Researching all of the various types of breast pumps out there can feel overwhelming. Why are there so many? A variety of choices allows every mom to find the right pump for her – but how do you know when a hospital-grade pump is right for YOU?

Hospital-grade breast pumps have powerful motors (but a lot more comfortable) and are designed to be long-lasting and reduce contamination, so they can be used by multiple people in a medical/hospital setting (each with their own accessory kit). These pumps are much better than the pumps you can buy retail or receive from your insurance company. This extra strength mimics a baby’s natural sucking stimulation and allows for more efficient and shorter pumping times – this is especially helpful in the postpartum period when you are establishing your supply and maximizing your potential for milk production.

A few reasons we may recommend a hospital-grade pump:

• To establish your supply when your baby is born prematurely and low on strength and tenacity
• If you are experiencing problems with lactation – maybe a sore, cracked nipple or low milk supply
• If you are exclusively pumping – this is almost always the way to go
• or if you’re nursing multiples – a solid “must” and we  have a very special pump for moms  of multiples
• When considering a breast pump, you should also consider your lifestyle. If you are pumping outside of the home you may want to have a personal pump that is more portable and lightweight in addition to a hospital-grade pump; although, our symphony pumps also come with a car adapter. Most insurance companies can provide you with a personal breast pump, as can we, BUT, keep in mind that if you take that benefit upfront before you know what you might need it might negate your benefit for a hospital-grade pump, which is sometimes covered by insurance.  

Contact us today to discuss your options and do a little trial. Most of our services are covered by insurance, including rentals of our hospital-grade equipment! We also have plenty of personal use pumps available for purchase.

​This year has been especially challenging for everyone with the outbreak of COVID-19. With a surge in cases right now, parents with babies born during the pandemic are more concerned than ever about the health and wellbeing of their children. When it comes to breastfeeding, you may be wondering if it’s safe to do so. The short answer is yes! You can start and continue to breastfeed during this time with some recommended safety measures.

COVID-19 is transmittable through close contact with an infected person when they cough, sneeze, or talk. Currently, the COVID-19 virus has NOT been detected in breastmilk. This tells us that breastfeeding can continue despite the rise of COVID-19 with many benefits to you and your child.

Benefits of breastfeeding during a pandemic

While there is not enough information available to know if breastmilk protects babies from COVID-19, we do know breastfeeding provides your baby with numerous protections against infectious diseases. It also releases the hormone oxytocin in mom’s body helping to relieve the excess stress and anxiety a pandemic can bring. Need another reason to breastfeed right now? It’s free and readily available – this is particularly helpful during a pandemic when so many are unable to safely work or make trips to the grocery store.

What to do if you have symptoms or test positive for COVID-19

In addition to the CDC guidelines, these steps will help you avoid spreading the virus to your baby:

Wash your hands before touching your baby
Wear a cloth face covering while feeding at the breast
Wash your hands before touching pump or bottle parts and clean all parts after each use
Connect with your pediatrician and a lactation specialist
Symptoms of COVID-19

If you or anyone in your home is exhibiting any of the following symptoms, contact your healthcare provider:

·       Fever or chills

·       Cough

·       Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing

·       Fatigue

·       Muscle or body aches

·       Headache

·       New loss of taste or smell

·       Sore throat

·       Congestion or runny nose

·       Nausea or vomiting

·       Diarrhea

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Maintaining your supply while isolating

If you test positive for COVID-19, the current guidelines suggest isolating for a period of 10 days from the onset of symptoms. If you choose to isolate you can pump regularly to keep your supply up. Make sure you are washing your hands before handling any pump equipment and bottles and clean your pump according to the directions for your brand. Have a healthy caregiver feed your baby when possible, making sure they thoroughly wash their hands for at least 20 seconds before handling bottles.

For more information and guidance for multiple scenarios, visit the CDC website

Support

Build your support team and have a plan in place for emergencies. Your support team can include:

·       Friends and family

·       Pediatrician & other healthcare providers

·       Lactation consultant

·       Postpartum doula

We can help you maintain your breastfeeding relationship safely as we now offer virtual support! You don’t have to go through these challenges alone, give us a call.

In a word, YES!

Parents and caregivers are rightly concerned about keeping their babies safe as coronavirus becomes a global health issue- read on to learn how your amazing breastmilk protects your baby from illnesses!

The CDC states that breastmilk as the best source of nutrition for infants, and protects against many illnesses.  

The Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine says that “there are rare exceptions when breastfeeding or feeding expressed breast milk is not recommended.”  

According to UNICEF, mothers can continue breastfeeding.

These guidelines are being updated often, as more is learned about how COVID-19 is spread. Continue to check back for current guidance for breastfeeding families.  

Your breastmilk is an amazing substance: It contains antibodies to illnesses you may be exposed to, and helps your baby fight them off. 

Human milk provides your baby with the best possible protection against disease.  It’s packed with living cells that prevent infection, and the free fatty acids in human milk are antiviral. 

Proteins in human milk are antimicrobial and stimulate baby’s immune system. Even the carbohydrates in breastmilk have a role in fighting pathogens like bacteria, viruses and fungi.

​We can help you protect your breastfeeding relationship, milk production, and your baby’s health. Call us today for support!  Now offering virtual visits.

“What can a lactation consultant do for me?”  In order to answer that question, I’d ask you “how many different opinions and pieces of advice have you received so far regarding the right way to feed your new baby?”  If you answered “more than one”, then scheduling a consultation is for you!

​Of course, there’s truly not one right way to breastfeed, but several different ways determined by a variety of factors specific to mom and baby. Lactation consultants (and by the way, we’re all either board-certified-IBCLC’s, or board-eligible) can help you answer all your questions by spending an entire hour with you, baby, and your partner (or even the grandmother, nanny, or postpartum doula!). Everybody helping mom is welcome to come take part in this important visit.

