breastfeeding
Nuna PIPA Car Seat Features, available at Posh Baby & Teen
Lisa Paladino CNM, IBCLC, Breastfeeding Shouldn’t Hurt
How Often Should I Wake My Baby for Feeding? – Cora’s Corner
Healthy Breastfeeding Tips For You And Your Baby
We’ve all heard the debate. Breast Feeding vs Formula. But why do most people say breast feeding is the best for your baby? Because this natural mother’s milk is genetically the best food for your baby. This is the way GOD designed for things to work.
Want a more scientific reason? Okay, for one, the complex fats that are abundant in human breastmilk are vital to brain development and may have an effect on your baby’s intelligence as they grow older.
Breastfed babies are ten times less likely to be hospitalized with gastro-enteritis in the early months than babies who are fed formula.
Breastfed babies also gain immunities from a host of other infections.
Here are some terms you may not already know. “Foremilk” – the thinner milk that first comes from the breast when you begin feeding your baby. This is for quenching the baby’s initial thirst. “Hindmilk” – is the milk that comes later during the feeding of your baby. The hindmilk is much more filling and contains all the nutrients your baby needs to stay healthy.
Breastfed babies rarely need other drinks and supplements, because their mother has already given them what nature intended for them to have and need.
What’s in it for me as a Mom? There is nothing to compare the bonding and closeness with your baby that is caused by your choice to breastfeed. It is a great feeling to know that you are doing what is best for your baby.
Babies need to be close to their mothers. They need physical contact. Breastfeeding is one of the best types of physical contact you can have with your baby.
It’s also a whole lot easier than bottle-feeding! No feeds to mix, no bottles to warm or sterilize. Your breastmilk is always available, already sterile, and already just the right temperature for your baby.
Here is a real favorite among all women who breastfeed. Many women lose weight more easily after the birth if they choose breastfeeding over bottle feeding.
Another big issue is that there is evidence that breastfeeding reduces your risk for breast cancer.
What if I am having problems breastfeeding? Either your pediatrician can help you or there are breastfeeding counselors you can find in your area or online that can help you with any problems you may have.
If you have sore nipples or your baby isn’t getting enough milk, it may be your positioning. Your baby’s mouth should cover all of the areola, especially the part just under the areola. Sucking on just the nipple will keep the baby from getting enough milk and will make your nipples very sore.
Can I give my baby a bottle at times and breastfeed at other times? It’s not recommended. Bottle nipples are easier for the baby to suck on and they will obtain bad breastfeeding technique which in turn will cause them to be less hungry or not get enough milk from breastfeeding.
Nursing in Public and Private Places
Whatever you call it, a nursing room, mother’s room, lactation room, station, nook or pod, nursing moms are making waves in the fight to have their voices heard. As the largest and most lucrative target market, companies are starting to take notice of the demand for nursing spaces and are creating accommodations for moms. Although many locations are not five star accommodations companies are leveraging open breastfeeding policies and providing nursing moms with spaces to breastfeed or breast pump.
According to federal law (and adopted by 48 states) a woman can breastfeed in public or private places she’s allowed to be without discrimination or harassment. What this means is a woman is free to exercise their natural right to breastfeed as long as she (as a person and not just as a breastfeeding mom) is allowed to be there. But if a woman chooses to she can nurse and breast pump in private.
Nursing in Public and Private Places
From airports, to retail stores and sports complexes moms are campaigning for accommodations. So if you are in nursing mom and you need a comfy spot to breast pump or breastfeed what do you need to look for? Here are the basic requirements outlined by Moms Pump Here for a nursing room:
• Comfy chair
• An electric outlet
• Changing table
• Sink
• A space with a door that locks
Some nursing rooms can lack any one of these requirements but some businesses go over and beyond to provide a great experience for moms using their facilities. Some outstanding amenities are recliners, TV’s, WiFi, refrigerators, microwaves, beautiful decorations and more.
