Kim Wright Lactation Consultant

08/07/2025

✨ Breastmilk Donors needed for our milk bank! Share the Love! ✨
Calling all supermums! 💪💕 If you’ve got a little extra liquid gold in the freezer, you could be a hero to a pēpi in need.

Your donated breastmilk can help nourish and protect vulnerable babies who need a little extra support to thrive. It’s one of the most powerful gifts you can give — straight from the heart (and the b**b 💛).

💖 Pasteurised on site at our amazing milk bank
🎁 One donation = a huge difference for tiny lives
🌟 Join our amazing whānau of donors
📩 Message us to find out how!

06/07/2025

These are very expensive and come with some benefits and some warnings…

Silver ni**le cups. Sometimes called silver ni**le shields (not to be confused with the silicon ni**le shields that can help a bottle fed baby latch, you wont get much milk out of a silver ni**le shield as there are no holes!)

So what are they designed for?
The answer is to aide healing when you have damaged ni**les from breastfeeding.

Now I am an evidenced based account and there is actually no research into how effective these gizmos are. It is true that silver has been used for healing for a very long time. But us in the lactation world have also seen a worrying side effect which is important to discuss before you shell out your hard earned cash.

The risk of using these, and especially if you leak, is that the ni**le sits in a pool of milk for an hour or two at a time. Just like when we have been in a long luxurious bath for over an hour (remember those times when you could do that?), when we get out our skin has absorbed water, it looks a bit soggy and wrinkly and more importantly, it is more sensitive and easier to damage! I have seen this with ni**les where a silver ni**le cup has been used a lot in between feeds. The skin is macerated, is sore and easier to damage. In one recent case the ni**les actually looked grey and soggy. Like they were developing trench foot.

Pros and cons of using silver ni**le caps

Pros
Silver possibly aides healing
Stops ni**les rubbing on clothing

Cons
Can cause skin to macerate which makes it more easily damaged
They are expensive
They won't treat the cause of the sore ni**les, make sure to seek breastfeeding support to work out what is going on.

So, yes some people love them. But do use with caution and for short periods, especially if you leak a lot.

10/09/2024

Switch feeding is a great tool when used properly!!

20/08/2024

Side lying can be a great position for sore damaged ni**les too.

20/07/2024

Such a balanced approach from Lucy Webber Feeding Support - IBCLC!

Ok, the first thing to say here is not to panic about this. I think we've really overcomplicated starting solids on the whole.

My personal approach to adding food to their diet is pretty simple
-Watch for signs of readiness
-Start putting some food in front of them if they're in a good mood at a time you're eating (eat together)
-Let them learn to eat by playing, licking, squeezing, smelling, throwing etc

Over the following weeks try and offer a wide variety of foods in a variety of forms, and give them plenty of opportunity to practice learning how to eat. Include common allergens early on in the process.

So where does breastfeeding come into it?
Well, ideally when you're offering food at first you want them to be in a pretty relaxed mood. So on the whole this is going to be after a breastfeed! But if, on occasion, food time is before the breastfeed don't worry. Starting solids should be a relaxing and fun affair ideally.

Some babies *reallllly* tank into food straight away, and seem to have the most enormous appetite. For these babies, it can be helpful to try and remember to offer the breast first so that they're not filling their tummy with food and missing out on milk.

Other babies just don't seem very bothered by food, and for these babies you may want to play around with offering the breast after -but I'm talking  several weeks or more after starting, not after a couple of days for example. It's normal for them to take time to learn.

Lots of babies like to have a breastfeed, eat some food, then have *another* breastfeed after. And that's ok! Lots of us like a drink after eating to 'wash it down' It doesn't mean they're not getting enough food.

Remember, this isn't about getting loads of food into them right here and now, it's about learning how to eat, having an enjoyment of food, letting them practice appetite regulation, and setting up a healthy relationship with food. Until around 1 year milk is still their main source of nutrition and solid foods are there to complement their intake.

So I guess the 'too long didn't read' version is, try and offer b**b first but don't panic if not. Each baby is individual and you know them best.

20/07/2024

“It’s the volume of milk that matters”

Someday I hope that people stop worrying about hind milk….. but it looks like we’re not there yet unfortunately.
Read through my blog on foremilk and hindmilk here: www.carolsmyth.co.uk/hindmilk

TLDR version: Milk Volume is what matters, not whether it’s milk from the start of end of a feed.

20/07/2024

🌈 BREASTFEEDING MYTH 🌈
"It's ideal to make as much breast milk as you possibly can."

When it comes to your milk supply I always go with the “Goldilocks” rule…not too much, not too little, but JUST RIGHT!

That means that the perfect amount of breast milk that you want to make is the amount that will feed your baby and keep him or her content and thriving or growing.

You DON'T need to be able to pump hundreds of ounces or have a freezer full of extra milk!

This is not only not necessary but can be the cause of breast infections, painful engorgement, difficultly latching, gassiness from on overwhelming let down and watery, low fat, high lactose foremilk that can be causing your baby to be very uncomfortable, not gain weight as they would normally be, green stool, etc…

CREATING an oversupply situation from excessive pumping in addition to nursing can be a real problem. Have realistic expectations, learn what is normal, trust your body...and follow your baby's lead. ❤️

15/07/2024

Pumping…. When, how and should you? Do you even need to?

