Helping to feed infants through the breastpump

Even before you start to buy all things for the baby, your body is already working intensively to adjust to the offspring. In addition to the conversion of the uterus to pregnancy, the change in the breasts is particularly noticeable. But sometimes the natural diet does not work as planned – then a breastpump is very helpful.

The changes in the female breast during pregnancy

In contrast to all other species of apes, the female breast is an important sexual characteristic in humans. Humans are the only species in which breasts are also formed outside pregnancy and lactation. But during pregnancy, hormonal changes also occur in women, which have an effect on the breast. While outside pregnancy the glandular tissue of the mammary glands is usually inactive and does not produce milk, it is activated by hormonal changes during pregnancy. These changes begin a few months before the birth of your child and are also noticeable from the outside in the form of very pronounced growth of the breasts. The externally visible growth is caused by a strong growth of the mammary glands in the breast, since these must reach a size before birth which on the one hand allows a sufficiently large production of milk for the nutrition of the infant and on the other hand must reach a volume itself, which offers sufficient space between the meals of the baby for the storage of the produced milk.

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The beginning of the milk flow

While the growth of the mammary glands and thus of your entire breast is already months before the birth begins, the milk flow is still completely absent in this phase. This is because the milk in the first days after birth is very different from the milk that follows later and is of enormous importance for the baby. The so-called infusion of milk is triggered by the hormone oxytocin. This hormone is crucial for many processes in the human body. It is a pheromone and endorphin, which is responsible for being in love outside pregnancy and for the bond between two people. During birth it is produced in large quantities as it causes contractions of the uterus. Birth is labour, while oxytocin is involved in orgasm during sexual intercourse and transports the sperm to the egg cell. But even after birth, oxytocin is important for the baby. A region of the body to which large quantities of this hormone are released is the edge of the nipples or nipple atria. There the hormone is absorbed by babies during sucking and strengthens the mother-child bond. At this point, however, milk is of greater importance. This special milk within the first days after birth is called colostrum correctly. Other terms are colostrum, colostrum, Biestmilch and some alternative spellings of these terms.

The Importance of Natural Breastfeeding

While colostrum differs from regular milk, it also changes its composition within a few hours. The colostrum that is introduced at birth is extremely rich in protein and provides the newborn with an ideal first food after being separated from the umbilical cord. The Colostrum contains besides the high protein content vitamin A and sodium chloride, as salt, in high concentrations, while fats and sugar are initially reduced. In addition to the nutrients, some components are contained which are important for the immature immune system. These include three different antibodies, lymphocytes, some cytokines, lysozyme, components of the complement system, lactoferrin and lactoperoxidase. In addition, it often contains small amounts of your blood, which further supports your child’s immature immune system. Another ingredient are growth factors, which stimulate the development of your child within the first days very strongly. In addition, colostrum has a laxative effect, which stimulates digestion and eliminates waste products that have accumulated in the digestive tract during pregnancy, the so-called meconium. This composition changes in a period of about 18 hours to 1.5 days after birth and about 5 days after birth your mammary glands produce normal breast milk.

Breastfeeding problems and other reasons for a breastpump

Due to the importance of natural breastfeeding, which has just been explained in detail, especially during the first days after birth, the use of a breastpump is not recommended. However, this will be very difficult at this stage, as your breasts will be swollen by the strong growth, very sensitive and in the worst case even inflamed. In addition, the milk ducts may be covered by skin, which means that milk bubbles can collect directly under the skin and only open when the baby is suckled. Ultimately, newborns already have The nipples are very absorbent, which is why their nipples are strongly stretched during breastfeeding and are therefore even more strained. However, while you should accept this as a freshly baked mother and have to for the good of your child, a breastpump is an ideal solution later to make the nutrition of your child more pleasant. With a breastpump, you have the option of controlling the suction power yourself, which means that your breasts are no longer subjected to so much strain. In rare cases, where natural suckling is not possible immediately after birth, a breastpump can help you to feed your newborn baby with your own milk.

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The advantages of a breastpump

If the breastpump does not have to be used from birth because breastfeeding is not possible for various reasons, then it has above all a practical benefit. The feeding of a child with your milk should take place over a lactation period of 12 months. However, as this will be very exhausting for you in the long run and it is simply not possible to suckle the child in some situations, feeding with a bottle is the ideal alternative. Although there are a number of substitute foods available, your body’s own milk is still the best choice. The breastpump enables you to pump this milk to a certain extent. This supply eliminates the need to suckle and pump milk in unfavourable situations, which gives you at least a little more peace at night.

Choosing the right breastpump

When selecting the breastpump, you have the option in particular of choosing between an electrically operated and an electrically operated breastpump. manually operated model. Both types of breast pumps have their own advantages and disadvantages. Which model makes more sense therefore depends on how often you want or have to use the breastpump. The manually operated models require manual work, so your muscular strength for operation. This can be very strenuous in the long run and in the worst case can cause inflamed tendons in the wrist. In addition, manual pumping is comparatively slow. The advantage, however, is that the manual breastpump is gentler. The pumping process can be regulated much better by hand, which is recommended for you if you have very sensitive and irritated breasts. In addition, a manual breastpump is much quieter, which is an advantage if you have to pump next to your sleeping baby. The missing motor also has the advantage that you are independent of power sources. However, if you have to or at least want to pump very frequently, then an electric breastpump is more sensible. The motor of the pump creates a very uniform and high suction power, which allows you to reach the desired volume more quickly. At the same time, the higher absorbency does not interfere so much, as your breasts can get used to it better with regular use. A disadvantage, however, is that you are dependent on the supply of electricity. There is a difference between a battery-powered electric breastpump and a cable-powered electric breastpump. You must decide for yourself which variant is the right one for you. If you only want to pump milk at home, a wired model makes more sense. If you want to use the device If you want to use the device on the road, then battery operation is practically indispensable, as otherwise you would always have to look for a socket first. In any case, it is important that the size of the suction cup matches your breasts. A guideline is that the suction cup should be as large as the areola of the nipple. Both too small and too large suction cups are uncomfortable and make the pumping process more difficult and irritate your breasts unnecessarily. In this context, it is also important that the edge of the suction cup is softly padded. This allows the suction cup to fit better to your breast, which allows the vacuum to be maintained better and further protects your breasts. In case of doubt you should test another model!

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