Bump2Breast Lactation

13/08/2025

Cairns Mums And Bubs & Mareeba Mothers And Midwives Alliance this one is for you! 🙌🏼

Cairns is going on sale tomorrow!

Gold Coast has 8 spots left and the Tablelands will be on sale soon.
If you signed up for message notifications you should have received one for QLD today. Haven’t signed up yet? Comment photoshoot below

07/08/2025

Sharing this fabulous information as almost every dyad I have consulted with this week has been sized at a minimum of 21mm & none of them were even remotely close to that!! 🥴😩

It's been a while since I've done a fl**ge sizing reminder post.

When I first started this business, I used the rule of 'measure the ni**le and add 4mm'. I knew that smaller than the 'standard' size was better, but I still dread to think of how many people I oversized using that rule!

But in 2020 I decided to let people test out fl**ges in person (without them needing to purchase them). And I learnt that most people preferred a fl**ge that was much smaller than I originally thought. And I become unafraid to test out even smaller that what you might think possible and the results were surprising

The mothers seem to prefer a much smaller fl**ge than many probably even though possible.

I learnt by getting feedback and letting people come again and again to test out sizes. And in most cases going smaller was better.

I am so confident that mothers need smaller than I no longer sell anything bigger than 21mm (I do have some on hand for the 1500 mothers in the last 5 years and while I don't get feedback for everyone, the vast majority of the feedback I do get is overwhelmingly positive.

Interestingly, 1-2mm too big can be worse than way too big - my theory is because just a bit too much of ar**la is being pulled in and this causes the vast majority of issues.

Of course, if something is not broken, you don't need to fix it - but if you are having issues with expressing, go smaller - and if you are still having issues, go smaller again!

www.cherishedparenting.com.au/fl**ge-sizing-guide

06/08/2025

Do any of the herbs thought to boost lactation have scientific backing? Yes. This 2025 systematic review a**lyzes the effects of malunggay (moringa oleifera) on milk volumes and prolactin levels. Its consistently positive findings set this botanical apart from the rest. Free download here:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40724308/

05/08/2025

05/08/2025

Let's discuss silver nursing cups. The benefits of using silver cups are due to its mechanical cover effect, and creating a moist hypoxic environment. Silver nursing cups have been embraced by women worldwide, and research has confirmed they speed the healing of ni**le wounds. One study found using silver cups during late pregnancy reduced ni**le trauma in that group. However, Lactation Consultants are seeing adverse effects from misuse of silver ni**le cups if use instructions are not followed. Eg. if the cups are filled with breast milk the ni**le and ar**la can become over-moist, causing maceration/breakdown of the skin. The makers recommend taking breaks from wearing them to reduce the risk of skin maceration.
The silver cups can also cause tissue compression around the mother’s ar**la, which occurs as the breast refills and enlarges prior to each breastfeed. The compression ring can lead to inflammation and blocked ducts in the surrounding zone, potentially resulting in mastitis. Avoiding tight fitting nursing bras and removing the cups an hour or so before breastfeeds can reduce the incidence of ar**la compression.
The maker’s advice about cleaning the cups frequently needs to be followed to ensure their safety. After each breastfeed the cups should be rinsed with warm water to remove milk residue. Apart from breastmilk rubbed gently into the ni**le, other ni**le skin treatments should not be used with the silver cups. A mild soap such as handwash liquid can be used to clean the cups. They should not be put in the dishwasher, scrubbed with scourers or exposed to bleach sterilisers. Tarnishing of the silver surface is normal and can be treated with baking soda and water, rinsed and gently dried.
A Board Certified Lactation Consultant can guide mothers to avoid ni**le trauma by teaching positioning and attachment techniques which suit their unique breast and baby.

02/08/2025

💛 Tube Feeding is Breastfeeding Too 💛

Breastfeeding doesn’t always look the way we expect.

Sometimes it’s not at the breast.
Sometimes it’s through a tube, a syringe, or a bottle.
Sometimes it takes pumps, schedules, and an incredible amount of perseverance.

But it’s still breastfeeding.
It’s still love.
It’s still nourishment... physically and emotionally.

