Little Latches Breastfeeding Support

10/22/2021

Have you ever wondered what’s going on biologically when you have a letdown, or even what a letdown is? A letdown, simply put, is when the milk starts to flow as you are breastfeeding or pumping. However, the process is a little more complicated than that. Here’s a simplified overview of the process:

▶️ as your baby nurses, nerves in your ni***es trigger your Pituitary gland to release the hormones Oxytocin and Prolactin into your bloodstream
▶️ these two hormones travel to the ‘milk-making’ cells in your breasts, which are clumped together in groups called lobes
▶️ Prolactin stimulates these cells to make the milk
▶️ Oxytocin causes the muscles surrounding the milk-making cells to contract and move the milk out
▶️ milk is then pushed into the milk ducts and flows (or sprays) our the tiny pores in your ni***es

Your body is pretty amazing 💪 You got this, mama!

10/15/2021

above all else, love ❤️

Adorable shirt from

12/21/2019

✈️ Pumping on the go ✈️

✴️ Save for later, share with a friend, and read to the end for a special surprise!

Pumping is not easy, especially if you have to travel, but it is such a beautiful labor of love you do for your baby. If you need to pump on the go, here are some tips to make it a little easier:

1️⃣ Choose a good location for pumping in public - is a great community app to help you find a public pumping location
2️⃣ Use a nursing cover (in your case, a breast pumping cover!) - I recently pumped on a plane with a nursing cover and was completely covered the entire time
3️⃣ Have all your pump parts assembled ahead of time before you leave the house and ready-to-go in a ziplock bag
4️⃣ Plan for breastmilk storage - scope out a refrigerator or keep an insulated cooler on hand until you’re able to properly store your milk
👉Do you have a pumpie (pumping selfie) you’d like me to turn into a drawing? Like this post and tag a friend. I’ll be selecting one person to create artwork for and share on my wall!

12/18/2019

Not much is more relaxing then leaning back and stretching out in your recliner. And this is why I love laid back breastfeeding so much! In fact, research has shown that breastfeeding our babies in this reclined position stimulates natural feeding reflexes in both mothers and babies.

➡️ According to Suzanne Colson’s research, for mothers who were observed breastfeed sitting, gravity pulled their babies’ bodies away, creating gaps between them. Many babies became frustrated and upset when their feeding triggers were missing.

➡️ When mothers used laid back breastfeeding, the dynamics were very different. Gravity kept their babies’ bodies securely against theirs so no gaps could form and feeding triggers were continuous rather than interrupted. There were far fewer breastfeeding struggles, and the mothers perceived breastfeeding more positively.

So the next time you breastfeed, you have full biological permission lie back and relax!

Source from Nancy Mohrbacher

03/21/2019

( • )( • )Hand expression is a great way to give baby colostrum in the first few days of life when direct breastfeeding isn’t an option (baby being in NICU or maybe not latching effectively right away). Aside from the first few days of life, hand expression is a helpful way to relieve engorgement and some mom’s begin to use it as a quick means to get milk without taking out pump parts.
Hand expression can be a great way to get more milk out after your finished pumping as well, the milk that comes out after a pumping session is high in caloric content and it’s what the pump can’t get out (hand expression is more effective than a pump believe it or not! ).
"Research has shown that it can be more effective at removing milk in the first days after birth when the colostrum is thick and the breasts are swollen.1 Pumping colostrum leaves only sprays on the side of the bottle that are hard to give to the baby, but hand expression into a spoon saves every drop. Hand expression can also be used as a technique during and after pumping to increase caloric content and remove more milk.” Diana West, BA, IBCLC
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Information from
Infographic by
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03/18/2019

