However, tongue tie doesn’t just affect breastfed babies. It can also affect bottle fed babies. This usually only starts to become a problem after about 6-8 weeks of age. Unfortunately, mothers of bottle fed babies with a tongue tie that is affecting their ability to suck effectively, often undergo months of distress due to the lack of knowledge in the healthcare community around this subject.
The microbiome plays a significant role in the health of us humans. It is considered by many as another organ, such is its extensive impact. However, because it is not visible to the naked eye like the heart or lungs, it is difficult for us to be mindful of.
The Public Health Nurse (PHN) is most often the first health professional that an Irish mother and her partner will meet when she comes home from hospital with their baby. According to the HSE (4), the role of the PHN is to visit homes following birth notifications and to monitor child, maternal and family health, and to particularly focus on the benefits of breast-feeding.
Post-partum breast cancer is different to cancer that develops in pregnancy. If there are any signs of breast cancer at this time, then urgent action and screening is advised…A lump that is not responding to feeding, or antibiotics needs further investigation.
Aim to have your baby lead with his chin. Position your baby in close to you: Tummy to mummy. Make sure baby’s nose is directly across from the nipple: nipple to nose.
The main reason why top-ups are given is because parents are not aware of ‘normal infant breastfeeding behaviour’.
It is often recommended as a treatment for blocked milk ducts. It is advised to dissolve the salts in hot water, then cool the mixture to warm, and using a medicine cup or silicone breast pump, leave the mixture in contact with the nipple. The aim is to draw out the toxins and free the nipple pore.
In fact, there are many cultures around the world where spicy foods are a ‘normal’ part of their diet, and there is no evidence that these babies are any fussier or gassier than babies of mothers who don’t eat spicy foods
The various ductal openings can point in any direction. They don’t just point forwards. You really see this when you hand-express your milk. Your milk can go in literally any direction!!!
If you are finding that your baby is taking an hour to drink 1-2oz, and is falling into a cycle of: sleeping while feeding, then waking up distraught with hunger, then falling asleep again after a few minutes of sucking, then you may want to increase your teat size. Your baby is likely exhausted from sucking, but not getting enough milk to sustain or satisfy him/her.
Blocked ducts present as hard tender lumps, often described as pea-sized initially. They appear most often on the upper outer quadrant of either breast. Sometimes a tiny white dot can be seen on the nipple. This is called a milk bleb and when it is freed, it can look like a white string being pulled out of the nipple.
Girls worry about the smallest things. If a girl tells a joke to another girl, and she looks unamused or unimpressed, that girl will go away and analyze and over analyze why that girl reacted that way. It can affect her. Girls are very socially aware of the feelings around them.
Nothing for some women!!! They feel nothing, and that is ok. For others it feels like a pulling/dragging/tingling sensation in their breasts, and their breasts feel heavier after it. Some women feel it so strongly that they dread it a little. For me, it was a very strong feeling that felt like there were strings tied around my milk ducts (which I imagined as balloons) about half way up my breasts and they were being pulled downward together. Just like the big bunch of balloons in that movie ‘Up’.
The Heel Prick Test is a test that is performed on your baby that no-one really talks until after you’ve had your baby. At this point it comes as a bit of a shock to think of someone drawing blood from your beautiful newborn baby’s heel. So what’s it for?
Combination feeding is breastfeeding alongside offering bottles of formula or expressed breastmilk. It’s important to understand how breastmilk is made and supply maintained. If you are giving a bottle of expressed milk or formula once a day and pumping around the same time, you may not suffer a dip in supply. Many mums do this at night. Mum pumps and goes to bed/shower etc, and dad gives the bottle and settles baby so mum gets a rest. Mum then breastfeeds the rest of the time.
If you have flat nipples, the key to breastfeeding success is getting your baby latched on within the first hour. However, if this doesn’t happen and your baby is having difficulty finding your nipple there are many things you can try.
“When we start our breast milk journey, we all have to admit that we worry mainly about our supply! But I have not once heard about the worry of having too much milk. I’m talking about two fountains of endless milk, about not having enough breast pads to stop the leaking, about the urge to wake your peacefully sleeping baby because your breasts are too engorged!!
Breastmilk contains everything your baby needs (in conjunction with solid food after 6 months) to grow and thrive. When your baby enters toddlerhood, and is moving around a lot more exploring their surroundings (often with their mouths) your breastmilk will make more antibodies to protect them. And these antibodies will be tailor-made for your baby. Breastfed children have lower risks of ear, chest and tummy infections (HSE 2019). It also protects them from becoming overweight or obese (obviously, depending on their diet).
When a virus invades our bodies, it begins to attack and multiply. Our blood contains various types of white blood cells that are there to attack back. However, when a virus is new to the body, our white blood cells can become overwhelmed and may take some time to work out what this virus is and how to defeat it. This can take days or weeks, and we will feel very unwell while the virus is multiplying.
According to the CDC (Centers of Disease Control and Prevention 2021), all the current vaccines are considered safe for breastfeeding mothers except the Smallpox and Yellow Fever Vaccines.