For the mamas holding pump parts in one hand and feeding tubes in the other…
For the babies being nourished in ways the world doesn’t always see…
For the families making it work, even when it’s hard…

You are seen. You are celebrated. You are breastfeeding. 💛

Happy World Breastfeeding Week 2025

This photo was from our beautiful ABP session in Geelong today!

10/07/2025

💯!!!
How often does this happen? So frustrating for mums & bubs!

If you think something’s not right, then seek out someone who is trained, will listen & do a full oral & feeding assessment 🤱🏻👅

Checking for a tongue tie is about SO much more than how the tongue and frenulum look.
It usually takes me a good few minutes of feeding inside the baby's mouth, as well as asking a lot of questions and observing feeds...

09/07/2025

This 🙌🏼 !!

One of the biggest pitfalls we see again and again… If your baby is feeding more than the books or relatives tell you they should, it's probably completely normal. But if it goes against what you’re being told “should” be happening, it can be really distressing.

Do I have enough milk? Why is he so hungry? Is she not getting what she needs from me? What if my milk’s not good enough… It’s really easy to slip into a dark place.

Simply because we haven’t been given the right information.

Professor Amy Brown - Breastfeeding Uncovered and Emma Pickett IBCLC say it best:

"Breastfed babies feed lots, and I mean LOTS. If you listen to great aunty Mable she might tell you babies should be fed every four hours on the dot. Indeed, in the 1950s babies were brought from the nursery to their mother every four hours for a feed.

You’ll still find books telling you this is how babies should feed. However, this advice, quite simply, is nonsense." Prof Amy Brown

"Somehow, somewhere, new mothers got the message that the gap between when a baby stops a breastfeed and the time they start to need another one matters a very very great deal. 24 hours a day.

It seems to matter beyond all logic and reason. They see this magic number – 90 minutes, 2 hours, 3 hours – as a measure of something sacred. And it’s crap." Emma Pickett

Your baby’s tummy is tiny, breastmilk is easily digested, and babies feed for comfort, antibodies, pain relief and all sorts of things as well as food. Some days, it might feel like feeding is all you do.

The more milk we remove from the breast, the more we make. Regular and effective stimulation, especially in the early months, helps establish milk supply for the months ahead.

So get water, snacks, the remote, get comfy, and get ready to whip those magic b***s out way more often than you might think is reasonable.

Trust your body, and trust your baby!

Read Amy and Emma’s articles, read what other mothers have to say on the matter, and find the info and reassurance you need here https://human-milk.com/pages/frequent-feeding-is-normal

And if you have still concerns, you’ll find the support you need here https://human-milk.com/pages/find-breastfeeding-help

08/07/2025

Any Mareeba Mothers And Midwives Alliance or Cairns Mums And Bubs want to get involved this year?

Then check out this post from the Australian Breastfeeding Project & get FNQ involved for this August 1st - 7th 2025.

2025 breastfeeding photoshoots

It time to start organising sessions for this year!!!
I am looking at it a little different this year. I want to do many more all over the year and have a few big sessions for WBW!
BUT I need your help, I am looking for women who are super passionate and want to help with getting sessions organised. Someone who can help work with me and photographers to find the right location and get the word out there that these sessions are happening, a bit like an ambassador. You will get a free session for your time 🥰

If you are keen on a session this year post a location below and let us know if you are interested in being an ABP ambassador for your location 😍😍😍

Make sure you join our group too which is where all the sessions are run

01/07/2025

Human Milk explains the amazing benefits of breastmilk so beautifully 🧡

Breastmilk changes constantly in relation to your child’s needs.

When your body becomes aware of a virus or bug that your baby has picked up, either through contact with your baby’s saliva, or their skin, or from sharing the environment and picking up the bug yourself too for instance, your body immediately starts to make the antibodies tailored to that infection, and delivers it through your milk.

The more milk your child drinks, the more antibodies and protection they receive.

Levels of prolactin, the hormone that supports milk production, are highest at night, making night feeds an important part of establishing your milk supply.

Levels of melatonin, the hormone that regulates sleep, also increase at night. When we’re born, it takes several months for our body to start making its own melatonin, so your milk helps your baby to start establishing their own sleep rhythms.

Though disclaimer, it can take years for children to sleep through the night. That is natural - if exhausting - too.