All you need bring is your baby, a swaddling blanket, a bottle of water for yourself, and a list of your questions (or your partner’s questions). The consultant will watch a latch or teach you to latch. She can help you determine how often to feed baby or pump based on baby’s weight and your milk supply. She will also discuss helping you get into a routine to ensure baby gains about an ounce a day from day three onward. With a hospital grade scale, they can even do pre- and post-feed weights (meaning the baby is weighed, you feed and they baby is weighed again). They will address any nipple soreness, teach you comfortable positioning, decipher cluster feeding (meaning feeding ALL the time), and teach you new burping techniques. Maybe you need help with having too much milk or not enough milk; maybe it’s time to wean or baby is simply chomping like a little shark…..this is all part of what they can do for you.

You can rent a hospital grade pump or scale, buy the perfect feeding bottle for your baby, get the best nipple cream or purchase a littlebeam breastfeeding pillow. If you’d rather bring your own supplies, that works too. The responsibility of the consultant is to help you achieve your breastfeeding goals. If you’ve decided to feed both breastmilk and formula, you won’t find any judgement or arm twisting….it’s all about you.

Even if you think breastfeeding is going fairly well, there’s always a trick or two the lactation consultants will be able to teach you. Alternatively, they can offer reassurance that both you and baby are amazingly in sync! Partners are also usually happy to pick up tips on how they can help mom.

So, feel free to getting touch with us- you’ll be on your way to feeling confident on your breastfeeding journey!  Most all private insurances accepted for home and office visits, and we have several convenient locations throughout the DC area, including Northern Virginia at TPG Pediatrics, Columbia, MD and Bethesda, MD. Please call Metropolitan Breastfeeding at 301-943-9293 to schedule today

Today our expert owner Dr. Kathleen F. McCue is sharing her thoughts on low milk supply and some of the underlying reasons.

Dr. McCue:
It’s fair to say that I make a living regulating milk supply. The number one complaint we hear from clients is, “I don’t have enough milk!” Sometimes I’m in agreement and other times, expectations are totally unrealistic. There are so many things that come into play; storage capacity of the breasts (meaning amount of glandular tissue and milk-making alveoli within the breast itself); adequate nipple stimulation to help produce prolactin (a hormone that promotes milk production); suckling ability of the baby (big strong baby or jaundiced baby with a low birth weight); frequency of stimulation by either baby or breastpump.
Here are some of the issues I look for, and as always, a consultation with an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) will help determine what’s happening and how to assist:

• Do you have adequate breast tissue, in other words, do you have very small or conical shaped (meaning tubular-shaped) breasts? Did your breasts increase with size during pregnancy? You should have gone up approximately one cup size.
• Are you bleeding for a prolonged period or passing clots in addition to not making enough breast milk? These are signs of retained placenta, which can prevent the milk from fully coming in.
• Are you using a personal use pump to express milk more than 3-5 times a week? The pumps from insurance companies are rarely adequate to pump when separated from babies for extended periods. This means if you’re exclusively pumping, or back at work, leaving the house at 8 and returning at 6, you’re going to most likely need a hospital grade pump. Insurance pumps that you own are sometimes called “hospital grade” but in the world of lactation consultants, we mean the kind that you rent from your lactation consultant or hospital. My favorite is the Medela Symphony because it’s only seven pounds and has a soft stimulation phase that helps moms produce prolactin.
• Are your flanges the correct size? The flanges are the funnels that cover your breasts and nipples. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve seen JUMBO flanges that are totally unnecessary. You want some stimulation for the nipples. You can size your flanges properly by looking at the nipple when you pump. There should be clearance enough around the entire perimeter of the nipple (mid base to tip) and you should not have a large part of the areola or breast itself being sucked in. You also don’t want them too small or you could cause damage (read: soreness) from pumping, and prevent milk from draining well from the breast. This can be tricky, so again, find a local lactation consultant to help you.
• I always recommend double pumping (both breasts at once) for 20-30 minutes when back at work or when pumping to substitute for direct breastfeeding. Fifteen minutes rarely cuts it unless you have an oversupply but again, if that’s your problem you’re not my reader! Yes, I know the milk stops coming but if you can hang in there a few minutes longer, you’ll get another letdown, meaning the milk will start to squirt out again. It’s great to have at least two or three letdowns.  Some moms can initiate another letdown but putting the pump back on the stimulation (or letdown) phase, or by taking a short pause to massage the breasts before resuming pumping.
• Have you had a low supply since baby’s birth? Maybe you’re dealing with a tongue tie or lip tie or both. Is baby a good feeder, meaning is he/she gaining at least an ounce a day?  If you suspect your baby is having difficulty latching onto your breast and emptying them well enough to bring your supply in, an in-person evaluation with an IBCLC will help you figure out how best to help.
• Is your baby sleeping through the night? If they are in bed by 7 or 8pm, you should pump before going to bed at 10 or 11pm. If you go to bed when baby does, you should optimally not go longer than 6 hours without stimulation to the breasts.
• Do you have PCOS, thyroid problems, low iron or insulin resistance? These can all cause low milk supply.
• Are you on ANY type of hormonal contraception? OBs and midwives sometimes aren’t aware that even progesterone only (mini-pill) or IUDs like the Mirena can really impact milk supply negatively.
• Are you drinking more than what you’re thirsty for? More water than you need actually works against you and you’ll end up peeing more and making less milk.

If you’ve ticked through this entire list and are still unable to increase your milk supply, visit your local IBCLC or contact us!