Does a Baby Need a Bib While Nursing?

It may seem obvious that bibs are used to keep babies clean while they eat. However, a lot of parents are unsure whether it is necessary to put a bib on a breastfeeding baby. Whether to use a bib is a personal decision that should be based on several factors, including how messy your particular baby is.

  1. Excess Milk

    • When your milk first comes in, your breasts may become temporarily engorged with too much milk. It's unlikely, but you may even continue to have the problem of oversupply or forceful let-down throughout your nursing relationship. If so, there may be too much milk for your baby too swallow, and some extra milk may dribble out of the sides of her mouth while she's nursing. In this situation, It would be handy to keep a bib on your baby while she nurses to catch some of the excess liquid.

    Drool

    • Even if your baby manages to keep her chin dry while breastfeeding, it may be soaking wet the rest of the time. Most babies start drooling around the age of 4 months due to the high production of food-digesting enzymes -- according to Dr. Ari Brown, coauthor of "Baby 411" -- and all that saliva can cause problems. Not only are your baby's clothes soaking wet, but all of that moisture can cause a yeast rash around her neck. Keeping a dry bib on your baby can prevent an uncomfortable and unsightly rash from forming, or help an existing rash to heal.

    Spit-Up

    • Although breastfed babies generally spit up less often than formula-fed babies because of the fact that they swallow less air, spitting up is nevertheless inevitable. In fact, it usually happens when you least expect it. It's convenient to have a bib on your baby during and after a feeding, just in case you don't have a burp cloth ready to catch the mess.

    Introduction of Solids

    • As your baby grows, you'll start to introduce solid foods. Solid foods are only meant to complement rather than replace breast milk in your baby's first year, so they should be offered after you have finished nursing her. For the sake of convenience, you may want to put a bib your baby before you start nursing so that it can do double duty -- catching any accidental milk leakage in addition to the messy cereal or purees.

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