27/07/2026
💬 𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐞𝐞𝐤: 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬
Learning to feed is an important milestone for babies in the NICU. But before they can begin oral feeding, they first need to be ready. This is called feeding readiness. 💜
💡 Good to know:
Every baby develops at their own pace. That’s why healthcare professionals consider the whole baby, not just age or weight.
👩⚕️ How will my healthcare team know when my baby is ready to feed?
Your healthcare team will assess whether your baby:
✔️ Is medically stable
✔️ Can stay awake long enough to feed
✔️ Shows interest in feeding (e.g., rooting, sucking on fingers)
✔️ Can coordinate sucking, swallowing, and breathing
✔️ Has enough energy for feeding
Once babies reach this stage, many NICUs use cue-based feeding. This means they follow your baby’s signals to decide when to start, pause, or stop feeding.
👶 What feeding cues do babies show?
Hunger 🤍
e.g., waking, hands to mouth, rooting, sucking on fingers.
Satiety/stress 🛑
e.g., turning away, slowing or stopping sucking, falling asleep, or changes in breathing, oxygen levels, or heart rate.
🌱 Why is this important?
Learning to feed takes time. Following your baby’s cues can make feeding safer and less stressful. Research also suggests that cue-based feeding may help some babies reach full oral feeds sooner, while increasing parental confidence.
💜 What can parents do?
You play an important role in your baby’s feeding journey. Skin-to-skin contact, learning your baby’s cues, and working with your healthcare team can help your baby develop feeding skills. Your baby’s healthcare team will help you recognize these cues and respond to them with confidence.
✨ On Friday, we’ll launch our GFCNI World Breastfeeding Week campaign. We’ll explore how Kangaroo Mother Care and can support breastfeeding in the NICU.
👉 Follow us for more!