How to choose the size of your breast pump funnel? The breast pump provokes feelings of love and hate for the mothers who use it. It can be a great ally to maintaining your breastfeeding journey, but it can also be torture, especially if you do not find a pump that suits you well. Getting the funnel size right is the key to a pleasant and effective breastmilk extraction. And just in the same way as you buy shoes in…
Pain and nipple shields: when professional techniques to reduce pain in breastfeeding are not effective, the use of nipple shields can be considered one of the resources for nipple pain management. It is well known that pain, and especially sore nipples, are one of the leading causes of women stopping to breastfeed earlier than they planned to do so (1). To reduce pain, professionals who accompany mothers in their breastfeeding journey should evaluate and help mothers to improve their breastfeeding…
Today we would like to discuss the topic of massage after frenotomy in this review of a scientific publication. Tongue-tie (ankyloglossia) due to the presence of a short lingual frenulum is a fairly common occurrence in newborns, with an estimated overall incidence ranging from 4 to 16% (1,2). A frenotomy is a surgical procedure performed in infants when other less invasive treatments for tongue-tie, such as improving breastfeeding technique, promoting postures that allow a deep latch such as laid back…
The beginnings of breastfeeding and the first hours of the infant are one of the topics that were discussed in the practical workshops of the I LactApp Medical Congress. In this article, we summarize the workshop of the LactApp midwife and breastfeeding expert Anna Manubens, who held the practical session ‘Assessment in the first hours’. In this workshop, we were able to get a very clear idea of the most important aspects to take into account when accompanying a mother-baby…
Relactation is the re-establishment of breastmilk supply in a woman who has given birth, after milk secretion has significantly been reduced, interrupted or inhibited altogether, either because of inability or unwillingness to breastfeed after childbirth. Requests for help in relactation are common, it is a process in which women must be accompanied and they need to know very well the steps and actions to be taken to increase breast milk production while reducing the amount of formula offered to the…
The 13th of May marks the occasion of the International Day of the Hospitalized Child, so in this article, we would like to talk about the rights of hospitalized children. The hospitalization of a child can be a shock to families and their children. Additionally, if you are breastfeeding and/or have other children, this can be extremely difficult to manage. There are international agreements that protect hospitalized children and their families in this situation. The rights of hospitalized children are included in…
Today is World Lupus Day and we would like to talk about breastfeeding with lupus. Worldwide more than 5 million people have this disease and nine out of every ten of them are women. Nutritionist Iria Quintáns Álvarez wrote this post, she is an expert in lupus as she suffers from this autoimmune disease herself. You can find her on Instagram @nutrienfamilia Lupus and breastfeeding Lupus is an autoimmune disease in which the body mistakenly believes it should ‘attack’ its own…
Institutionalised racism undermines the quality of health care for black mothers, who have a much higher mortality rate than white mothers, even when they have similar levels of education or socioeconomic background. African-American women living in the United States are nearly four times more likely to die during pregnancy or childbirth than white women, according to data from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The CDC reports that while the mortality rate for white women is 12.7…
Today marks the International Day of the Midwife! Congratulations to all midwives! Midwives are the best-qualified professionals to monitor pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care for low-risk births. Numerous studies show that having access to a professional midwife improves health outcomes for mother and baby. What differentiates a midwife from an ob-gyn/gynaecologist? Midwives are specialists in the normality of childbirth, while gynaecologists specialise in the care of pathologies or whenever risks and problems arise. As we said, a low-risk, physiological pregnancy…
BLW or pureed food: is there scientific evidence to support the benefits of one method over the other? If a few weeks ago we wrote about the scientific evidence of BLW in relation to breastfeeding, now we focus on reviewing the published scientific evidence on infant growth and food intake of BLW babies compared to traditional spoon-fed babies. BLW or pureed food One of the biggest fears that both health care providers and families have about BLW is that infants…