Methods of Feeding Your Child Expressed Breastmilk

Training an infant to accept expressed breastmilk should be initiated at an age not less than 4 weeks.
Training an infant to accept expressed breastmilk should be initiated when baby is calm & not too hungry.

Expressed Breastmilk can be fed to Infants Using:

(1) Syringe

(2) Spoon

(3) Cup Feeding

How to Cup Feed your Baby?
1. Position: Baby has to be Upright (90 degrees) or Semi-Upright (45 degrees);
on caregiver's lap, supported at the back, head, neck & buttocks.
2. Hold the feeding cup and let it come into contact with baby's lower lip with the edge of cup's surface touching baby's upper lip.
3. When baby is alert, he/she will respond by opening his eyes or mouth. Slant the cup slightly & let baby taste the milk slightly. Baby will then initiate to lick and swallow the milk slowly.
4. When baby is full, baby will automatically stop feeding.
5. NEVER ATTEMPT TO POUR MILK INTO BABY'S MOUTH BY YOURSELF.
6. Practice Makes Perfect. This method might be clumsy for a start, but it's worthwhile :-)

Why are Bottle Feedings not encouraged?

Because Bottle Feedings may lead to a scenario called "Nipple Confusion".

Nipple confusion is used to describe those times when a baby is reluctant to breastfeed, and seems to find it easier to bottle-feed expressed milk.

Bottle teats are fairly rigid, with a constant reservoir of milk, so your baby won't have to work hard to get at the milk he wants. But to feed from your breast, your baby must first open his mouth wide to latch on. Then he'll need to use about 40 facial muscles, which he'll work constantly to get his tummy full of milk.

To avoid that scenario, cup feeding is a suggested better option :-)


How to Introduce Expressed Breastmilk to Toddlers?
Sippy Cups are an option to introduce expressed breastmilk to toddlers :-)

For babies with Special Needs, there are other various methods to feed EBM which will be blogged about in another topic. Hope this was helpful :-)

Breastmilk Storage Guidelines & Handling Expressed Breastmilk

Suggested Schedule to Teach Baby to Accept Expressed Breastmilk

Suggested Schedule for Expressing Breastmilk for Working Mothers

Greetings. Assalamualaikum..

Breastfeeding is the Best Feeding for your little loved ones indeed.

With the increasing number of women contributing to economical growth lately, it is possible for these working mothers to `exclusively breastfeed'?

If there is a will, There is a way. (Inshallah)

Mothers, you can express breastmilk for your loved ones to feed on while you are away at work.
You may express either by hand (Marmet technique) OR using a breastpump.

When to Start Expressing Breastmilk?
You may start as early as 2 weeks post partum.

As precautionary measure, do ensure your hands and utensils used while expressing breast milk are clean and sterilized.  Breast milk should be expressed into a clean & suitable container with a cover.
Below is a suggested schedule for beautiful mummies to try out :-)

**Note: MSI stands for "Memerah Susu Ibu" which can either be Tandem Pumping or Pumping/Expressing Breastmilk.

Father's Support in Making Breastfeeding a Success

Assalamualaikum & Greetings.

How many of you ladies face difficulties to breastfeed/ failed to do so due to lack of surrounding support as a major factor?

For most ladies/mummies, the Husband/Father of the Child is the first line of support.

Do all husbands/fathers support breastfeeding? Some do, some don't & some don't care.

 

"The most common reasons bottle-feeding was chosen included: 1) mother's perception of father's attitude, 2) uncertainty regarding the quantity of breast milk, and 3) return to work" 
-Major factors influencing breastfeeding rates: Mother's perception of father's attitude and milk supply.Arora S, McJunkin C, Wehrer J, Kuhn P.



"In many families, fathers play a strong role in the decision of whether to breastfeed. Fathers may be opposed to breastfeeding because of concerns about what their role would be in feeding, whether they would be able to bond with their infant if they were personally unable to feed the baby, and how the mother would be able to accomplish household responsibilities if she breastfed^" 

-Wolfberg AJ, Michels KB, Shields W, O’Campo P, Bronner Y, Bienstock J. Dads as breastfeeding advocates: results from a randomized controlled trial of an educational intervention. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2004;191:708–712. [PubMed] 
-Dennis CL. Breastfeeding initiation and duration: a 1990–2000 literature review. J Obstet Gynecol Neonatal Nurs. 2002;31:12–32. [PubMed] 
-Scott JA, Binns CW. Factors associated with the initiation and duration of breastfeeding: a review of the literature. Breastfeeding Rev. 1999;7:5–16. [PubMed]

The articles listed above are evidence-based facts with regards to how important a father's role is to make breastfeeding a success. So how can fathers participate?

1. Attend antental/breastfeeding classes with your preggy Mrs, and gain knowledge on breastfeeding.

2. Take part in choosing breastfeeding equipments with your partner/wife. That way, you will learn more about the equipments and be able to assist her when the time comes.

