(Video uploaded 05/2026)

Script

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00:00 - 00:31 Introduction

00:32 - 02:01 Ways to Build a Close, Loving and Positive Parent bond

02:02 - 05:46 Responsive Parenting

05:47 - 11:06 Skin-to-Skin Contact

11:07 - 12:28 Rooming-in

12:29 - 17:13 Responsive Feeding

17:14 - 17:45 Direct Breastfeeding

17:46 - 20:29 Informed Decision on Feeding Your Baby

20:30 - 22:36 WHO Recommendations on Infant Feeding

Today's session on "Caring for and Feeding Your Baby" covers essential information on feeding your baby, along with practical tips for newborn care. It is highly recommended that you and your family listen to it, so everyone can gain a deeper understanding of baby care and prepare more effectively for your baby's arrival. How to build a close and positive parent-child bond with your baby? For example, we'll talk about how to interact with and guide your baby right from birth. We'll also cover everything you need to know about feeding your baby.

As you can see on the screen: "How do we build a loving bond with our baby?" This isn't just any ordinary relationship. It's a close, loving, and truly positive bond between you and your baby. First, it's all start with really learning to sense your baby. Have you begun to feel the foetal movements? I believe there are expectant mums here today at different stages of pregnancy. Has anyone already started feeling your baby's movements? What does it feel like? Some mothers have described it as a gentle rebound sensation. For me, it felt as if a little fish tail were lightly flicking the inside of my belly. Right now, your baby is not only being sensed by you; he is also sensing you. The connection between the two of you is truly remarkable and deeply intimate. Are you doing anything to bond with your baby currently? If not, there is no need to worry. Let us explore some simple activities you can start today. During this period, you can gently stroke your belly, imagine what your baby might be doing inside, speak to him softly, or sing to him. The earlier you begin building this close relationship, the more it supports your baby's brain development. You can also invite the baby's father, as well as any older siblings, to join in these special moments of connection.

Now, let us explore how to care for your baby after birth in a way that helps him grows smarter and happier? I would like to introduce the concept of "responsive parenting." What exactly is "responsive parenting"? In simple terms, it involves recognising the right moments and responding promptly and appropriately whenever your baby signals a need. This approach significantly supports your baby's healthy brain development. Let's look at what really influences the baby's brain development. A baby's brain development is closely linked to his daily experiences, particularly how parents respond to him and the kind of feedback he receives. Let us examine what is happening inside a baby's brain. As illustrated in the image, during the first few years of life, the neural pathways in a baby's brain are rapidly forming and connecting, those lines you see represent these developing circuits. Every interaction between you and your baby, such as when the baby signals something and receives a response, stimulates the formation of these connections. These pathways lay the foundation for future abilities, including language, communication, and social skills. Having understood the concept of brain development, you may wonder what can be done in everyday life. It is simple: when a baby expresses a need, if he receives timely and positive responses from parents or caregivers most of the time, this creates a supportive environment for building those neural connections. Research shows that babies who experience such responsive care tend to perform better various domains in the long term, and enjoy improved physical and emotional health. However, you may have heard this before: "Don't pick up a crying baby right away, you'll spoil them!" Have you ever encountered this view? I certainly have, on several occasions. In reality, it is important to understand that crying is a baby's way of communicating his needs. He may be uncomfortable, anxious, cold, hungry, too hot, or experiencing other discomforts. What we can do is this: when you hear your baby cry, first try to identify his needs and respond, for example by saying: "Baby, what's wrong? What do you need?" If none of the issues we just mentioned, he may simply need comforting. What can you do? You can soothe him by gently stroking him, speaking softly, playing music, holding him close, or rocking him lightly. Holding your baby reassures him that his parents care, enhancing his sense of security and trust in you. This supports his emotional development, so please do not leave your baby to "cry it out." For newborns, crying is an instinctive way to express needs, they do not yet know how to seek attention excessively. There is no need to worry about spoiling them. If you would like to learn more about the impact of early experiences on brain development, you may refer to resources from Harvard University on this topic. Here are two QR codes provided, you may take a screenshot to explore the information further.

