.  That means that the 'usual' advice to "Feed at least 3rd hourly" is unlikely to support adequate intake in most babies.  One of the papers even found an association between feeding >10 times in 24 hours and longer duration.  In light of this research, is it time we changed the standard feeding advice to 'at least 10 times in 24hours'?
Hörnell A, Aarts C, Kylberg E, Hofvander Y, Gebre-Medhin M. Breastfeeding patterns in exclusively breastfed infants: a longitudinal prospective study in Uppsala, Sweden. Acta Pædiatrica. 1999;88(2):203-11.
WHO MULTICENTRE GROWTH REFERENCE STUDY GROUP, de Onis M. Breastfeeding in the WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study. Acta Paediatrica. 2006 2006/04//;95(0):16-26
Nina Berry
Australia
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