How many women exclusively pump

Or if you prefer to own your own breastpump, you could choose a double-electric personal use pump like the Swing Maxi or Freestyle. Make peace with the reality of feeding expressed breastmilk to your baby. Consider using the Medela Calma feeding solution , which allows the baby to apply the same feeding behaviour as natural breastfeeding. How does this work?

Just like when breastfeeding, the baby latches onto the Calma feeding solution by creating suction. Once suction has been established, babies use tongue movement to increase or decrease the level of suction. This is exactly what happens during breastfeeding.

When suction is at a low level, breastmilk will not flow through Calma, and when a baby increases the level of suction, breastmilk will start to flow for as long as the baby decides. Exclusively pumping mums often wonder about what they can do to increase their milk supply. There are some great breastfeeding accessories available that can help make life easier for exclusively expressing mums.

Breastfeeding is often described as a once-in-a-lifetime chance for bonding with your baby, and exclusively pumping mums might feel left out of this experience. But keep in mind that bonding is bigger than breastfeeding alone! There are many ways to bond with your baby during feeding times that have nothing to do with whether or not the baby is suckling from a breast or from a bottle. Good for you for making the extra effort and sacrifices to give your baby the best nourishment possible!

One concern is that babies only fed by bottle eat more and thus grow differently. A analysis shows that babies fed breast milk by bottle in early infancy were more likely to empty their bottles later in infancy than their breastfeeding counterparts. Infants fed both at the breast and with bottles of expressed breast milk gained weight at a similar rate to those only breastfed, but infants gained more weight per month when fed only by bottle formula or breast milk. There are multiple theories for why: Babies can get milk out of bottles quicker than breasts, caregivers tend to encourage infants to finish their bottles, and it is thought that breastfeeding teaches babies when to stop eating.

Another analysis found that infants who were not directly breastfed have a significant increase in coughing and wheezing episodes compared to those who were. Some research suggests storing expressed breast milk may interfere with its beneficial properties.

The effects of these changes, if any, are unknown. The content of the breast milk itself may differ when it is exclusively pumped. As for contamination, everything breast milk touches outside the body during the process of expression and bottle-feeding is a chance for it to obtain harmful bacteria. Bacterial counts are higher in milk expressed with a pump than in milk expressed by hand.

She says babies fed by bottle miss out on these aspects. Everyone seems to think that EPing is a lifestyle choice, done for convenience. Parents pumping breastmilk bottles illo. By Fiona Tapp.

Be the first to comment! No comments yet. Close this dialog window Add a comment. Add your comment Cancel Submit. Close this dialog window Review for. Back to story Comment on this project. Tell us what you think Thanks for adding your feedback. All rights reserved. One of those was Amanda Glenn, whose website, ExclusivePumping. Glenn says her website receives over , unique visitors per month. More visibility, and more health care professionals who know about it—that will help. I asked Glenn what she would tell a parent who is just starting out with exclusive pumping.

You need to be able to pump and do other things at the same time. Breast shields are also known as flanges, and come in different sizes, depending on your nipple size. Note: breast shields are not the same thing as nipple shields. Many people can achieve two let-downs in a pumping session, and sometimes more.

Fully emptying the breasts stimulates milk production and provides extra milk for freezer storage, both of which are important for EPers who are in it for the long haul.

Some EPers choose to buy enough parts to cover an entire day to minimize their amount of clean-up and prep. Whatever you choose to do, be sure to follow exclusive pumping safety guidelines. The biggest risk with exclusive pumping is contamination, and not all advice on sterilization is created equal. For instance, you might have heard you can place pump parts in a clean zip-lock bag in the refrigerator between pumping sessions to save time.

Start by checking out their cleaning guidelines and storage guidelines. Taking an inventory of your support network and daily rhythms can help when deciding on your pumping schedule.

Will your baby be content to be placed in a bassinet or bouncy chair at certain times of day, freeing you up to pump? Can someone else hold your little one during pumping sessions?