Recommended books on parenting and feeding your baby

There are many, many books out there on all aspects of parenting. It can be very difficult to know what to read and what to ignore. When looking at books to recommend to parents I always consider the background, qualifications and experience of the author and the research they draw on to back up the claims and recommendations they are making.

All babies are individuals, as are all parents, so there is no ‘one approach suits all’ as some would have us believe. Books that advocate set schedules for feeding and sleep, especially in the first 3 months of life, not only jeopardise the establishment of breastfeeding. They can also undermine the confidence of parents, discouraging them from using their instincts and growing knowledge about their own unique child, to meet their child’s needs. Books advocating techniques such as controlled crying, also neglect to acknowledge the detrimental effects these kinds of methods have been shown to have on a baby’s developing brain and the long term impact on emotional and psychological well being.

The following books have been chosen carefully as sources of information for parents. I hope they will provide you with information to support you as a parent, without telling you what to do, how to do it and when to do it!

Breastfeeding

• The Ultimate Breastfeeding Book of Answers by Jack Newman
• Baby-led Breastfeeding by Gill Rapley and Tracey Murkett
• The Positive Breastfeeding Book by Amy Brown
• You’ve got it in you by Emma Pickett

Parenting

• The Social Baby by Lynne Murray & Liz Andrews
• The Social Toddler by Helen & Clive Dorman
• Why Love Matters by Sue Gerhardt
• What Mothers Do by Naomi Stadlen
• Nighttime Parenting by William Sears
• The No-Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley
• Baby-led Weaning by Gill Rapley & Tracey Murkett
• Sweet Sleep by Diane Wiessinger, Diana West, Linda J Smith, Teresa Pitman
• The Gentle Sleep Book by Sarah Ockwell-Smith