How are cues different for bottle-fed babies?
Babies show they are hungry in similar ways whether they are breast or chestfed or bottle-fed. The biggest difference is being able to tell when your baby is full! You cannot force a breast or chestfed baby to eat if they are not hungry. This is because babies have to make an effort to get milk when breast or chestfeeding. But when babies feed from a bottle, the milk flows right to their mouths, and they can easily overeat.
For this reason, it is important to practice paced bottle feeding (see Deeper Dive below). With paced bottle feeding, you notice when your baby’s sucking slows or stops, and you allow them to come off the bottle. Then, you see if they show signs they want more. If they do not show these signs, you can end the feeding regardless of how much is left in the bottle.