What are baby cues?
As soon as your baby is born they will show you a number of cues or signs to let you know what they want and when they want to be fed. These small changes in your baby are called baby cues.
Baby cues are your baby’s way to let you know what they need.
As you get to know your baby, you will learn to spot your baby’s cues.
These are the first signs that your baby is hungry and needs to be fed.
- Opening their mouth
- Turning their head to the side and rooting.
- Becoming restless and shuffling around in their moses basket or crib
If your baby is not fed, they will let you know that they are still hungry by:
- Stretching
- Moving more and you will see them wriggling and shuffling
- Putting their hand to their mouth and sucking their fingers or fist
- You may also see rapid or quick eye movements.
After this, if they are not fed, your baby will let you know they need to feed by:
- Becoming agitated
- Becoming red
- Crying.
When your baby is crying as a feeding cue, they may need to be calmed before they can start feeding. Acting on your baby’s early feeding cues can help you both to have a better feeding experience.