( • )( • ) Are you worried that your baby is getting too much foremilk and not enough hindmilk? This suggests that your breasts produce two distinct kinds of milk, which simply is not the case. New moms may worry that the “imbalance” of foremilk and hindmilk could affect healthy weight gain but it’s important to remember that your body produces milk that’s specifically adapted for your baby. According to Nancy Mohrbacher (link in profile) “research has found this concept is not as simple as it sounds. It is true that fat sticks to the milk ducts in the breast and the percentage of fat in the milk increases during a breastfeeding as the fat is released from the ducts during milk ejections. But the reality of this seemingly simple dynamic is not always as it seems.
▶️ There are not “two kinds of milk.” Despite this common belief, there is no “magic moment” when foremilk becomes hindmilk. As the baby breastfeeds, the increase in fat content is gradual, with the milk becoming fattier and fattier over time as the breast drains more fully.
▶️ The total milk consumed daily—not the hindmilk—determines baby’s weight gain. Whether babies breastfeed often for shorter periods or go for hours between feedings and feed longer, the total daily fat consumption does not actually vary.
▶️ Foremilk is not always low-fat. The reason for this is that at the fat content of the foremilk varies greatly, depending on the daily breastfeeding pattern. If the baby breastfeeds again soon after the last feeding, the foremilk at that feeding may be higher in fat than the hindmilk consumed at other feedings.
So, as long as baby is breastfeeding effectively and feedings aren’t cut short, baby will receive about the same amount of milk fat over the course of a day no matter what the breastfeeding patter. This is because the baby who breastfeeds more often consumes foremilk higher in fat than the baby who breastfeeds less often. So in the end it all evens out.”

03/13/2019

03/06/2019

( • )( • ) Giving your baby a bottle after breastfeeding, often called a top off, has become common practice. While there are some situations where a top off is needed, the vast majority of top offs that are given to babies are unnecessary and can do more harm than good. It’s important to be aware of the issue surrounding top offs so that you don’t get caught in this trap. Topping off after nursing because you don’t think you’re making enough milk can affect your milk supply. Milk production is regulated by the amount of sucking and if your baby is too full from an extra top off, there won’t be enough suckling to stimulate production. In fact, the majority of mothers who believe they have a low milk supply are incorrectly assigning certain normal baby behaviors to thinking that the baby may not be getting enough milk from the breast. If you feel the need to top off after breastfeeding your baby, consider consulting with a lactation consultant about your milk production.

02/27/2019

If you’re anything like me, you can’t function without your morning cup (or two) of coffee. But is it ok to drink coffee if you’re breastfeeding? YES! According to KellyMom.com, most breastfeeding mothers can drink caffeine in moderation. Some babies, particularly those under 6 months, may be more sensitive to mom’s caffeine intake. Babies whose mothers avoided caffeine completely during pregnancy seem to react more to caffeine in mom’s diet. Even if baby is sensitive to the caffeine now, he may not be when he’s a little older — so if you do have to stop or limit your caffeine intake, you can try again when baby is older.

So how much and how quickly does caffeine enter into your breastmilk?

▶️ caffeine appears within 15 minutes in breastmilk
▶️ caffeine reaches maximum concentration in breastmilk within 1 hour
▶️ only about 1.5% - 3.2% of caffeine reaches breastmilk
*source AAP

02/21/2019

( • )( • ) or ʘʘ - does breast size matter for how much milk you’ll make? NOPE!

▶️ breast size is irrelevant when it comes to making milk
▶️ breasts come in all different shapes and sizes and the size of a woman’s breasts is mostly determined by how much fatty tissue they contain
▶️ fatty tissue doesn’t really play a role in milk making
▶️ amount of milk you produce is usually determined by how often the milk is removed from your breasts

**b

02/18/2019

Are you concerned that you’re not pumping enough breastmilk? Are you comparing your pump volumes to images you see on the internet and feeling down about it? I hear you! Pumping for your baby can be overwhelming and confusing. Heck, even as a trained Lactation Counselor, I sometimes get worried that I’m not pumping enough for my 6 month old. But before you worry and compare, it’s important to know what is considered “normal”. Here are some general guidelines on how much milk you should but, but remember that just as every baby has her own personality, each baby also has her own feeding habits. For more information, read Nancy Mohrbacher’s post linked in my Instagram bio.

▶️ A good rule of thumb for how much to pump, if exclusively pumping, in a 24-hour period is 2.5 oz per pound of baby’s weight until she reaches 10 lbs
▶️ After about 5 weeks, babies reach their peak volume of ~3-4 oz in a feeding and peak daily intake of about 30 oz per day
▶️ Most breastfed babies take about 1-1.5oz for every hour away from mom, so if you are gone from your baby 8 hours a day, you can expect to pump up 12 oz in that time period
▶️ It is VERY common to pump around 1.5-2 oz per breast every 3 hours, especially for pumps later in the day
▶️ It is NOT common to pump 5 oz per breast every 3 hours
▶️ Breast storage capacity plays a big role in how much you will pump
▶️ Time of day plays a big role in how much you will pump – morning sessions often yield more

To help you feel even more confident in your pump output, here is a typical day for me at work. My baby is 6 months old and I have a well-established supply:
‪▶️ 10am morning pump session = 3 oz from each breast, 6 oz total‬
‪▶️ 12pm pump session = 1.5-2 oz from each breast, ~4 oz total‬
‪▶️ 3pm pump session = 1-2 oz from each breast, ~3 oz total‬

As you can see, I pump about 13 oz for my daughter and I am away from her for 9 hours. If I were to compare my afternoon pump sessions to those images of 5 oz or more, I would be very concerned. But after adding up how much I produce compared to her needs, I know that I am making enough milk for her.

