Signs Baby is Hungry: A Guide to Recognizing Hunger Cues

As you bond with your tiny tot, you'll start to recognize signs that they are hungry. By carefully watching for cues baby is hungry or signs they've had enough, you can support their growth, help them feel comfortable post-feeding, and set the foundation for a lifelong healthy relationship with food.

Both under-eating and over-eating can cause discomfort for babies learning to listen to their bodies for the first time, so looking for physical and behavioural signs your baby is hungry can ensure a pleasant feeding experience for you and your little one.

Keep reading to learn what are hunger cues and how to identify signs baby is still hungry, understand why it is important to spot them and gain deeper insight into what your little one is communicating without words!

What Are Baby Hunger Cues?

Newborn hunger cues will evolve as they grow and develop, starting with fairly simple motions and easy-to-miss behaviour to more obvious physical cues.

Here's how to tell if newborn is hungry from 0 to 5 months. Signs newborn is hungry will look like baby hands in mouth, turning their heads towards the food source (breast or bottle), baby licking lips, smacking lips, baby puckering lips, or clenching their hands. These newborn feeding cues may be more subtle, making them harder to spot.

From 6 to 23 months, infant hunger cues will evolve to include opening their mouths when offered food or a spoon, appearing noticeably excited when they spot food, reaching or pointing to food, or using hand motions to signal that they are hungry.

Around the 6-month mark, some parents teach their children simple hand movements to provide a bridge to spoken words known as baby sign language; hungry babies with the ability to sign basic concepts can improve communication.

This can be especially helpful during mealtimes, where your little one can tell you through signing that they are hungry, want more or are all done.

This skill can take time to master with your child, so in the meantime, you can learn to spot early, mid and late feeding signs.

Ideally, you want to honour these cues and start feeding your hungry baby before reaching the late-stage signs of hunger, as crying and agitation can make mealtimes more stressful and difficult for everyone involved.

We will walk you through the early to late stages of hungry signs next!

Early Hunger Signs

The earliest signs of a hungry baby can be more subtle but will look like licking or smacking lips, opening and closing the mouth, sucking on hands or fingers and clenching fists.

Mid-Hunger Signs

Mid-level feeding signs will become slightly more obvious, often manifesting as active movements and slight irritability. Some of these signs include a hungry baby opening and closing mouth, rooting or moving the head from side to side with an open mouth, looking for a nipple, fast breathing, fussing or squirming, whining, grunting, or attempting to move into a feeding position.

Late Hunger Signs

Late-stage baby feeding cues will be much more noticeable and hard to ignore. At this point, your baby is likely to appear agitated, as shown through crying and frantic body movements. Crying tends to be a last resort, and with practice, you will learn to spot the more subtle signs before it progresses to this stage.

Importance of Understanding Hunger Cues

Your tiny tot needs enough food to grow and develop, but not so much that they risk experiencing the adverse effects of overeating.

Finding this careful balance between too much and too little can be tricky, as their appetite ebbs and flows throughout infancy. However, successfully identifying their infant feeding cues can make a world of difference.

Noticing when your baby is hungry can help you initiate feeding when your little one is most content and ready, leading to a satisfied and well-fed baby.

How to Tell if Baby is Still Hungry After Feeding

A baby's body is working hard to grow and develop, so ensuring they get enough to eat during mealtimes is crucial. It can be challenging to keep track of how much your little one needs, especially as their appetite fluctuates during different stages of development.

If you notice signs that baby is hungry, like smacking or licking lips, fussiness, crying sporadically, pointing or looking at food, or increased movement or stretching after a feeding, they may need more milk.

A hungry baby may continue showing interest in sucking even after finishing the first breast. This indicates that they want more. If you are breastfeeding and your baby still seems hungry, you can offer both breasts for feeding.

Why is My Newborn Still Hungry After Feeding?

Learning how to tell if baby is still hungry after breastfeeding or bottle feeding can be challenging. Know that it is completely normal for a breastfed baby to latch on about 8-12 times in 24 hours or every 2 to 3 hours. If your baby is formula-fed, they might feed around 6-8 times a day, every 3 to 4 hours.

Your newborn's tiny tummy is incredibly efficient, especially when they're breastfed. They need to eat frequently because they're burning energy quickly while rapidly gaining weight and developing. So, if you're asking yourself, " Why is my baby always hungry?" You are not alone!

You might go through periods where you wonder whether your baby has a black hole for a stomach because it seems like they're hungry all the time. Don't worry-this is often due to growth spurts. When your baby is growing quickly, they need to be fed more often. Embrace these moments, as they're a sign your little one is thriving and developing just as they should!

Baby Pushing Bottle Away but Still Hungry

You may also encounter situations where your little one is giving mixed signals, showing signs of hunger but also pushing away their bottle.

This may be caused by one of the following:

• Physical discomfort (pain, gas, etc.)

• Teething pain

• Emotional factors (overstimulation)

• Improper bottle angle

• Oral thrush or yeast infection

• Reflux

Is it Real Hunger?

Since babies have limited ways to communicate, you may think your baby is hungry when really they need something else. This is known as a false hunger cue.

How to Tell if Baby is Hungry or Wants Comfort

These false feeding cues can be challenging to discern, but if you've offered your baby a feed and they show no interest, they might have other needs that require attention.

It may be that they are actually:

• Tired or overtired

• Needing a diaper change

• Needing a pacifier

• Wanting comfort or wanting to be cuddled

• Feeling uncomfortable (gas, feverish, ill, wind, reflux, an allergy, etc...)

You may also notice your baby chewing on hands after feeding. While baby eating hands can be a sign that baby is hungry, it can also be a form of self-soothing or a sign that they are teething.

How to Know When Baby is Full

It is also important to look for signs baby is full to avoid overfeeding.

When your baby is hungry, these signs can look like closing their mouth, turning their head away from your breast or their bottle, ignoring the bottle or your breast, slowing down, falling asleep during a feed, or relaxing their hands.

As they get older, these signs can evolve to more obvious signs of fullness, such as turning their heads away from food, pushing away food, using hand motions or making noises to show you they're full, closing their mouth when you offer food, playing with their food, and fidgeting or getting distracted.

Do Babies Know When They Are Full?

Many new parents ask: do babies know when to stop eating? Generally, yes, babies are great at self-regulating their feeding needs, but sometimes, parents may miss their cues.

It may be easier to spot signs that baby is full breastfeeding, as most breastfed infants will simply stop feeding when they have had enough.

With formula-fed infants, it can be trickier to avoid overfeeding. Watch for signs of fullness, and never force your baby to finish their bottle.

Overfeeding can cause babies to swallow more air, leading to gas and stomach discomfort. Overfed babies may also spit up more frequently or have loose stools.

While these short-term consequences can be easily resolved, the long-term impacts of overfeeding can have lifelong consequences, as it can lead to obesity later in life. That is why some researchers suggest feeding newborns with smaller bottles to avoid overfeeding and practicing paced feeding.

Tips on Feeding Cues

Since it takes time to identify signs baby is hungry, here is a simple rundown on how to get started.

• Respond to your baby's cues, and follow their lead, as their appetite fluctuates daily and evolves with their growth.

• Watch for signs of a hungry baby and offer a feeding before they become overly hungry and start crying. If crying occurs, soothe them first before feeding.

• Listen to and trust your instincts; if something feels off, seek guidance from a medical professional or lactation consultant for support and advice.

• Avoid feeding when your baby isn't showing signs of hunger and get accustomed to your baby's feeding cues vs their self-soothing behaviours.