Breastfeeding on the move – literally

October 3, 2011 — Elizabeth Jay

photo of woman's legs wearing shorts and hiking bootsI’m a great advocate of the right to breastfeed in public places and get extremely annoyed with people who express their ‘distaste’ at the idea. How ludicrous to deny babies the right to eat outside the house, when it’s fine for everyone else? Nevertheless, with my first daughter it was something I found difficult, so I tended to avoid it if I could.

After my second daughter, A, was born, the issue of breastfeeding away from home didn’t arise for some time. Most of our trips were short, and when they did extend beyond a couple of hours, they were usually to the homes of friends or family where I was perfectly comfortable feeding. On a trip to John Lewis, however, where I ended up sitting in the foul-smelling ‘breastfeeding area’ (right next to the ‘changing area’), rather than the cafe — where I had previously got so stressed my let-down reflex refused to kick in — I decided I really had to sort this issue out.

Although I had taken the first step of realising I had a problem, I made no real effort to confront my fears, and continued to avoid breastfeeding away from home as much as I feasibly could. It’s impossible to predict the appetite of a small baby all the time, however, and when I was walking through a wet field several miles from home, the inevitable happened.

The day had started with pretty miserable weather, but by lunchtime the clouds had cleared and we set out on a 2 hour walk through the countryside confident that we wouldn’t get rained on. I had put A in a Baby Bjorn carrier, and as usual, she went to sleep the minute she was ouside. Just as we had reached the point where we were as far away from the house as we could possibly get, A woke up and started to grizzle. This was something that happened from time to time when we were out, and I carried on walking, thinking that she would just go back to sleep as she normally did.

Unfortunately, she didn’t nod off again. Instead she started to howl furiously, in the way she might if she was hungry. Despite the fact that she had been fed just before we left the house, the intervening hour had been enough to work up a hearty appetite again, and it was pretty clear that I was going to have to find a way of getting some milk down her.

This was easier said than done. I looked around for somewhere to perch, and could see nothing but mud and wet grass. How on earth was I going to get A out of the carrier and successfully latched on whilst standing up, and what was I going to do with the carrier? Then I looked down and noticed that A’s mouth was at roughly the same level as my nipple. I had previously complained about the lack of a vomit/drool barrier between A’s mouth and my chest when using this carrier (as opposed to my previous Chicco one), but now I realised this could be an advantage. After a bit of grappling with the numerous layers I was wearing, I managed to expose enough nipple for A to take into her mouth (which she did, quickly). The whole manouveure was significantly more discreet than it sounds, as most of it was shielded from view by the carrier’s head rest.

I didn’t fancy spending the next twenty minutes standing in the middle of a field (other walkers had nodded politely as they passed, but probably wondered what on earth I was doing), so I took a few tentative steps whilst trying to keep A attached. Providing I did it slowly, walking didn’t seem to disrupt her, and I managed to reach a more plausible resting spot.

I’m now quite happy to take A out in the carrier, knowing I can feed her pretty easily if I need to. Interestingly, the confidence I’ve developed through doing this has automatically extended to other situations, and I recently managed to nurse A through an entire wedding breakfast. Psychologically this was quite an achievement for me, as I knew some of the guests weren’t keen on breastfeeding (‘I was bottle fed and it didn’t do me any harm’ etc.), and I had been dreading the prospect of constantly heading to the loo with a hungry baby. In the end, I just stayed at the table and got on with it. I can’t say the experience was wonderful, but that was mainly because I was sitting on a less than comfortable chair and had to negotiate the meal one-handed. Perhaps not surprisingly, breastfeeding in the John Lewis cafe holds no fear for me now.

Posted in Feeding in public, Journal. Tags: , , , , , , . 7 Comments »

Will drinking coffee when you’re breastfeeding keep your baby awake?

August 23, 2011 — Elizabeth Jay

coffee in disposable cup If you ingest caffeine when you’re breastfeeding it can pass into your milk, and may therefore be consumed by your baby1. From a health perspective, this is not a cause for great concern. Low doses of caffeine are not regarded as harmful, and indeed caffeine is sometimes administered to preterm babies to help reduce apnea (pauses in breathing of more than 20 seconds)2. The stimulant properties of caffeine that make it suitable for therapeutic use, however, could potentially affect babies in a less desirable way — in particular, by making them wakeful and irritable.