If you plan on using a nursing room on the go and want to prepare before heading to the location here are some items to bring with you just in case an alternative is not available:
• Cooler with an ice pack to keep pumped breast milk
• Baby wipes and napkins
• Hand sanitizer or disinfectant wipes (to wipes down a seat or table)
• A manual breast pump in case there are no electrical outlets to plug in an electrical pump (plus it’s easier to carry)
• A small bottle of water
• A coloring book, crayons and stickers for your older child or toddler
No matter if you breastfeed in public or private places, always know your rights and be prepared in case a location does not have the essential amenities.
Guest Author:
Priya Nembhard is Co-founder of Moms Pump Here. Moms Pump Here is an app that helps nursing mothers locate a safe and private place to breastfeed or breastpump. You can get the Moms Pump Here app on iTunes today.
Childcare for the Breastfed Baby
As a working mom of three breastfed children, I am often asked how I managed to continue nursing even when my babies were in daycare. Many care providers are more familiar with formula-fed infants, but a teenaged babysitter who sits on date nights, in-home nannies, and even grandparents can often be unsure of how caring for a breastfed baby might be different from caring for a formula-fed baby.
Here are some tips to help you, your care provider, and your baby find the right balance for breastfeeding.
Offer the breast if possible. Some employers provide on-site daycare and this can help tremendously. Moms can visit and nurse the baby on breaks from work. This cuts down on the pumping sessions during the day and provides an opportunity for bonding between mom and baby.
Pack the bottles sparingly at first. The only thing worse than spilled breastmilk is wasted breastmilk.  If you know your baby can take 24 ounces of breastmilk in one day, resist the urge to pack three 8-ounce bottles. The care provider will need to warm up 8-ounces every time they think your baby is ready to take a bottle, and sometimes the baby will only want to take 2-4 ounces of the bottle and then they need to discard the remaining breastmilk. Pack the bottles in 4-ounce increments and allow the care provider to use them more frequently.
Specify the Schedule. Let them know when and how much the baby should be fed. Sometimes breastfed babies are overfed breastmilk because they fuss or cry. Remind your provider that breastfeeding is not only about food but comfort and cuddles also come with cozy times with mom. Encourage the provider to offer more breastmilk only after other options have been exercised. Examples could be walking, rocking, cuddling, bouncing, or singing. Also, if you plan to breastfeed after pick-up, request that no bottles be offered after a certain time so that baby will be hungry when you are reunited.
Trust Your Sitter. Your care provider will develop a very special bond with your baby. He or she is not replacing you in your baby’s life, but seeing special smiles and catching cozy moments can create uncomfortable feelings. Allow them to develop a warm relationship because if our children cannot be with us, they should still be with people who love and care for them in wonderful ways.
For additional tips about breastfeeding, breast pumping, and caring for the breastfed baby, visit momspumphere.com.
Author:
Kim Harrison is co-founder of Moms Pump Here. Moms Pump Here is an app that helps nursing mothers locate a safe and private place to breastfeed or breastpump. Download her Moms Pump here app today!
The Age of the Super Mom
It is the age of the “Super Mom.” Women are called on to play every role and are convinced we have to. In the pre WWII era women played the role of homemaker. We were expected to keep the home polished, cook for the family, serve our husbands and stay quiet. So much has changed. Women have transformed and society has transformed because of it. Women’s rights have improved but we are still left with a western culture that caters to male dominance. While we may think women are breaking through the glass ceiling we are still being sexualized and pulled to extreme limits to keep up with our male counterparts.
There is an expectation that women have to be able to have children, raise well rounded children, have a successful career, maintain a healthy lifestyle, spend time with friends, have a social life, nurture friendships for young children, care for aging parents, clean the house, cook dinner, maintain a strong relationship with a partner, maintain sanity and keep learning and growing and more! It all seems so out of wack and unrealistic. How are women supposed to be the wholesome being society wants us to be and be sane through it all? Through these unrealistic expectations women have found a way to make it work. Although doing one thing consistently at 100% seems like a dream one thing has made the age of the Super Mom possible…technology.
