Breastfeeding & Nutrition
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
August 01, 2024
Breastfeeding / chestfeeding (or whatever term you feel best describes your journey) can be one of the most beautiful and best things in the world. It is so intimate, so unique, so beautiful. But it can also be a challenge. It’s rarely easy straight away, without any complications. And we’re not saying that to scare you, we want to help you be prepared so that if this is how you want to feed your baby then you don’t give up before you’re ready. Or before you’ve had proper support. We have a LOT of tips and information on our blog, from a wide range of health experts. Today we’re sharing the ten most important and most read blogs full of breastfeeding tips / chestfeeding tips to hopefully give you a head start!
10 useful breastfeeding tips
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
July 31, 2024
For all those who didn't know it yet: Baby carrying and breastfeeding/chestfeeding is an unbeatable combination. There are even studies that show that intensive physical contact between mum and baby promotes successful breastfeeding/chest feeding and that the use of a baby carrier can even outweigh the negative effects of a complicated birth or initial separation.
So if you want to breastfeed/chestfeed your baby, it is worthwhile to carry him or her as often and as close to you as possible. Especially after birth, letting your baby crawl to your breast while lying on your mother's stomach is the most important building block for starting the breastfeeding/ chest feeding relationship. The physical closeness also stimulates milk production through the release of the bonding hormone oxytocin. Of course, it's no wonder that your little one gets wind of this when you're out and about in the baby carrier and wants a sip.
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
May 17, 2024
Many parents who embark on a breast/chestfeeding journey come across a pump at some point. Whether your feeding journey doesn’t get off to the start you hoped it would, or you want to try introducing a bottle, or because exclusively pumping is your first choice, whatever the reason, having an efficient tool for expressing milk can be a real help.
In addition to the important first hour after birth, during which your newborn baby goes through the nine stages of adaptation, expressing milk can also play a decisive role in the start of your feeding journey. Before the birth, however, your milk is not pumped, but expressed by hand, to
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
April 04, 2024
Breast/chestfeeding has so many benefits for mum and baby. But unfortunately, first-time parents with no experience are often unsure when it comes to breast/chestfeeding after birth. After all, they don't know exactly what to expect. They hear and see a lot in advance. From glossy social media images of happy breast/chestfeeding to well-intentioned advice from family members and friends to honest and unembellished testimonials from mum friends... All of this influences their own expectations of what can and should happen after birth. This information can often cause uncertainty or even stress. As wonderful as breast/chestfeeding is, it can also be stressful at the beginning (but it doesn't have to be).
Our midwife and breast/chestfeeding expert Katrin Ritter knows that although both parent and child are made for breast/chestfeeding, both have to learn it first. So that’s exactly what we’re sharing today: a “how to” for
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
March 19, 2024
You've waited so long for the moment when you finally hold your little baby in your arms. This breath-taking moment, these incredible emotions, this miracle... And yet for many mums (and dads too), this moment heralds a phase characterised by expectations, pressure, and stress. Ideally, of course, this shouldn't be the case. But unfortunately, in many cases we ourselves and our outside world make sure that we want too much and that everything runs smoothly and perfectly. Especially when it comes to breast/chestfeeding. Mums who want to breast/chestfeed their baby quickly become nervous if things don't go as planned straight away. Understandably so. After all, they see their baby lying hungry in front of them and want to finally give them what they so desperately want. And then it doesn't work...
The situation just described leads us to ask how stress and breast/chestfeeding problems are connected. How does the stress experienced
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
January 29, 2024
Colostrum... what? If you don’t know what this term means, or if you do but you don’t really know details, then you’re not alone! Especially if you don’t already have children, or aren’t planning to breast/chestfeed. But if you are planning on feeding baby this way and would like to know more, then we’ve got you! Today we’re talking all about colostrum: what it is, when you can start expressing it, how to collect it, everything you need to know.
What is colostrum?
Colostrum is the medical term for the first milk produced by your body during pregnancy (from around the 16th week of pregnancy). It is also called first milk, colostrum or even "liquid gold" due its colour and incredible properties. Tailored to your newborn's needs, it is highly concentrated and rich in proteins and nutrients. In addition, the first milk
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
December 19, 2023
As soon as you see that positive pregnancy test your mind starts racing! And soon the questions about food and drink start coming: "Can I still drink my beloved cup (cups!) of coffee in the morning?" "Does my fried egg really need to be cooked all the way through?" "Oh no, I'd better cancel dinner with my friends at the sushi restaurant on Wednesday..." In short, most pregnant people worry about the following from the early days: What can’t I eat and drink during pregnancy? And even if you think you roughly know the rules - no alcohol, no caffeine, no raw fish, no raw meat - doubts suddenly arise again at the moment of purchase or consumption. Isn't mozzarella also raw milk cheese? Can I eat salami or not? And what about parmesan?
It is precisely this uncertainty that we want to take away from you here and now. And we’ve created a handy document on "What not to eat and drink during pregnancy" (pdf), with all the details
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
November 30, 2023
Ouch! What was that? You're sitting completely relaxed on the sofa with your baby and then suddenly your baby bites you! We get it, it really hurts ... After all, the nipple is super sensitive. And tiny little teeth are razor sharp. But don't worry, this is really the exception rather than the rule. If your baby belongs to the "teether" team, then today's blog article is for you. Because our midwife and expert Katrin Ritter knows why some babies do it and has some helpful biting-related chestfeeding / breastfeeding tips for you.
Baby bites while breastfeeding: When does it start?
On average, babies' first milk teeth come in between the sixth and eighth month of life. However, some babies start teething earlier
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
September 14, 2023
If you’ve just started out breast/chest feeding, you may be wondering how to tell if your baby is or isn’t getting enough breast milk, what can cause low breast milk supply and how to produce more breast milk.
This is a common concern for breast/chest feeding mums. After all, your breasts/chest don’t have a full/empty gauge, so how do you know how much is coming out?
Luckily, there’s usually no need to worry about this: Breast/chest fed babies usually take as much milk as they need at each feed, and under normal conditions your breasts/chest will automatically produce less or more breast milk in response to that demand.
So how can you tell if that’s happening? If you’re ever in doubt, your postpartum midwife or a lactation consultant (IBCLC) can give you specific help you on your breast/chest
Breastfeeding & Nutrition
August 29, 2023
The first few days after birth can be quite exhausting and tiring for most breast/chest feeding mothers.
People often talk about a "breast/chest feeding marathon", as your baby is expected to drink every two to three hours. This is normal and may take a few days for your milk production to adjust to your baby's needs. In the first three days, your baby may need between 2 to 20 ml of colostrum per meal, and then switch to transition milk from day four. Then, from day fifteen, you will be breast/chest feeding mature breast/chest milk.
However, breast/chest feeding does not always go smoothly. In most cases, pain during breast/chest feeding is caused by sore or cracked nipples. Our midwife Katrin Ritter explains how you can prevent sore nipples and milk engorgement and what can help you if it does happen.