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The rooting reflex as an infant feeding cue

Kathryn R Glodowski1, Rachel H Thompson2, Lauren Martel2

  • 1The Pennsylvania State University - Harrisburg.

Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis
|September 26, 2018
PubMed

Insights

The rooting reflex in newborns reliably indicates hunger, supporting its use as a feeding cue. However, this study did not find evidence that rooting alone signals the need for feeding before crying begins.

Area of Science:

  • Infant development
  • Neonatal reflexes
  • Pediatric feeding behaviors

Background:

  • The rooting reflex is widely believed by experts to signal infant hunger.
  • Empirical evidence directly linking the rooting reflex to feeding status is limited in scientific literature.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between the rooting reflex and infant feeding status.
  • To determine if the rooting reflex reliably indicates hunger before other cues like crying.

Main Methods:

  • Seven parent-newborn dyads participated in the study.
  • Parents documented rooting, crying, and palmar grasp reflexes before, between, and after feedings.
  • A control reflex (palmar grasp) was monitored for comparison.

Main Results:

  • The rooting reflex occurred more frequently during prefeeding observations compared to other time points.
  • The control palmar grasp reflex showed no significant change across observation periods.
  • Rooting without crying was observed infrequently, suggesting it may not consistently precede crying.

Conclusions:

  • Findings provide empirical support for the rooting reflex as an indicator of infant hunger.
  • The study did not find sufficient evidence to confirm that feeding upon observing the rooting reflex would consistently prevent infant crying.

Keywords:
descriptive assessmentinfant cryinginfant feedinginfant hungerinfant reflexesnewborn behaviorresponsive caregivingresponsive feedingrooting

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