The concentration of Human Milk Oligosaccharides, sugars that feed good bacteria in our baby’s gut and protect our children against infections, changes in relation to our children’s age, and even to the seasons.

The concentration of fats and proteins increase as a baby grows into a toddler, along with increased levels of antibacterial and antiviral components such as lysozyme, which is an anti-inflammatory, and destroys bacteria.

Lysozyme increases in concentration from about 6 months old, when babies become more mobile and everything (toys, sand, cats biscuits?) goes straight in the mouth, and keeps increasing after the first year.

The concentration of Lactoferrin also increases over time. Lactoferrin inhibits the growth of some cancerous cells. It also binds to the iron in our baby’s body, preventing it from being available to harmful microorganisms that need iron to survive. Lactoferrin also kills the bacteria strep mutans, a cause of tooth decay and cavities.

Our baby’s immune system takes months to start to become able to fight pathogens effectively, and around 6 years to become fully mature, so the support of the protective factors in breastmilk for as long as possible, ideally 2 years at least, is natural.

The longer we mothers breastfeed for, the more our risk of certain diseases, including breast cancer, ovarian cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease, is reduced.

All this can be summed up this way: your breastmilk is unique and can’t be replicated.
Breastfeeding is really hard work. But you are doing an incredible thing, and you are BRILLIANT.

More incredible science, references and support at https://human-milk.com

24/06/2025

The amazing science of breastmilk 🤩🧡

Human Milk Oligosaccharides (HMOs) are a group of complex sugars; the third most abundant component of human milk. Over 100 different HMOs have been identified in human milk so far.

Which ones are found, and in what concentration, is unique to each mother. Genetics, how many children the mother has had, the age of the nursling, and even the seasons, have been found to influence this unique HMO set in each woman.

Many HMOs cannot be digested by humans but instead act as food for bacteria in your baby’s tummy. These bacteria help your baby to resist infection from harmful bacteria and to develop a normal gut microbiome.

The microbiome plays an enormous role in making sure the gut and immune system develop properly. HMOs can also trick bacteria and viruses into binding to them, instead of the gut wall, preventing them from infecting your baby.

Some HMOs have the potential to reduce the risk of diarrheal diseases, one of the most common causes of infant mortality under age 5.

One HMO called DSLNT has been linked to a reduction in the risk of Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC). NEC is a potentially fatal disorder, most often affecting premature babies, in which tissues in the gut become inflamed and start to die.

Researchers say that this is likely only the beginning of our understanding of this remarkable set of breastmilk components.

Image: The Human Milk Oligosaccharides Constellation poster is back in stock. This image was imagined and designed by our Graphic Designer Lisa.

She took one look at the molecular shape of HMOs, and said “They look like constellations”. The moon is composed of the known components of human milk. And so it began.
Shop the poster: https://human-milk.com/collections/science-resources

More science, references, support and resources can be found at https://human-milk.com

04/06/2025

Great post from
This is such a common concern I see when visiting new mums & bubs 🤱🏻👩‍🍼

Posted • In the early weeks and months after your baby's birth many babies can appear to strain for 10 or more minutes 😢before passing a soft poo. 😮

This can be very anxiety provoking for parents.😢

If your baby appears well in themselves (they are a normal colour and their breathing is normal) and is feeding normally, is alert and interested in their surroundings when awake, is having a normal number of wet and dirty nappies (normal colour and consistency) but they seem to struggle before doing a soft poo, it may be infant dyschezia.

Passing a bowel motion happens quite easily after a baby's birth.

Then as the baby matures, they need to learn to coordinate tightening of the abdominal muscles while also relaxing their a**l sphincter and pelvic floor.

Infant dyschezia is a term that describes what many babies do, prior to passing a bowel motion.

It can appear that they are straining in the process, but if the baby passes a soft bowel motion/passes wind and then is calm, all is usually well.

Babies mature and learn to coordinate passing wind and doing a poo more easily with time.

https://policyonline.nhslothian.scot/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Dyschezia-in-babies.pdf

It is always alright to see your GP whenever you are concerned. This post is not intended to replace medical advice.

I'd love to support you. There's a link to my website in my bio.