So, how likely is it that drinking too much coffee will cause your baby to lose sleep? Research investigating this issue shows that moderate levels of consumption aren’t likely to cause any problems. A study examining the levels of caffeine over a 12 hour period in the milk of women drinking their usual caffeinated beverages found that consumption of less than 100mg (roughly the amount in a single espresso) did not pass into milk at a detectable level3. It also found (as did an earlier study1) that the amount of caffeine that makes it into milk is greatly reduced — between 0.06% and 1.5% of the maternal dose — and that the level peaks an hour after consumption, and then declines, disappearing completely after 12 hours.

Could this small amount of caffeine cause sleeplessness? The available evidence indicates this is unlikely. In a study examining this issue, 11 breastfeeding mothers drank 5 cups of decaffeinated coffee a day over a 5 day period, and 5 cups a day of decaffeinated coffee with 100mg caffeine added over another 5 days4. The results showed that the babies’ average heart rates and the amount of sleep they got over a 24 hour period remained the same, regardless of whether their mothers had consumed caffeine.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, ‘moderate consumption of tea, coffee and caffeinated sodas is fine when you’re breastfeeding’. Although babies can ingest caffeine through breast milk, if their mothers are drinking around 5 cups of coffee a day it is unlikely to impact on sleep levels. People metabolize caffeine at different rates, of course, and young babies do it much more slowly than adults5, so it’s not impossible that drinking coffee will affect your baby, particularly if you consume it in large amounts. At low levels of consumption the chances of this being a problem are small, however, so most breastfeeding mothers can enjoy a coffee, tea or cola safe in the knowledge that is keeping them, but not their baby, awake.

  1. Arch Dis Child. 1979 Oct;54(10):787-9
  2. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2000;(2):CD000273.
  3. Pediatrics. 1984 Jan;73(1):59-63.
  4. Dev Pharmacol Ther. 1985;8(6):355-63.
  5. Arch Dis Child. 1979 December; 54(12): 946–949.
Posted in Caffeine, Research. Tags: , , , , . 6 Comments »

Breastfeeding a newborn: round two

June 13, 2011 — Elizabeth Jay

The nightmare I experienced breastfeeding my first daughter C is well documented. Although we eventually came through it, the first few weeks were really terrible, and if I’m honest, the first few months weren’t brilliant either. It was therefore with some trepidation that I approached feeding my new daughter, A. Was it going to be as difficult the second time round? I hoped not – if nothing else, the knowledge I’d gained about breastfeeding over the last two years meant I’d at least be better equipped to deal with problems, should they arise.

Several weeks down the line, I’m happy to report that nursing A is going as well as it possibly could. The minor nipple soreness I experienced initially disappeared within a few days, and there has been no recurrence of the cracking, bleeding or fissures I suffered with C. It’s impossible to know precisely why breastfeeding is so much easier with A than it was with C. It could be that my technique has improved through months of practice, so A is simply attached better. It could be that I’ve taken a slightly different approach to latching on, sometimes (though not always) using the biological nurturing method. There are two other factors that I can’t ignore, however, both relating to anatomy.

The first major difference between now and then is that my nipples are a completely different shape. When I first started breastfeeding, they were pretty flat – now they are anything but. The second difference is that I’m feeding another baby. While A’s cute little pout looks very similar to C’s from the outside, inside her mouth could be a completely different shape. Tongue tie is known to affect breastfeeding, but I until recently I wasn’t aware that upper labial tie could as well. I don’t have any reason to believe that C suffered from either of these, but it isn’t impossible that some of the problems I had with C related to the shape of her mouth.

We are told that breastfeeding difficulties are nearly always caused by a poor technique. While helping mothers and babies to latch on more effectively will often improve matters greatly, ignoring the fact that it may be harder for some than for others for reasons outside their control is less helpful. Breastfeeding can be difficult for lots of reasons, and discussing some of these – whilst helping mothers and babies to hone their techniques – may lead to fewer women feeling incompetent, and more feeling empowered that breastfeeding is something they can achieve, even if they have a tough time getting there.

Posted in Journal, Second baby. Tags: , , , . 4 Comments »

I’m not sure when I weaned my daughter

March 30, 2011 — Elizabeth Jay

chocolate cake with one candleShortly after C’s first birthday, I gave up expressing milk during my lunch hour (possibly to the relief of my colleagues, who no longer found ‘mystery’ packages in the fridge). Although it was useful not having to fit a pumping session into a ridiculously busy day at the office, my milk supply took a hit, and it was no longer practical to feed C during the day when I was at home.

