This article will show you how to express colostrum.
Very important for the correct and successful feeding of the child is the frequent and effective attachment of the baby to the breast from the first minutes of life. Compliance with this recommendation will ensure high-quality and long-term lactation without additional measures regarding the mammary glands. However, there are often situations when expressing colostrum is necessary for medical reasons.
Natural feeding process
Laying the baby to the breast after birth is the beginning of the natural feeding process. Colostrum, which appears in the mammary glands before the formation of breast milk, envelops the walls of the baby's stomach, prepares his body and digestive system for successful development and functioning. So the baby receives a valuable cocktail of immunoglobulins. However, the desire of the mother to establish breastfeeding is not enough. There are certain steps andthe rules by which this process proceeds.
How to express colostrum, we will tell below. In the meantime, let's find out why we need to do this.
Why is this needed?
If the baby and mother are he althy and breastfeeding, there is no need to express colostrum after childbirth. Colostrum is produced in the most optimal amount, does not burden the baby's digestive system and increases its strength. Many women wonder if they express colostrum. This may only be required in the following cases:
- A woman is not able to feed her baby for a certain period after childbirth due to anesthesia after an illness or caesarean section. In this case, to start the lactation process, it is necessary to express colostrum.
- Baby was born debilitated or premature and cannot fully suckle at the breast. Expressed colostrum is given to him with a spoon or pipette.
- For severe neonatal jaundice and phototherapy.
- With special care schemes for a low birth weight baby.
In Pregnancy
In some women, colostrum begins to be secreted during pregnancy. In this case, it is not necessary to express it, as this will only exacerbate the problem. The quality and quantity of milk after childbirth does not depend on the amount of colostrum during pregnancy.
Many mothers are interested in the question: do I need to express colostrum to start producing milk? No, such a natural mechanism for producing milk rarely fails. When staying togetheron-demand feeding, if the baby takes the breast and has a well-developed sucking reflex, there is usually no need to express colostrum. A few days after birth, this thick liquid is converted into transitional, and later, after about 10 days, into mature milk.
Main reasons
The reasons for the need to withdraw colostrum are:
- weaning a child, in particular after a caesarean section;
- stay of the child in the incubator;
- birth of a premature baby who cannot suckle;
- difficult labor with medications incompatible with breastfeeding;
- inefficient and weak suckling, baby's refusal to breastfeed.
So let's find out how to express colostrum.
Stages and technology of the procedure
For the first time, instead of using a breast pump, it is better to express colostrum manually. This should be done very carefully so as not to injure the nipples. The consistency of the first colostrum is quite thick, so the mammary gland and undeveloped nipples are difficult to empty. Before expressing colostrum with your hands, it is recommended to massage your breasts with a shower or with circular movements of the palms. A warm drink 20-30 minutes before the procedure helps to increase the outflow of fluid.
Rules for expressing colostrum by hand:
- Before starting the procedure, wash your hands, nipples and areola, prepare a container.
- Cover the iron with a brush so that onlythe thumb was 2-3 cm above the nipple, and the rest of the fingers were below it.
- Make pressing movements from top to bottom towards the nipple.
- Covering the contents of the ducts of the mammary gland, connect the thumb and forefinger at the edge of the areola. They do this very carefully, avoiding injury to the papillary region.
There shouldn't be any pain
This event should not cause pain that occurs when the technique is violated. To the last drop, the mammary gland should not be emptied, the goal is only to relieve excessive stress. After the pumping procedure, it is necessary to try to feed the baby, as it is possible that he will be much easier to cope with soft breasts.
How to express colostrum, it is important to find out in advance.
It is strictly forbidden to do this at the stage of pregnancy. Such manipulations provoke the release of oxytocin in the body. This hormone is responsible for the development of uterine contractions and can cause spontaneous miscarriage in the early stages or premature birth.
It is a mistake to think that the baby does not have enough colostrum. Attempting to pump fluids without existing medical indications will only bring harm.
How often should I express colostrum?
Pump frequency
Every situation is different. The best solution is to contact a lactation consultant who will develop a specialpumping chart, will introduce you to the technique of expressing colostrum.
A few recommendations:
- To normalize the lactation process, if the baby after childbirth for some reason cannot suckle, you need to start pumping as soon as possible. It is advisable to do this within 6 hours after delivery. Initially, it will be a few drops of colostrum, then its amount will gradually increase.
- Next, you need to express colostrum approximately in the rhythm of applying the baby to the breast. At least every 2-3 hours, including at night. You need to try to get at least 8 pumps per day.
- If pumping at night is difficult, it is possible to take one break every 4-5 hours. But such a procedure at night is very important for sufficient milk production. Thus, there should be at least one pump from 2 am to 8 am.
- Infrequent pumping or lack thereof, if the baby is not attached to the breast, can interfere with the formation of the lactation process and provoke insufficient milk formation in the future.
- To maintain the required amount of milk, it is advisable to express at the same rhythm as the baby suckled or even more often, since no pump or manual pumping can stimulate the mammary glands as effectively as a baby.
- Regardless of how much time has passed since the last pumping, you should express colostrum to a feeling of relief if the woman feels a strong filling of the glands. And you need to do it even whenwhen the time has not yet come.
- If you don't pump as often and for as long as planned, it's important to remember that breast stimulation is a manipulation to produce milk. Even a few minutes of pumping is much better than nothing. If it is not possible to adhere to a certain rhythm, you need to do it at any opportunity convenient for a woman.
How to express colostrum after childbirth?
There are two ways to express colostrum - with a breast pump or by hand. If a woman has never breastfed before, her nipples have a very dense and elastic structure, so the use of a breast pump is not recommended, since this device can easily injure the nipple. The liquid from the chest is poorly excreted. This is due to the fact that the breast pump expresses the contents of the gland under vacuum pressure, and mechanical action on the entire gland is necessary to remove colostrum. The colostrum is very thick, and the breast pump is not able to remove it in sufficient quantities. In this case, it remains to express it manually. To do this, you need to knead and prepare the breast, you can lubricate it with oil or baby cream.
If a woman has breastfed her children before, the process of expressing colostrum will be much easier. This is due to the fact that the nipples of such a woman are softer, the milk ducts are wider, and colostrum is expressed quite easily. In this case, you can use a breast pump, or you can express with your hands.
What time is it?
Typically, one pumping session takes approximately 20 minutes for each breast. If you are working on increasing your milk supply, you should continue pumping for a few more minutes after the colostrum has stopped flowing. Many mothers combine both types of pumping, first using a breast pump and then expressing colostrum with their hands. This allows you to make the procedure most effective.
We looked at how to properly express colostrum.
