Feeding your baby

General information about feeding your baby

However you choose to feed your baby, new babies have a strong need to be close to their parents, as this helps them to feel secure and loved.

When babies feel secure, they release a hormone called oxytocin. This acts like a fertiliser for their growing brain, helping them to be happy babies and more confident children and adults.

Holding, smiling and talking to your baby also releases oxytocin in you, which helps you to feel calm and happy. Find out more about building a happy baby and helping you to feel more calm and happy:

There is growing evidence that skin to skin contact between you and your baby helps both of you in so many way. Find out more here:

Our Baby Friendly accreditation

We are “Baby Friendly”. Our health visiting service has been accredited as “Baby Friendly” with the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative.

The UNICEF UK Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) enables public services to better support families with feeding and developing close and loving relationships, so that all babies get the best possible start in life.

Find out more about what that means, and the standards we have to adhere to:

Non-urgent advice: Safety alert

Self-feeding pillows/prop feeders present a risk of serious harm or death from choking or aspiration pneumonia.

Urgent Safety Alert issued for baby self-feeding pillows (GOV.UK

Getting support

A-Z countywide infant feeding support

Financial help

Healthy Start food vouchers and vitamins:

Feeding your baby

Breastfeeding

General breastfeeding information & support

Breastfeeding information in languages other than English:

Positioning and attachment

How to support your baby to position and attach to the breast:

Expressing your breast milk

How to know that your baby is getting enough milk

Feeding challenges

Slow growing babies

Sometimes a baby will grow more slowly than expected which can feel worrying and confusing.

On these occasions you will be supported to develop a plan to increase your baby’s milk intake. You may also be asked to take your baby to see the GP to ensure they are well and healthy, and offered a referral to our Enhanced Infant Feeding Service.

Common breastfeeding problems

Mixed feeding

Formula and bottle feeding

Sleep and night-time care

Sleep and caring for your baby at night:

Introducing solid foods

For guidance on introducing solid foods at 6 months:

Returning to work

Please visit your Health Visiting team in your local baby lunch box, well baby clinic or contact chathealth for advice.

Weighing your baby

Recommendations from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health:

  • Your baby will be weighed during their first 2 weeks by your midwife to make sure they’re regaining their birthweight.
  • Most babies are at, or above, their birthweight by 2 weeks.

After that time, for a well-baby, they only need to be weighed at the time of routine checks and injections (that is at around 2, 3, 4 and 13 months of age).

Your baby will usually only be weighed more often than these recommendations if there are concerns about their health or growth.

Regular weighing is not always helpful, and can cause unnecessary worry especially if over a short period of time. It is more important to observe baby’s feeding, general behaviour, stool and urine output, and whether they are growing into bigger clothes.

The time between weighing is longer for older babies because they are growing less quickly.

Dummies and your child

Page last reviewed: 10 February, 2026