Which Side Did I Feed On Last? Tracking Breastfeeding Without Guesswork

The NHS suggests letting your baby finish the first breast before offering the second. Some babies take both sides at a feed, others are happy with one. If you want to build your supply, the NHS suggests offering both breasts and switching sides at each feed.

Either way, you need to know which side your baby fed from last, and at 4 a.m. after the eighth feed of the day, that is hard to remember.

Why the last side matters

If your baby often feeds from only one side, starting the next feed on the other side keeps both breasts in use. It also helps you notice if your baby clearly prefers one side, which is worth mentioning to your midwife, health visitor, or a breastfeeding supporter.

Low-tech ways to remember

Parents have used a few tricks for a long time:

• a hair tie or bracelet moved to the wrist on the side you finished
• a safety pin on the bra strap
• a note on the phone

They work until you forget to move the bracelet, which happens.

What to note for each feed

For a breastfeed, three things cover most questions:

1. The time it started. This tells you the gap between feeds.
2. The side, or sides. Left, right, or both.
3. Roughly how long on each side. You don't need exact minutes, but a timer does the counting for you.

In the first weeks, newborns usually feed 8 to 12 times in 24 hours. Next to the diaper count, this is the main thing midwives look at. More on that in what to log in the first weeks.

The breast timer in BabyTrack+

BabyTrack+ has a breast timer that you start on the left or right. You can switch sides mid-feed, and the time is kept separately for each side. When you stop, it saves an entry for each side you used, so the timeline shows exactly which side each feed was on. The timer keeps running while you move around the app.

If you forgot to start the timer, switch to manual entry and type the minutes for each side.

On Apple Watch, the timer starts on the side you finished last, so you can begin a feed with one tap without looking at the phone. More in logging feeds from Apple Watch.

If you also give bottles, BabyTrack+ logs those in ml or oz. And if your baby stops breastfeeding, you can turn breastfeeding off for that baby, so the add form, the Watch, and the widgets only show what you still use.

Pain, a baby who seems unsettled after most feeds, or worries about supply are all reasons to talk to your midwife, health visitor, or a breastfeeding counsellor.