When sharing advice around weaning, I often talk about “following your baby’s lead” with the pace of the meal and following their cues to help you understand if your baby is full or hungry. I know this is a topic that so many parents are interested in, so I thought I would outline what signs of hunger and fullness to look out for. Luckily this is a topic where there is a lot of science and research to help nutritionists like me pass on the very best advice to parents.
Of course, babies aren’t able to tell us in words whether or not they’re hungry or full so it’s up to us as parents to try and recognise their signals and respond appropriately to them.


Because babies can’t always know for themselves or understand their own signals of whether they’re feeling hungry or not, this isn’t always straightforward. And I know from weaning both my two children, that the signals of hunger and satiety can even overlap, further complicating the issue!
That said, there are some classic signals to look out for when feeding your baby.
9 signs that your baby is hungry
If your baby is hungry, they may fuss or cry in their highchair, be very loud and impatient but then quieten down as soon as they are offered food. They are likely to look at food in the kitchen (or you!) expectantly, grab at the spoon/food/utensils and lean forward with their mouth open. Smacking their lips and eating very quickly are other hunger signs in babies.
9 signs that your baby has had enough to eat
Once your baby has had enough to eat and is feeling full, they can demonstrate this by pushing food away, throwing the spoon/food, avoiding looking at it or turning their attention to other objects. They may become agitated, fed up with being in their highchair or they may rub their face or eyes. Remember that they can’t simply tell you “I’ve had enough now”, so these are their signals to you that they don’t want anymore food.
If we override those signals, because WE feel that they need to eat more…it’s likely that they will decide that their signals to us don’t work and so will stop showing you them. Which in turn may lead to your little one learning to eat way beyond their real fullness and their actual energy and nutrient needs.
Don’t forget that all babies are different and behaviour will vary from child to child – or in the same child, depending on how they are feeling, their stage of development or just because that’s the way it goes during that particular meal!
In time, you will learn what is more normal for your little one and what might be down to something else such as illness, a bad night’s sleep or another issue like teething. What’s important is to try to respond to any familiar signs so that your baby gets the affirmation that their signals to you are working. That way they will learn to trust themselves and their own internal cues. (Do check out my other blogs if you would like to know more about how to feed an unwell child, sleep and weaning or some of the other reasons behind food refusal in babies).


I also go over a bit more about Responsive Feeding – which essentially means listening to their own appetites as the best predictors of how much they need – in my Portion Sizes Factsheet.
I hope this post has helped you to understand the signs that show your baby is hungry or full. How you respond to your baby when you’re feeding them can have a real impact and I’ve written in detail in the past about the importance of mealtime environments during weaning your baby. Ultimately, remember to avoid mealtime pressure and try to let your baby lead mealtimes if possible so that they can both enjoy eating and learn for themselves in time how to listen to their ever changing appetites.


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