The Age of the Super Mom
The Super Mom can be defined as the woman that makes life happen for her and her family. A step up from Superwoman, she not only magically maintains a life and sanity but her children are growing just fine. Technology has improved the lives of women by allowing them to keep in touch with friends, order food online or get 20 minute recipes online, order clothes, shoes, keep up with news and fashion, vacuum a house using small robots, book nights out with their partner and get a babysitter in the process. It has even allowed her to improve her education with online degrees, digital books, educational videos and apps that improve thinking skills and help to navigate life’s needs.
The Super Mom also lives on the edge of the expectations of society by holding her own, knowing what she is capable of and not capable of. They tend to define their reality on their own terms and not by what society deems appropriate. Through the use of technology they have also found their voice. When another mom is shamed for breastfeeding in public or women are objectified in distasteful ways they speak up and hit social media outlets to tell the world they exist and what they have to say matters. According to the Moms and Media (Edison Research 2013) research study moms are mobile and digitally savvy multitaskers which spend over a third of their time engaging online resources and apps to balance life. “95% of moms own a cellphone, with 64% owning a smartphone. And she keeps it close — 89% reported that the smartphone is always or most of the time within arm’s length vs 74% for regular cell phone moms.”
As society shifts so do the women that make the world go around, the care takers, money makers, and policy shakers. Women do not wake up and decide they are going to tackle the world head on they just do it. With technology on her side the Super Mom is a force to be reckoned with!
Author:
Priya Nembhard is Co-founder of Moms Pump Here. Moms Pump Here is an app that helps nursing mothers locate a safe and private place to breastfeed or breastpump. You can get the Moms Pump Here app on iTunes today.
Save a Preemie, Become a Milk Donor!
Did you know that when a mother’s own milk is unavailable, donor human milk has been proven to improve the health and survival of fragile infants? Preterm infants are most in need of human milk, yet due to stress and other complications, their moms are the least likely to be able to provide their own milk in the earliest days of life.  This is where milk donation and mothers’ milk banks come in.
Mothers with a surplus of milk can give premature infants a better chance to grow and thrive. Donor milk is especially protective against a life-threatening condition, common in preemies, called necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC). A human milk diet is estimated to lower the risk of this condition by a whopping 79%!
Any nursing mom can be screened to become a donor through a nonprofit community milk bank. The process is easy, similar to donating blood, and the deep personal satisfaction that comes from helping improve the health of another baby is great.
New Yorkers wishing to donate can contact Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast (MMBNE), a nonprofit milk bank operating under the guidelines of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), whose mission it is to provide safely pasteurized donor human milk to babies in need throughout the Northeast. MMBNE has been serving New York’s most fragile babies since 2012, and has since assisted hundreds of mothers from across the state, and in all 5 NYC boroughs, to generously donate their extra milk!
The four simple steps to donating:
- ​10 minute phone screening
- online health history form and consents
- free blood draw (paid for by MMBNE)
- free shipping of milk (MMBNE provides insulated boxes and pickup by FedEx with overnight shipping to the lab) *convenient Brooklyn depot also available for donors who wish to drop off their milk
Previously frozen milk is accepted as long as it has been stored for no more than 3 months in a refrigerator freezer or 6 months in a stand alone freezer. There is no limit to how much one can donate, but one must commit to providing a minimum of 150 oz (about 30 bags) over time. The minimum amount does NOT have to be sent all at once, and is waived for bereaved mothers.
New York City families have greatly benefited from donor milk. In addition to nine other hospitals across the state, NYU Langone Medical Center, Bellevue Hospital Center, and Maimonides Medical Center now offer MMBNE donor milk as standard of care in their NICUs and nurseries. MMBNE is working closely with many more hospitals, particularly in NYC, to meet the requirements necessary to prescribe donor human milk to their patients.
