Breastfeeding: How will I recognize if my babies are drinking enough milk?

The following breastfeeding information is provided for healthy, average term babies. If you feel that your babies are not eating well, drinking enough milk, or taking in enough nourishment, contact your doctor for feedback on your personal situation.

There are several ways to determine whether or not your babies are eating well and the most obvious is by what comes out the bottom end.

In the first two days after birth, on average each baby should have 2 wet diapers and 1-2 soiled diapers. Right after birth, the first stools will be a thick black consistency. This is called maconium.
On days 3 to 5, each baby needs to have at least 2 wet diapers a day and 2-3 soiled diapers. Stool colour will be green, yellow or brown in colour.
From 6 days to 5 weeks, look for each baby to have 6 heavy, wet diapers per day and 1 or more soilings of a yellow colour per day.

Some signs to let you know that the babies are getting enough milk:

are sucking strongly, slowly and steadily
has a strong cry and moves actively
your breasts feel softer and less full after each feed

When baby is full:

will break the latch and let go of the breast of his own accord
hand lies gently and open against your body, showing contentment

In the initial days after birth, sleep overtakes a full tummy, especially for preterm or low birth weight babies. They just don’t have the stamina to keep on feeding. If your baby falls asleep at the breast after a few sucks, you will need to try and wake him up. This can be done by stretching him by holding him up under the arms, try to get a good burp out of him, move him around your body, don’t let him snuggle, and some parents will undress the baby to stimulate him to continue eating to fill his tummy. If babies do not take in enough milk, you will be back to feeding them again in a very short time frame.