“Do nursing parents need to pump in order to make enough milk?” The short answer is no. Effective breast pumps have been available for only about the past 70 years. Clearly humans have successfully nursed their babies for far longer.

But in some cases, pumping—and/or hand expressing milk—is crucial to meeting lactation goals. The key is understanding WHEN pumping makes sense and how often and how much milk to pump. Too much pumping can lead to painful oversupply. Too little pumping sometimes leads to low milk production, especially when baby nurses ineffectively or the nursing couple is regularly separated at feeding times. Let’s consider this issue from the Goldilocks perspective:

When is pumping too much, not enough, or just right?

Check out our blog post to learn from expert Nancy Mohrbacher about when, how often and how much is pumping too much and when is it just right.

Read blog post here: https://lactalearning.com/pumping-too-much/

15/06/2024

There are many things that can impact on your supply and everyone is different. Fenugreek may help some mums with supply but in others it may reduce it! Before taking any supplement talk to an LC or health professional who is familiar with the supplement and possible interactions for you personally.

Things that can potentially drop milk supply:
💡Having the wrong sized pump fl**ge
💡 Using a poor quality pump
💡Not pumping or feeding enough (watching the clock instead of the baby’s cues, following a schedule)
💡Undiagnosed tongue tie in baby
💡Baby with a consistent poor latch
💡Sleep training baby too early and/or not stimulating the breasts over night
💡Undiagnosed thyroid disorder
💡Hypothyroidism that needs a different dose of your normal medication after birth
💡Medications like antihistamines and hormone based birth control
💡Calorie restrictive diets or not staying well hydrated
💡Some women will see a drop in supply when taking fenugreek or placenta encapsulated pills. It is completely individual based on your own body’s hormones and unique genetic make up and how you process what you ingest
💡 Starting your period again
💡 Pregnancy
💡 Stress

26/04/2024

If you get mastitis it can affect the taste and the quantity of milk available on the side that is effected. This change is temporary but your supply may need building back up on that side, which your baby will do. Talk to a health professional sooner than later if you have any signs of mastitis.
* redness
* lumps
* fever or chills
* aching
* fatigue
* ni**le discharge or lumpiness in milk

26/03/2024

Its hard sometimes to keep breastfeeding when you don’t feel well but its really important for you and your baby to keep feeding. Your baby needs the immunity from your breastmilk and because you are unwell you will be more at risk from mastitis if you don’t breastfeed regularly. You don’t need to pump and dump your milk if you need to take over the counter medications but if you’re unsure see a lactation consultant who is specialised in knowing which medications are better to use while breastfeeding.

🤧 BREASTFEEDING FACT 🤧
Although you may be getting advice from your physician to discontinue breastfeeding because you are under the weather, have a virus, or are taking medication…

this is one of those times that it is MOST important for you to CONTINUE to breastfeed!

When you are sick, your body is making antibodies for the exact pathogen that you are fighting and transferring that directly to your baby through your breast milk.

That will help your baby fight the virus that you are carrying and help them to stay healthy while you are in contact with them!

Discontinuing breastfeeding at this critical time will actually INCREASE your child’s risk of contracting whatever is making you sick and leave them way more defenseless against fighting it off since infants immune systems are immature and he or she is relying on your antibodies coming through your milk!

Also, most medications are perfectly safe for breastfeeding and if the one you are on is not (highly unlikely) there is almost ALWAYS a substitute that is!

Be sure to talk to your doctor and let them know that you are breastfeeding and always question them if you are getting an answer to stop breastfeeding or pump and dump your milk until you are feeling better or finished with your meds.

This is a huge risk to your baby’s short term health and long term health if it leads to early discontinuation of breastfeeding.

(📷 )

07/03/2024

Probiotics can come from foods and don’t need to be from expensive supplements.

Continuing the conversation on gut health, let’s talk about probiotics, specifically.

As I mentioned in my previous posts, probiotics are the good bacteria found throughout our body. They are live organisms that can benefit our health in many ways including digestion, immunity, and the synthesis of vitamins in our body.

The most common probiotics belong to the microorganism groups Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium. You will likely see one or both of these types in most probiotic supplements.

Aside from supplements, fermented foods are an excellent source of probiotics. Eating a diet rich in these foods can aid in overall health.

Fermented foods rich in probiotics include:
👉Kimchi - fermented cabbage or radish
👉Sauerkraut - fermented cabbage
👉Tempeh - fermented soybeans
👉Yogurt - fermented milk*
👉Kombucha - fermented tea
👉Kefir - fermented milk drink

Fun fact I learned from : just one tablespoon of sauerkraut juice contains 1.5 trillion CFU of probiotics. To put that into perspective, 50 billion CFU, in a probiotic supplement, is considered highly potent!

I encourage my lactating clients to eat a wide variety of fermented foods if possible, especially those whose babies are experiencing digestive or allergy related symptoms.

Do you eat fermented foods regularly? Which is your favorite?
* traditionally made with milk, however there are many plant based yogurts that also contain probiotics!