Why do babies start drooling

Saliva is vital for digestion—which is why your mouth waters when you smell a delicious dinner on the stove. Cool, right? When your baby develops motor skills like chewing on her hands, motor receptors in her mouth send signals to the brain to initiate saliva production, a sign that she may be ready to eat.

Basically, your baby develops the muscles and digestive saliva just as soon as she needs it to eat solid foods. In his blog on excessive drooling , Dr. Keep giving your baby plenty of tummy time — it helps them build strength and gain head and neck control.

Chances are, your baby won't be sleeping through the night anytime soon. But some 2-month-olds will snooze for five or even six hours in a row. Your 2-month-old baby has already grown by leaps and bounds, but is still very much a newborn. Here's what you can expect this month.

At 2 months, your baby may be more engaged with the world and spend less time crying. Your baby isn't ready for an established schedule just yet. However, they may have settled into a more regular feeding and sleeping pattern. If your baby isn't there just yet, don't worry. The newborn stage means all bets are off, and you're still very much in survival mode.

Your baby may be sleeping and eating at all hours of the day and night, and that's still to be expected at this stage. Your goal is to get sleep when you can, ensure your baby is growing appropriately, and continue to learn your baby's eating and sleeping cues so you can help encourage a more consistent baby schedule in the future. Milestones for a 2-month-old vary a lot, especially if your baby was born early.

It doesn't mean that something's wrong if your baby hasn't met a certain milestone yet, especially at this age. But be sure to attend your baby's well-child visits and tell your baby's care provider if you have any concerns about developmental delay. By 2 months old, your baby will have gained about 4 to 5 pounds since birth and 1 to 2 inches in length.

If you're wondering how much a 2-month-old should weigh or how big a 2-month-old baby is, you can refer to these averages:. Keep in mind there's a lot of variations; every baby is different, and it's important that your little one is following their own growth curve.

For instance, a baby who was 5 pounds at birth will have a different growth trajectory than one who weighed 10 pounds. The most important thing you can do to ensure weight gain is on track is to attend all your baby's doctor visits. At each visit, the doctor will check their weight, length, and head circumference. At 2 months old, your baby will still be eating around the clock. After all, they have a lot of growing to do! So how much does a 2-month-old baby eat?

In general, a breastfed baby will continue to eat about every 3 to 4 hours, although your little one may be able to go longer stretches between feedings, especially if they're sleeping for longer periods of time. Keep feeding your baby on demand.

That means watching for hunger cues and feeding your baby whenever they show signs of hunger, such as rooting for your breast, smacking their lips, or sucking on their hands. You can expect to breastfeed anywhere between six and 10 times per hour period, although that can vary from infant to infant and even day to day.

A formula-fed 2-month-old will drink about 4 to 5 ounces of formula every three to four hours. If your baby is drinking breast milk from a bottle or alternating bottles of formula and breast milk, the amount should remain the same. If you have questions about whether you should wake your baby to feed, it's a good idea to talk to your baby's doctor, because it really depends on your individual baby's growth and any feeding challenges you may be facing. If your baby is struggling to gain weight, or needs extra nutrition for any medical reason, waking to feed may be crucial.

For other babies, it may be okay to sleep through a feeding. Babies enjoy looking at faces, seeing you smile and hearing your voice. They are learning language now, so talk and sing to your baby. Talk to your baby in long sentences so he or she can hear and learn the grammar of your language. Also spend time making baby sounds, like "ba ba ba," to encourage language development. Pause and allow your baby time to respond.

Your baby will also try to copy funny faces that you make. If your baby will hear more than one language at home, begin exposing him or her to both languages now.

It is much easier for children to speak more than one language if they've heard both languages from infancy. Hearing more than one language will not confuse your baby, but consider having one person speak one language to your baby, and another person speak the second language.

Parents often wonder what toys are best for babies. At around 2 months babies are learning to use their neck and shoulder muscles. They soon will begin trying to raise their heads when lying down and to reach out for objects when sitting. You can hold toys out in front of your baby to encourage him or her to reach. Babies love brightly colored objects, and mobiles will attract their attention. You can also introduce a soft rattle.

In addition to learning how to reach for objects, babies this age are able to put their hands in their mouths. It's normal for babies to put objects in their mouths — it is their way of exploring and learning about their world.

To keep your baby safe, be careful what objects are left within reach. Soon your baby's salivary glands will start to work and your baby will begin to drool.

This does not mean that your baby is teething. At this age babies often like to "stand up" while held and bear weight. It is fine to allow your baby to do this. To help your baby's development, allow your baby to spend time in various positions — sitting, standing while held, and lying on his or her back or tummy. Just remember, babies should always be placed on their backs to go to sleep.

Remember that babies develop differently and on their own schedules. Because babies are sleeping on their backs these days, some do not like to roll over.

This doesn't mean the baby has a problem. Later on, some babies will also skip the crawling phase. There are many different ideas about where babies should sleep. Some people believe it is important for babies to sleep with their parents, while others believe babies should sleep by themselves. We believe it is most important that the parents decide what is right for their babies.

Take a moment to talk with any adults who live at home with you to decide where you feel comfortable having the baby sleep. Remember that sleep patterns or habits are formed by 6 months of age. It's normal for all babies to have some reflux — they'll spit up or regurgitate a little milk after some feedings. It's estimated that up to 50 percent of babies spit up daily. Most of these episodes are brief and don't cause symptoms.

However, if your baby is burping up large amounts of milk throughout the day or vomiting more than a few times a day, it could be a problem called gastroesophageal reflux disease GERD.

Reflux may be associated with prolonged crankiness and pain with eating. In severe cases, babies with GERD gag, cough, or don't gain enough weight. Make sure to mention any reflux symptoms to your baby's doctor. If your baby is being fed formula, her doctor may suggest switching to a soy-based or hypoallergenic formula. You may be advised to try smaller and more frequent feedings to keep your baby's stomach from filling too much or too often. Holding your baby in a semivertical position during and after feedings, with her head elevated about 30 degrees, may help keep the milk from coming back up.

Even frequent burping can reduce reflux symptoms. The doctor might prescribe an antacid or acid-blocking medication for your baby to take daily, similar to the medicine adults take for heartburn but don't give your baby any medications without a doctor's order.

She may also suggest further evaluation of your baby's symptoms with a pH probe, which is inserted into the esophagus to measure reflux episodes and acid levels. In most cases, babies grow out of the problem by their first birthday, as their sphincter muscles strengthen. All babies are unique and meet milestones at their own pace. Developmental guidelines simply detail what your baby has the potential to accomplish — if not right now, then soon.

If your baby was premature, keep in mind that kids born early usually need a bit more time to reach certain stages. If you have any questions at all about your baby's development, ask your healthcare provider. BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. When creating and updating content, we rely on credible sources: respected health organizations, professional groups of doctors and other experts, and published studies in peer-reviewed journals.

We believe you should always know the source of the information you're seeing. Learn more about our editorial and medical review policies. Movement: Birth to 3 months.