Guides
Feeding
How often babies feed, how much milk they need and how solids start, with the signs that matter more than any number on a bottle.
8 guides · general information, never a substitute for your paediatrician
Feeding schedule by age, from newborn to toddler
Newborns feed 8 to 12 times a day, settling to roughly every three to four hours by three months. Solids begin around six months alongside milk, and milk gradually becomes the smaller part of the diet through the second year — but it stays the main source of nutrition until about twelve months.
10 min readStarting solids: readiness, first foods and what to skip
Most babies are ready for solid food at around six months, but the calendar matters less than the signs: sitting with support, steady head control, losing the tongue-thrust reflex, and reaching for food. Milk stays the main source of nutrition through the first year.
6 min readBaby-led weaning or purées: what actually differs
Both approaches work. Neither has been shown to produce better weight, iron intake or less fussy eating than the other, so the honest difference is practical rather than nutritional. Readiness signs, the six-month starting point and the choking rules are identical either way — and most families end up combining the two within a month.
11 min readIntroducing allergens: when to start and what to offer
Introduce allergenic foods when you start solids at around six months, one at a time so a reaction can be attributed to something. Delaying does not help: the NHS says holding peanut and hen’s egg back beyond six to twelve months may increase the risk of an allergy, and the AAP says there is no evidence that delaying prevents allergies. Once a food is tolerated it has to stay in the diet regularly. Babies with severe persistent eczema or a previous immediate reaction to a food should start peanut earlier, at four to six months, after talking to their doctor.
12 min readCow’s milk: when to switch, how much, and what kind
Cow’s milk can be used in cooking or mixed with food from around six months, but it does not become a main drink until twelve months. From one year the NHS allows pasteurised whole or semi-skimmed milk as a main drink and the AAP allows whole or reduced-fat, provided your child is eating a balanced diet of solids. Aim for at least 350 ml a day (NHS) and keep it to about 475 ml — 16 ounces — or less (AAP); above 710 ml, or 24 ounces, the AAP links milk intake to iron deficiency.
11 min readNight feeds: when they stop being needed, and how to drop one
No health body publishes an age at which night feeds should stop. The one figure that exists is the AAP’s, and it is an observation rather than an instruction: between two and four months, or when the baby weighs more than 12 lb, most formula-fed babies no longer need a middle-of-the-night feeding. There is no equivalent published age for breastfed babies. The AAP also says healthy, growing babies usually do not need to be woken to feed, and that frequent waking is developmentally appropriate.
9 min readFussy eating: why it happens and what actually works
Fussy eating peaks between about two and five and is a normal developmental stage, not a feeding failure. What works is repeated pressure-free exposure — the AAP notes a food can take ten or more tastings before it is accepted — small portions, one family meal, and judging intake across a week rather than a meal. Pressure, bribes and cooking a separate dish all make it worse.
11 min readHow much milk does a baby need, by age
A bottle-fed baby under six months takes roughly 150 to 200 ml of milk per kilogram of body weight a day — about 2.5 ounces per pound — spread over six to twelve feeds, with most babies settling somewhere near 750 to 900 ml (25 to 30 oz) daily. Breastfed babies are not measured in ounces at all. At every age the reliable check is weight gain, wet nappies and a baby who is content after feeds, not the total.
8 min read