How long to breastfeed for newborns: A guide to breastfeeding duration

7 min. read time

Your hungry newborn can digest breastmilk easily,¹ so in the early days it can feel like you are breastfeeding a lot. As they grow, so does their stomach, and subsequently their capacity to feed for longer. So, how long should newborns nurse for, and what is the ideal duration of breastfeeding?

In this article, we will explore everything you need to know about how long to breastfeed for, including:

The significance of breastfeeding duration for newborns
How long should a newborn nurse for? Your guide to newborn feeding patterns
How the ideal duration of breastfeeding changes over time

Whether you want to know “How long should I breastfeed for” or want to know why breastfeeding duration matters, we’ve got you covered. Read on for a helpful guide to the ideal duration of breastfeeding.

The significance of breastfeeding duration for newborns

Why does it matter how long you breastfeed for? Newborn babies and their mothers are positively affected by their breastfeeding journey. Here are 4 key reasons breastfeeding duration matters:

1. Breastfeeding duration has an impact on milk supply.

There is no hard-and-fast rule as to when and how much your baby will feed. When it comes to breastfeeding, feeding on demand is what works best. This means your milk will be produced in a supply-and-demand format, as your baby feeds more, your body will produce more.

Top tip: To help you increase your milk supply, why not try expressing breast milk? Philips Avent Single Electric Breast Pump is designed to mimic your baby’s suck and massage rhythm and can help you to increase your milk supply.

2. You and your baby bond during feedings.

The skin-to-skin contact and eye contact that happens when you are breastfeeding your baby, is a great bonding experience in the early days of your baby’s life. Breastfeeding also releases oxytocin – also known as the happy hormone.² A longer breastfeeding duration may help to improve maternal mental health.

3. Your baby’s growth and development are directly affected by how long and how often you feed.

If your baby doesn’t feed for long enough, or often enough, they will not be able to gain weight and develop as they should. Ideally, a breastfed baby should gain around two pounds per month for the first three months.^{3, 4}

Top tip: Breastfeeding duration can be affected by your baby’s ability to latch and suck correctly. So, do you know how your baby drinks from your breast? To help you on your breastfeeding journey we have created a guide to show you how your baby breastfeeds.

4. Breastfeeding has many benefits for both babies’ health and maternal health.^{5, 6}

Breastmilk is full of nutrients crucial for your baby’s development. Additionally, breastfeeding has been shown to reduce maternal risk of conditions such as breast cancer and hypertension. Breastfeeding more often, and for longer, increases the benefits you and your baby gain from it.

How long should a newborn nurse for? Your guide to newborn feeding patterns

To understand how long to breastfeed your newborn, we’ve created a guide to breastfeeding duration recommendations:

Feed your baby on demand. Newborns have built-in hunger cues including early signs such as sucking on their fists or fingers, and lip-smacking and later signs including fussing and crying.

Top tip: There are ways to increase your supply, if you don’t think your body is producing enough breast milk for your baby. For advice, tips, and tricks, including using a breast pump like Philips’s Avent manual pump read our guide to increasing your milk supply.
Newborn babies typically need to be fed 8-12 times per day. This means they require a feed every 2-3 hours, with the gap between feeds changing as they grow.⁷
Keep an eye on diaper output. This is a great indicator that your baby is getting enough milk at each feed. For example, in the first 24 hours if your newborn feeds 8 times, you should have at least 3 wet diapers and 3-4 soiled diapers.

What you need

Breast pumps

Single Electric Breast Pump

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Manual Breast Pump

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How long should you breastfeed for: how the ideal duration of breastfeeding changes over time

How long should you breastfeed for? There’s no single answer. As your baby grows, their breastfeeding duration will change. Here are some key points to remember when you’re wondering how long to breastfeed for:

Newborns are used to being inside the womb. If it feels like all you do is breastfeed, don’t panic. Newborn babies are still getting used to being out in the world, and sometimes feed for comfort and security.
Your baby will have growth spurts. It is not unusual for your baby to want to feed more at times when they are going through growth spurts. They may feed deeper and longer, as well as sleep more than usual, and this is completely normal.
As your baby grows, so does their stomach. You may find that your baby feeds for longer before they are full because their stomach has a larger capacity as they grow. This may also lead to longer periods between feedings.

Top tip: If you are worried your baby is not feeding enough, always check in with a health professional for medical advice and reassurance.

In this article, we have answered top questions such as, “How long should I breastfeed for?”, shown you the importance of breastfeeding duration, and helped you understand how the ideal duration changes over time.

With this guide, you have all the information you need to help you step into a successful breastfeeding journey with your newborn. Don’t forget that patience and persistence are key, and before you know it, you and your newborn will have settled into a routine.

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