Author:
Amber Star Merkens is the New York Outreach Coordinator for Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast and Postpartum Doula serving families in Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan.To learn more about donating and receiving milk, call MMBNE’s main office at 212-993-1566, visit their website, or like their Facebook page.
Amber Star Merkens is the New York Outreach Coordinator for Mothers’ Milk Bank Northeast and Postpartum Doula serving families in Brooklyn, Queens, and Manhattan.To learn more about donating and receiving milk, call MMBNE’s main office at 212-993-1566, visit their website, or like their Facebook page.
Tips to Survive a Power Outage with Frozen Breastmilk
Tips to Survive a Power Outage with Frozen Breastmilk
Last week severe storms hit parts of the northeast and many moms on the North Shore of Long Island were scrambling to find safe storage for their stash of frozen breastmilk. This was one of my biggest worries during Superstorm Sandy in 2012 because I had a deep freezer full of frozen milk. Most of the milk was dairy and gluten-free – hard work! I wanted to share what I’ve learned about keeping your stash safe and maintaining your supply when you lose power.
Keep Back Up Power Handy
Not every household can have a standby generator, but this is ideal. If this is not possible, keep your pump’s battery pack available and the car adapter around if you think you might lose power. Many electronics and hardware stores carry converters which can allow you to use your ordinary electrical plug with your car’s auxiliary power. Keeping one of these in your car during a power outage can be very helpful because you can pump in your car if you need to.
Keep Making Milk
Maintaining your milk supply is very important, whether you are nursing or exclusively pumping. Pump or nurse as often as you can. Use a manual pump (or even hand express if necessary) to maintain your supply and to produce a fresh milk for your little one. (The release of oxytocin during milk expression will also help boost your mood if you begin to have worries about losing power.)
Keep Alternate Storage Spots Available
Does your neighbor have a deep freezer in their basement? Do you live near a restaurant or hotel with a large walk-in freezer? Does your partner’s family have extra room in their kitchen freezer to store your milk? These options may not be ideal but securing another location to take your milk will help you tremendously. Reach out to other nursing moms in your area to see if they can store your milk while your family is without power. (Be sure the packages are adequately labeled with your contact information.)
Keep the Milk Cold
This is very important. A deep freezer can typically maintain frozen food for 48 hours, but some power outages last longer than this. Â
- Prepare before the power goes out (if this is possible). Fill all empty air spaces in your freezer because a completely full freezer works more efficiently than a half-full freezer. Pour water into empty juice containers or empty milk jugs and freeze them into blocks of ice, which can help keep your milk colder for longer periods of time.
- Open the freezer as infrequently as possible. Yes, this is difficult but checking to see if your milk is thawing will actually cause your milk to thaw!
- If you feel your freezer is no longer cold, try transferring the frozen milk to a smaller cooler and pack it as tightly as you can with other frozen materials (frozen vegetables, ice, dry ice, even snow if it’s available). A small cooler packed correctly with ice and other frozen materials will keep your milk frozen more efficiently than a half-full freezer.
- Do not place a perfectly ice-packed cooler in direct sunlight or in a hot car during August because the heat will transfer and your frozen liquid gold may thaw much more quickly. Keep the cooler in a dark, cool place such as a shaded part of your yard, in a garage or in a chilly basement.
Keep Calm and When in Doubt, Don’t Just Throw it Out
Many breastfeeding moms have been taught to discard breastmilk if storage conditions are not ideal. However, researchers Rechtman, Lee, and Berg published a study in Breastfeeding Medicine in 2006 which suggests that we might be throwing out milk unnecessarily. Their findings concluded if milk is left unchilled for less than eight hours after being expressed, it is safe to use and its nutritional content is intact. Their data suggested frozen milk which has partially thawed can have fresh milk added to it and then safely be refrozen.
Guest Author
Kim Harrison is co-founder of Moms Pump Here. Moms Pump Here is an app that helps nursing mothers locate a safe and private place to breastfeed or breastpump. Download her Moms Pump here app today!