Baby care logs and carer guides
How to count time between baby feeds: start to start
A feeding interval runs from one baby feed's start to the next. How long the feed lasted is separate. For breastfeeding or bottles. Not a schedule.
A feeding interval runs from the start of one baby feed to the start of the next. How long the feed lasted is a separate number, and so is the gap after the feed finishes. Count breastfeeding and bottles the same way. The count describes what happened. It is not a schedule.
How to count the time between two feeds
- Write the first start. Record the date and the time the earlier feed began.
- Write the finish, if you know it. The time from that start to the finish is the duration. It is not the interval.
- Write the next start. Record the date and the time the following feed began, including when that is after midnight.
- Subtract the first start from the next start. Add 24 hours if the clock passed midnight. Label the result as the start-to-start interval, and leave a time blank when you do not know it.
Open the feeding interval calculator to count the time between two recorded feed starts, even across midnight.
What is a feeding interval?
A feeding interval is the time from the start of one feed to the start of the next. It is also called a start-to-start interval, and it is the same kind of count for breastfeeding and for a bottle.
How long the feed lasted is the duration, a different number. The gap after the first feed finishes is a third number. Write the label next to each one so the next person reading the log knows what you counted. Nemours uses start-to-start timing when explaining breastfeeding frequency. This page explains that convention. It does not set how often your baby should eat, and a record should describe what happened rather than make a baby wait for a clock.
How do you count a feed that crosses midnight?
Add 24 hours when the next feed starts after midnight, and write both dates. A feed that begins at 11:50 p.m. and the next that begins at 1:10 a.m. the following day are 1 hour and 20 minutes apart when the clock has not changed.
During travel or a daylight-saving change, keep the time zone or the actual elapsed time with the record rather than subtracting bare clock times. If you missed the start, mark it approximate. A precise-looking guess can make the next calculation misleading.
How do you count breastfeeding times when you switch sides?
A side change can stay inside the same nursing session. Count a new feeding interval only when a new session starts, unless your care team asks you to count each breast separately. Write down the convention you are using. Ask what to do with pauses instead of silently counting them as new sessions. Leave an unknown finish as not recorded.
Questions about counting feeding intervals
Is a feeding interval the same as a feeding schedule?
No. An interval is the time between two feeds you already recorded. A schedule would tell you when the next feed should happen. This guide does not do that.
How do I write the interval in a feeding log?
Next to the two start times, note whether each feed was breastfeeding or a bottle, and keep the duration in its own column. The blank worksheet on this page has a column for the start-to-start interval.
Nuzzle · How to count time between baby feeds: start to start
Start, finish and next-start record
Use one row for one pair of feeds. Keep dates and units visible; leave missing times clearly marked. The sheet does not calculate a next feeding time.
On a small screen, scroll the blank table horizontally. The printout includes the whole table.
| First start (date/time) | First finish (date/time) | Next start (date/time) | Session duration (minutes) | Start-to-start interval | Approximate or missing details |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
- Use the same time zone, or note a clock change.
- Label duration and start-to-start interval separately.
- Keep your care team's individual instructions beside the record.
Questions to keep beside the record
- Which start and finish should I record when there is a pause?
- How would you like me to count side changes?
This sheet records observations. It does not set feeding amounts, schedules or a medical plan. For questions about your baby's health, contact your care team.
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Source
The examples and blank worksheet are original Nuzzle resources, not a clinical feeding schedule.