Clever Way To Check If Baby's Hungry, Full Or Needs Break

It can be tricky to know when a baby has had enough milk, but there’s actually a really simple way to know when bub is full and satisfied. And it just involves watching their hands.

Mum-of-three Megan Hawkins shared a handy video showing how to tell if a baby is hungry, and how to tell when they’re full. She says a baby with clenched fists is hungry, with their little fingers tightly clenched into a ball.

When baby is almost full, their hands begin to slowly relax until they’re completely open, and baby is full and happy. Take a look at her video below:

@thehawkinsfamily Follow for more tips and examples! ☺️ #newborn #2monthsold #baby #momlife #newborntips #babytips #babytipsandtrick #newmom #newmomtips #babycues #babycue #newbornbaby #motherhood #cutebaby ♬ Send Me on My Way – Guy Meets Girl

Megan also shared another video, explaining how you’re able to tell if a baby needs a break while feeding. “Notice how her head moved away from the bottle?” Megan writes.

“This means she’s all done.” But, she explains further, “Sometimes it just means they want a quick break. But for this case she was full.”

@thehawkinsfamily Here’s another example of your baby telling you they are full or want a break. ???????? #learningbabycues #babycues #newborn #newbornbaby #momlife #postpartum #baby #2monthsold #bottlefeeding #exclusivepumping #pumpingmom #babyfever #3under3 #newborntips #babytips ♬ Pieces (Solo Piano Version) – Danilo Stankovic

Megan does explain that all babies are different and can have different cues, but she hopes her tips can help other mums.

Is this baby feeding cue true for your baby? Or do you have another great tip? Let us know in the comments below.

29 Comments

- - meedee said
  - 14 Aug 2024
    11:41 am
Interesting…..even after 3 bubs I was not aware of the clenched fists thing

- - Zmijka86 said
  - 07 May 2022
    8:40 am
After so time mum and baby will develop some kind of communication and learn about them self so mum can understand what her baby wants or need.

- - SAS185 said
  - 31 Mar 2022
    8:14 pm
It truly is amazing how they communicate without speaking.

- - mom461384 said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    5:44 pm
I never noticed this at the time with my kids. But watching her video made me realise that they did do just that

- - mom111059 said
  - 29 Mar 2022
    10:05 am
Handy tip for new mums. I guess each baby is different.

- - mom481502 said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    10:41 pm
I never knew either, would be helpful for first time mums especially

- - sharna_booth_weinrowski said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    9:19 pm
I never knew! This is fantastic!!

- - tinamaree said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    8:10 pm
When I babysit the baby of my sons girlfriend, I noticed if I keep the bottle pulled back a bit, he uses the muscles on his jaw to drink. When I can easily pull the bottle away with no resistance, I know he’s full.

- - tessie said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    2:06 pm
This tip will be helpful to some new Mum’s. It may not work for all babies but if it helps a few Mum’s then it’s a worthwhile sign to look for

- - Lividanke said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    12:48 pm
Handy for someone with a baby to take notice of.

- - rovermum said
  - 28 Mar 2022
    12:18 pm
That’s a great tip and cue to look out for.

- - Forgetful Mumma said
  - 27 Mar 2022
    11:40 pm
I’ve had three babies and never noticed this! Though they were never full with my breastmilk and when they changed to formula, they would drink until they turned their heads away. That’s when I knew they were full.
But this is quite interesting and I may just observe my 4th when bub is born

- - MrsJReilly said
  - 27 Mar 2022
    5:51 pm
Interesting! Going to watch for these cues with my BF newborn baby.

- - ~Loui~ said
  - 27 Mar 2022
    12:04 am
That would have been good to know 🙂

- - mom223151 said
  - 26 Mar 2022
    5:26 pm
Never realised at all. Little movements can mean so many different cues.

- - sars_angelchik said
  - 26 Mar 2022
    7:17 am
Great tip- didn’t actually realise this!

- - MummaJana said
  - 26 Mar 2022
    4:31 am
I have heard about this but I always followed my baby head cues more- turns away or let’s go of the bottle was more reliable for us

- - mummy_moo_moo said
  - 26 Mar 2022
    12:41 am
I remember hearing this “hack” when my daughter was a newborn (she is now 2) and I can say for us it was not something that we could go by. It’s interesting to hear those who say it works, I know a lot of “specialists” say this works also

- - Mumof3boyos said
  - 25 Mar 2022
    11:32 pm
Just a warning, it doesn’t work for all!

- - Jessica said
  - 25 Mar 2022
    11:13 pm
I remember hearing about the fingers cue but I always found my baby’s head cues more reliable