Night feeds, however, were still a regular fixture. Breastfeeding C was by far the easiest way to get her to sleep, both in the evening, and when she woke up at night – a frequent occurrence, possibly due to the constant stream of illnesses she contracted at nursery. Part of me was slightly anxious at this state of affairs – what if she couldn’t get to sleep without me feeding her? – but the arrangement was too beneficial for both sides to cause too much worry.

By this point, C was quite happily drinking from bottles (the regular exposure she had to them at nursery meant she now welcomed rather than rejected them)*, so when a few months later she started to appear dissatisfied with the amount of milk she got from me, following up a breastfeed with a couple of ounces of cow’s milk seemed the obvious thing to do. I still continued to offer her the breast, however. I was keen for weaning to be a mutual decision, and didn’t want to stop C from nursing if it was something she still wanted to do.

As time went on, C gradually became less interested in breastfeeding. My breasts were pretty much back to normal, and felt as if they couldn’t possibly be producing milk, although I did still feel a feeble let-down reflex telling me otherwise. My supply had undoubtedly declined, however, and one day, C had her last feed. I think this was when she was around 21 months old, but I didn’t make a note of it, and now I couldn’t say precisely when it was.

I’m glad I can’t remember when we called it a day. Weaning is potentially an emotional event, and just moving on quietly was, for me, the easiest way to do it. Perhaps part of the reason I didn’t give it too much thought was because I knew that my breastfeeding days were far from over. At the time  C stopped breastfeeding, I was pregnant, and knew that in six months time I’d be starting all over again.

*The NHS recommends aiming to wean from bottles at a year. I ignored this advice initially as I couldn’t face trying to get C to drink from a cup when she was half-asleep…

Posted in Journal, Weaning. 1 Comment »

You’ll return to your pre-pregnancy cup size a year after giving birth… even if you’re still breastfeeding

January 31, 2011 — Elizabeth Jay

bra and pants

For many women, an increase in cup size as breasts get ready for providing food is one of the first signs of pregnancy. After giving birth, they expand even further as they fill up with milk, but even after a feed, they remain bigger than they were previously, due to the increase in breast tissue required for milk production.

If you continue to breastfeed after solids have been introduced and cut down gradually, your breasts will slowly decrease in size, until you get to the point where you fit back into your old bras. At this point, you’d be forgiven for thinking they can’t possibly be providing your baby with much sustenance, but in fact they are probably doing more than you think. An intriguing article published in Experimental Physiology shows that whilst breast size is related to to the amount of milk produced for the first 12 months of breastfeeding, after this point breasts return to and stay at their pre-pregnancy size, even if they are still manufacturing milk1.

The study followed 8 mothers who breastfed exclusively for 6 months, and weaned after 18 months. Milk production over a 24 hour period was measured by test-weighing the mother2 and breast volume (their actual size minus the amount of milk produced) was calculated using a special ‘Computerized Breast Measurement’ system3 at 1, 2, 4 and 6 months after giving birth, and then at three monthly intervals until weaning.

Milk production – and breast volume – remained constant for the first 6 months, and both started to decline after this point as other food was introduced. By 15 months, however, breast volume had reduced to the level it was before the women gave birth, and remained at this point from then on even though the mothers were still producing on average 200g of milk a day. When the mothers weaned their babies completely, there was no significant further reduction in breast size.

The authors state that this occurs because breasts become able to make milk more efficiently: although an increase in breast tissue is necessary to initiate and sustain a high level of milk production, when it naturally declines as milk output falls, the remaining tissue is still able to produce a significant amount of milk.

For any mothers who are nursing past the 12 month mark but sceptical that their breasts are still up to the job, this will make interesting reading. Even though it may sometimes seem as if you don’t have anything left for milk production, the chances are you’re more than capable.

  1. Exp Physiol. 1999 Mar;84(2):435-47.
  2. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. 1987 Sep-Oct;6(5):758-63.
  3. Exp Physiol. 1992 Jan;77(1):79-87.
Posted in Extended breastfeeding, Research, Size. Tags: , , , , , , . 5 Comments »
« Older posts