Getting Started

However natural it may appear for other people, breastfeeding takes some getting used to. Your healthcare professional will be able to help you get started. Here are some simple steps:

1. First, make yourself comfortable. Support your back, and the arm that's cradling your baby, and experiment with pillows to get your baby to the right level.
2. Make sure you have a big glass of water in easy reach, as breastfeeding can be thirsty work.
3. Bring your baby towards your breast so that his top lip brushes against your nipple. Your baby will instinctively know to open wide.
4. Move your baby quickly onto your nipple. Make sure that your nipple and most of the areola (the dark area around the nipple) is in the little one's mouth.
5. If your baby is properly latched on he will start to feed, and you will see the top of his ear moving.
6. Let your baby eat for as long as he wants.

Breast milk production is continuous and changes in composition during a feeding. At the beginning of a feeding, the milk looks 'watery' in appearance and then 'creamier' at the end. Milk is higher in fat at the end of the feeding. Some babies are difficult to settle after a feed, and seem to manage better when only fed one breast so that the high fat milk completes the meal.

As your baby sucks, a hormone called prolactin is released which allows for the production of milk. The more often that your baby eats, the more milk your breasts will produce. If your supply seems to be a little low, feed your baby more often for a day or two and your milk supply will increase.

Your Baby's Dirty Diapers

Breastfed babies tend to have more frequent, loose and yellowish stools than formula fed babies. At first you may notice frequent stools throughout the day and, in particular, after a feeding. As your baby gets older, if he is still breastfeeding, stools will come less frequently, but they will still look the same.

Dealing With Sore Breasts

Breastfeeding isn't always easy but most problems are short-lived.

Aching or cracked nipples is a common complaint, and is usually caused by babies not attaching properly. Some women find that rubbing a little breast milk into the nipple area can help. Ask your healthcare professional to help make sure your baby is correctly positioned.

If you are worried or problems persist, talk to your healthcare professional.

Watch For A Growth Spurt

At two weeks, four to six weeks, three months and six months your baby is likely to experience a growth spurt and will be a lot hungrier. By feeding more frequently your milk production will increase to keep up with your baby's increased demand.

How Often Should I Breastfeed?

In those first few days it's vital to breastfeed 9 to 12 times in every 24 hours or more often if you can. This stimulates milk production so that you have a plentiful supply for your baby.

Your newborn will probably want to feed every two hours and this frequent feeding tells your body how much milk to produce. The time between feedings will gradually lengthen as your baby grows.

The most important thing is to relax, listen to your body and let your baby lead you.

When deciding how to feed your baby, it's worth considering that the introduction of partial formula feeding will reduce your supply of breast milk.

When Will My Proper Milk Come In?

Around the third or fourth day after your baby is born, your breasts will start to produce mature milk and lots of it. This will appear thinner and much lighter in colour than colostrum - the first milk your breasts produce.

Storing Pumped Milk

At some point you may wish to pump your breast milk and store it for future use. This should ideally be done in a sterilized glass bottle. To avoid the potential loss of important antibodies, you should never store your breast milk in plastic bags like the ones used to line bottles. It's also a good idea to label each "batch" of stored breast milk with the date.

Breast milk can be stored:

• for two weeks in your refrigerator freezer.
• for two to three months in a free-standing pright freezer.
• for up to six months in a deep chest freezer.

Colostrum

Colostrum is rich in protein, minerals and antibodies to help protect your baby from infections. Around day three the colostrum changes and appears milkier. Your milk has "come in". Your breasts may feel very swollen and hard for a few days until the "supply and demand" has been worked out. At this time feeding may be at intervals of anywhere between one and five hours.

Weaning

You are going to hear a lot of different advice about when to wean your baby. Nursing for six months or more is best for your baby and most healthcare professionals recommend continuing longer if your baby is healthy and growing well.

Did You Know?

Once a bottle of formula or pumped breast milk has been warmed it should be used within one hour and should never be reheated. Bacteria can grow in milk that's been left warm for too long and this could make your baby ill.