Basic tips about wind for your newborn

Wind is part of our biological make-up and it naturally forms in a baby's stomach through the processes of feeding and swallowing. Achieving optimum burping levels helps to maintain digestive balance and is a necessity for all newborns.

Digest these facts

• Wind takes up room in the stomach therefore, the more wind you release the more room for food sustenance
• Wind moving through the digestive tract naturally causes spasms of pain and contributes to the behaviours of inconsolable crying, colic and reflux
• Winding your child is a necessity to enable calm digestive processes
  
  

Advantages of implementing consistent winding patterns

• provides calm digestive practices for all newborns
• stimulates deep attachment through touch-to-touch and eye-to-eye time
• provides deep developmental sleep for your baby which enables breaks for you which will aid your milk supply if breastfeeding
• enhances a peaceful, secure relationship between parent and child
• consistent practices allows your child to understand that you are helping them, and as time passes they will soon relax within your providing of your burping pattern or what Natural Winding teaches, Nature's Wind Sequence which happens for all babies.......

Reducing wind intake while feeding

• When feeding, make sure your child is lying flat with their torso elongated unless still in the foetal stages. This gives their digestive system the room it needs to process.
• Never latch your child onto the breast or give the bottle if they are upset or inconsolably crying. This will have them gulping as they drink causing more pockets of wind. Instead, place them in the position they will feed and get them to suck either your little finger turned upside down first or a pacifier – your little finger fits like a jigsaw and makes it easy to stimulate your child's suck reflex. Most of the time this will help your baby to relax at which point you would then exchange the finger or pacifier for the nipple or teat. If your child does not relax then this is often indicative that they need to burp or alternatively need your time and comforting to help the progression of an uncomfortable movement in their lower digestive system before feeding. More top feeding tips are available here.

• If bottle feeding, only tighten the lid so it catches. The tighter the lid, the harder your child will need to suck and this potentially heightens wind intake.
• If bottle feeding don't feed a little, burp then continue feeding and continue that pattern. This only ends up creating more wind because after a burp the milk and trapped wind in the stomach are on the move so baby will suck harder during this time which causes more gulping and  wind. Instead, feed the bottle all at once, while listening to your baby's breathing and giving them time to breath by unlatching the teat and leaving it rested on their lip long enough for them to catch their breath, then resume feeding.