Have you ever thought about how can you maintain a close and intimate relationship with your baby after he or she is born? Have you heard of skin-to-skin contact? You may have come across it during your antenatal check-ups. What does skin-to-skin contact feel like? Let's try it now: Close your eyes and imagine being held by your partner in a warm embrace, with skin touching skin. How does that feel? Some mothers have shared that it feels incredibly comforting and deeply intimate. This deep sense of connection is firmly grounded in science. Direct skin-to-skin contact prompts the release of a hormone widely known as the "love hormone", oxytocin. Oxytocin fosters a powerful feeling of warmth, love, and closeness that envelops both you and your baby. What role does oxytocin play? It helps calm and stabilise emotions for both mother and baby, whether the baby is upset and crying or you simply want to enjoy a quiet, tender moment together. Recent studies have shown that skin-to-skin contact plays a significant role in supporting healthy brain development in infants. For these reasons, it's well worth doing as often as you can. Your midwife may have mentioned that, right after delivery in the labour ward, you will have the chance to have immediate skin-to-skin contact with your baby. What does it look like? Actually, everyone can prepare for this: Right after birth, you'll likely feel immense joy at finally meeting your baby. The midwife will place the baby directly on your bare chest, just like in the first image, with no clothing in between. The baby will then smell you, look at you (as shown in the second and third images), and instinctively recognise, "Ah, this is my mother!" Soon after, the baby will begin to crawl upward toward your breast (as in the fourth image). Eventually, they will latch on and start breastfeeding, as depicted in the fifth image, tasting that precious colostrum. In fact, performing skin-to-skin contact immediately after birth provides numerous health benefits for both you and you baby. For your baby, this practice enables direct contact with your natural bacteria (microbiome), which helps establish the growth of your baby's normal flora. Skin-to-skin contact also extends the warm and comforting bond you shared during pregnancy. It helps keep your baby warm, stabilizes their heart rate and blood sugar levels within normal ranges and reduces stress hormone levels. All of these help your baby remain calm and emotionally more stable. For you, skin-to-skin contact not only helps regulate your body temperature but also enhances your parenting capabilities and strengthens the parent-child bond. As previously mentioned, the release of the "love hormone" (oxytocin) helps expel the placenta, reduces the risk of postpartum anemia and promote uterine contractions. Once you're home, there will be times when your baby cries, just before or after a feed, and you want to hold them skin-to-skin or cuddle them to help bring up wind. How can you make this work easily? Take a look at the cover of the book Love Starts from Breastfeeding. Notice anything special about the image? During skin-to-skin contact, the baby lies close against your chest, in direct contact with your skin. You can gently pat them or speak softly to them at the same time. It doesn't have to involve fully undressing the baby; simply opening the front of their clothing (like a kimono-style onesie) is often enough. What are the benefits of skin-to-skin contact? Beyond deepening your parent-child bond and helping stabilise your baby's emotions (as mentioned earlier), one of the most important advantages is that it strengthens the let-down reflex (milk ejection reflex) during breastfeeding, making milk flow more easily. This makes skin-to-skin contact an excellent way to support breastfeeding. As you can see from the images, skin-to-skin contact isn't limited to mothers, fathers can do it too! When your baby is born, they experience a huge transition: from the warm, protected environment of the womb to a bright, noisy world where they must learn to breathe, feed, and adapt. The situation is like emigrating to a very unfamiliar place. As expectant parents, you can respond sensitively to your newborn's needs to help them adjust to this new environment. Practices like responsive parenting, skin-to-skin contact, hugging, and holding your baby all support their healthy development.