3. If possible, assist your partner/wife during labour so that she is more calm and will be in a steady state of mind to breastfeed later :-)

4. Upon delivery (if in hospital), help your wife to remind healthcare staffs that she wants to fully breastfeed and insist on early skin to skin contact for mother and baby. (Fathers should practice skin to skin contact as well to promote bonding).

5. At home, you can help your partner/wife handle the baby (eg change diapers, bathe, burp) so that your partner/wife can take a nap, pump milk, bathe and etc..

6. Wake up with your partner/wife for night feedings. Keep her company while she is breastfeeding, get a warm drink for her while she is pumping/feeding. A relaxed mind with help a mother's milk supply tremendously.

7. You can participate in feeding by warming up expressed breastmilk and giving cup/syringe feeding to your baby.

8. You can help massage your partner/wife's back to ensure her milk ducts open and milk flows smoothly.

9. You can help with breast issues like engorged breast by soaking hot towels for your wife to compress.

10. Show her love, care & gratitude for carrying your little one in the womb and for feeding your little one!

Do Not Shake Breastmilk

Don't Shake the Milk

Linda J. Smith, BSE, FACCE, IBCLC

Why not?
Because shaking expressed mothers' milk (or boiling or freezing it) denatures the shaped molecules of the protective proteins, leaving only the pieces - the amino acids - the parts. Lactoferrin, lysozyme, and other protective components work their protection magic when they are in their original shaped molecular structure. Some components remain intact, even during freezing, shaking or heating. They not only protect the gut from many kinds of infection, but also prevent inflammation of the gut lining. Even broken up, the separate amino acids are still really good stuff and are digested by the baby as nutrients.
Imagine a set of pop-beads assembled into a necklace or bracelet. When the beads are acting as a bracelet or necklace, they are doing their job as protective elements. When you break apart the beads, you have in your hand many individual chunks of amino acids which are then digested.
Cellular components are also susceptible to damage by physical stress. After all, they are living cells.
With mother's milk, you get at least two functions for the price of one. With manufactured formula, you only get the individual beads, never the necklace or bracelet. And never the living cells.
So, please handle human milk gently, respectfully and kindly. It's far more than perfect food for babies - it's a living tissue and protective shield too.

© 1998 Linda J. Smith, BSE, FACCE, IBCLC

Breastfeeding during Ramadhan Al-Mubarak

AssalamualaikumMummies.

Favourite month of the year is just around the corner.

 

Last year, my baby was merely 8 months during Ramadhan and I was exclusively pumping for her breastmilk. My breastmilk stock wasn't so great at that time and was just starting to collect stock in our newly bought deep freezer.

As many mothers out there, I was indeed worried about my milk supply declining since my supply had just stabilized at that point of time. I am aware that there are exclusions for breastfeeding and pregnant mothers with regards to fasting, but am not going to write about the details and depths on that in this post (I'd rather leave it to the experts) :-)

What I am going to write about is my experience during last Ramadhan and some factual details on how a mother's diet effects her breastmilk production.

Alhamdulillah, I only missed 1 day of fasting last year due to mastitis (had to take anti-pyretics, couldn't stand the chills and pain). The first day of fasting, my breastmilk supply dropped. A bit panicked, I continued to drink lots of water (more than I need I think) after breaking fast and stuffed myself with whatever food that is said to be `Milk Boosters'. Next day, breastmilk supply dropped even more. I still wanted to fast though. Alhamdulillah, I googled and came across an article that denies my paranoia and mindset that if I fast, my breastmilk production would decrease. Next day, during sahur, I ate as usual (moderately) and didn't stuff myself with water :-) Guess what? Milk production increased! And it was just stable during the whole fasting month, Alhamdulillah. So it's all in the mind :-)


To support my story, here are some facts from trusted resources about mother's diet & breastmilk production.

Breastfeeding mothers need proper nutrition to:
1. Maintain quality of milk
2. Recovery after delivery
3. Maintain mother's health

Fat deposition @ pengumpulan lemak during pregnancy is meant to assist breastmilk production during the breastfeeding period. Breastmilk is produced partly from maternal fat deposit and partly from mother's food intake.

Significant decline in breastmilk production only happens in cases of SEVERE MALNUTRITION.
In those cases of severe food intake deprivation, body produces breastmilk mainly from maternal fat stores. In SEVERE MALNUTRITION, the quantity of breastmilk and quantity of fat in breastmilk might be reduced BUT the breastmilk still has it's vitamins and qualities.

So, in conclusion, approximate 14 hours of fasting has been proven scientifically that it will not affect breastmilk production.What affects breastmilk production is mothers feeling tired, weary, worried or stressed during fasting hours.

So how to maintain breastmilk supply during Ramadhan?

Dua,
Eat & Drink well from Dusk till Dawn (no need to overdo it),
Supply vs Demand Concept (continue Breastfeeding / Pumping often)
Try to get enough rest.
If need so, take supplements or whatever food that boosts your energy :-)

Lastly, STOP WORRYING :-)

Lots of Love :-)