What arrangements can make caring for your baby easier? The answer most people think of is "rooming-in". In fact, mother-baby room-sharing is already practiced in hospitals. After delivery, you'll be transferred to the postnatal ward. The baby's cot is placed right beside you, making it more convenient for you to observe your baby's cues and respond to their needs. If you feel exhausted and need some rest, simply let the nurse know, they'll be happy to assist. Once you're home, it's best to place the baby's cot in your bedroom. This enables parents to observe, get to know, and respond to their baby promptly at any time, which in turn builds your confidence as caregivers. This is an important tip we'd like to share with you now, so you can start thinking ahead about where to place the cot. If your bedroom really doesn't have enough space and you do not have a baby crib, then if you place the baby on the adult bed, you must use a safe bedside bassinet. However, we strongly recommend that the baby and mother sleep separately in the same room.

Next, let's talk about feeding your baby-specifically "responsive feeding". Have you ever wondered what a newborn does when he is tired? Will he yawn? Will he cry? Or become very fidgety and irritable? And if the baby is hungry, what will he do? He might suck on his hands? Or make sucking movements with his mouth? Or even cry loudly? It turns out that babies send out all kinds of signals to express their various needs. So why don't we take a closer look at the early hunger cues- so you can recognise them when you see them. Let us play a quick game: If you were the baby, at which stage would you most prefer to be fed? The options are:

1. Mouth opening wide;
2. Putting hand to mouth;
3. Crying loudly and fussing.

Take a moment to think about it. Returning to what we were just talking about-baby's hunger cues. So, when is the best time to feed a baby? When you observe the baby opening their mouth widely, turning their head to search for the breast, and becoming more active. These cues indicate, "I'm hungry, Mummy!" These are early feeding cues. Seizing these early cues and feeding the baby promptly is ideal. Let us introduce a bit more, moving to the later stages. When the baby becomes very hungry, they will start putting their hands into their mouth, waving their arms and legs vigorously, and even stretching their limbs. These are the mid-stage hunger cues, which tell us: we need to feed the baby immediately! Finally, when the baby is crying intensely, looking distressed with a flushed face. This means the baby is extremely hungry. These are the late-stage hunger cues. In such cases, calm and soothe the baby first before feeding. For example, you can practise skin-to-skin contact, speak gently to him, and hold him close. Once he has settled, you feed him more properly and peacefully. The cues we just mentioned can be seen on this poster. We are now displaying a QR code, you may take a screenshot of it right now. Feel free to download and study it carefully at home. Regarding feeding and crying, some may say: "Let the baby cry for a while and get really hungry before feeding, that way, they'll eat more." Have you heard this before? If you've been listening carefully, you will realise that crying is a late hunger cue. Feeding only when the baby is overly hungry can impair his effective suckling. Even though the baby's mouth may open very wide (as shown in the illustration), the tongue tends to curl upwards, which interferes with proper attachment. This situation should be avoided. Having dispelled the previous myth, let us now review some helpful tips on feeding your baby. It turns out that the cues a baby gives when slightly hungry differ from those when very hungry. We should respond by feeding the baby as soon as we notice these early cues. Responding promptly to his needs can support brain development and enhance his sense of security. One important reminder: when feeding your baby, remember to talk to him, maintain eye contact, and gently touch him. This not only meets his nutritional needs but also strengthens the parent-child bond. Therefore, even if someone else is available to help with feeding or caregiving, try to feed the baby yourself whenever possible. If you would like to learn more about the various signals your baby may display, not just hunger cues, you may refer to this leaflet. It also describes the expressions and actions a baby shows when wanting to play or interact. You can take a screenshot of the image now to download the leaflet. The more you understand your baby's needs and signals, the better equipped you will be to respond appropriately.

So why don't we talk now about "direct breastfeeding", that is bringing your baby to your breast(s) to breastfeed. What are the benefits? When you hold your baby close to breastfeed, it does much more than just fulfill their hunger and nutritional needs. It also lets the baby control exactly how much they drink, so there's less risk of overfeeding. On top of that, it meets both the mother's and baby's emotional needs. You can breastfeed directly like this to comfort and soothe your baby when they're upset or fussy, or simply whenever you want to enjoy that special, intimate bonding together.

Although your baby hasn't arrived yet, I believe you've already made many different decisions, for example, which crib to buy, or how many sets of clothes to purchase, and so on. I believe everyone, before making these decisions, did a lot of research. And regarding feeding the baby, it's actually a very important decision. I want to share with you a mom and dad who are just like you, eagerly awaiting their baby's birth, Why don't we take a look at what they have to say? Being a first-time mum is naturally nerve-wracking. I don't know anything at all and literally starting from zero. I did a huge amount of research and gathered tons of information. I learned that breast milk contains a huge amount of nutrients and antibodies. That's why, even during pregnancy, I had already decided to breastfeed. I knew from the start that my wife wanted to breastfeed. Honestly, at the beginning I had no clue about any of it and didn't know how to help her. So I joined a breastfeeding support group. This mum and dad made some plans, the mom decided to breastfeed, and the dad joined a breastfeeding support group. Maybe you're also thinking, when the time comes, should I choose breastfeeding? Or formula feeding? Or mixed feeding? I hope I can help everyone, by providing more information before you make a decision, I've prepared a picture, which is a comparison chart of the ingredients in breastmilk and formula. It shows the differences in the composition between breast milk and formula. You might notice that breastmilk not only provides sufficient basic nutrition, but is a rich and living substance, for example, it has antibodies, immunoglobulins, and much more. Actually, breastmilk is a food tailor-made for each baby. From a lot of data, we know that many moms want to try breastfeeding, because everyone understands the benefits of breastfeeding, but when the time comes, maybe the friends and family around you will worry that breastfeeding is too much hard work, and want you to get more rest, by helping to feed the baby formula instead. You can read this leaflet called "Informed Decision on Feeding Your Child", and you'll learn more information inside, for example, what risks there are if you supplement formula. The ingredients in formula are far inferior to breastmilk, and the manufacturing process of formula could potentially be contaminated. Unnecessary supplementation of formula will reduce the production of breastmilk. I hope that during your pregnancy, you can prepare well and learn more, so that when you implement your feeding plan, it will be easier to achieve, and be suitable for you and your baby.

If some mums plan to breastfeed, have you thought about how long to breastfeed? Let's look at some data from Hong Kong, which mentions that 80-90% of moms, when discharged from the hospital, are giving their babies breastmilk. And among them, impressively, about half of the moms can continue breastfeeding until the baby is 4-6 months old. Hong Kong mothers know the benefits of breastfeeding, how does the World Health Organization recommend we feed our babies? You can take a look at Chapter 1 of "Love Starts from Breastfeeding", according to the World Health Organization's recommendations, babies should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months after birth. At around six months old, solid complementary foods should be gradually introduced, to meet the growing baby's changing nutritional needs, and continue breastfeeding until 2 years or beyond. Why does the World Health Organization have such recommendations? Why 6 months? Why 2 years? It turns out that from birth to 6 months old, exclusive breastfeeding meets the baby's nutritional needs, helping with the development of their brain, vision, and gastrointestinal tract, these are very important developments. And it provides the most benefits and protection for the baby. As for why you should continue until 2 years or beyond? It's to protect the baby during the vulnerable periods. It turns out that the antibodies the mother gives to the baby during pregnancy are used up around 6 months old. However, in the first two to three years, the baby's own ability to produce antibodies is low, making them prone to infections. The natural antibodies in breastmilk, live immune cells, and enzymes, can protect the baby during this relatively vulnerable time, reducing the risk of infection. Moreover, the composition of breastmilk adapts according to the baby's growth, and matches their needs at different stages. No matter if you breastfeed a lot or a little, as long as the baby gets breastmilk, it is beneficial for their health.