02/17/2019

( • )( • ) Is your left b**b (or right) a “slacker”? That’s ok! It is extremely common for one breast to produce more milk. Asymmetry is normal in humans - think about foot size, eye sight, etc. Often, as a result of this milk output variation, one breast will be slightly larger than the other. If this lopsidedness doesn’t bother you, great! But if you’d like to try and even things up, KellyMom provides these helpful steps. For more information, visit KellyMom.com (link in profile).
▶️ Start baby on the smaller side for each feeding for a few days (baby usually nurses more vigorously on the first breast offered).
▶️ Nurse on the smaller side twice as often. For instance if you nurse on one side per feeding, you might nurse on the small side for two feedings, the larger side for one, then back to the smaller side for the next two feedings, etc.
▶️ Pump the smaller side for 5-10 minutes after some feedings.
▶️ Add an extra pumping session (for 10-20 minutes – smaller side only) in between feedings.
**b

02/16/2019

( • )( • ) Want to get breastfeeding off to the ‘breast’ start after delivery? Follow these important steps:
▶️ Breastfeed within one hour of your baby’s birth
▶️ Skin-to-skin contact and breastfeeding right after birth helps your baby transition to life outside of the womb
▶️ Delayed first bath
▶️ Let your baby nurse whenever he wants, day and night — 10 to 12 times in 24 hours in the first few weeks
▶️ Feeding often will get your milk flowing, help you make plenty of milk and help your baby grow
▶️ If your baby falls asleep during the first few minutes of feeding, gently wake her up to
help her finish feeding
▶️ Try tickling her feet or talking to her to wake her up
▶️ Ask for help from a nurse or a lactation specialist if you’re feeling any discomfort when
breastfeeding or are worried that your baby is not getting enough to eat

02/14/2019

( • )( • ) Experience the ‘love hormone’ everyday, not just on Valentines day! Did you know that the action of a baby sucking actually changes how the mother’s brain behaves? This results in a massive rush of the ‘love hormone’ Oxytocin in women’s brains. The release of the chemical in massive surges enhances a mother’s feelings of trust, love, and affection. Happy Valentine’s Day, mamas! Nurse on!

02/14/2019

( • )( • ) Have you ever wondered what’s going on biologically when you have a letdown, or even what a letdown is? A letdown, simply put, is when the milk starts to flow as you are breastfeeding or pumping. However, the process is a little more complicated than that. Here’s a simplified overview of the process:
▶️ as your baby nurses, nerves in your ni***es trigger your Pituitary gland to release hormones the hormones Oxytocin and Prolactin into your bloodstream
▶️ these two hormones travel to the ‘milk-making’ cells in your breasts, which are clumped together in groups called lobes
▶️ Prolactin stimulates these cells to make the milk
▶️ Oxytocin causes the muscles surrounding the milk-making cells to contract and move the milk out
▶️ milk is then pushed into the milk ducts and flows (or sprays) our the tiny pores in your ni***es
Pretty fascinating if you ask me!

02/09/2019

( • )( • ) It’s everyone’s favorite topic! But in all reality, p**p can cause a lot of stress for new parents. Here is a quick guide on what is normal when it comes to your baby’s p**p:
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▶️ Meconium: Expect to find a greenish-black, tarry, sticky p**p that looks like motor oil. Meconium is made of amniotic fluid, mucus, skin cells, and other stuff ingested in utero and doesn't really smell.
▶️ Transitional stool: when baby is 2 to 4 days old, p**p will become an army green color and be less sticky. This transitional stool is a sign that baby has started digesting early breast milk.
▶️ Mature stool: if baby is exclusively breastfed, the p**p will be a mustard yellow color dotted with seed-like flecks and have a very distinct smell.
**p

02/04/2019

The only thing missing is the hair falling out in massive chunk. Currently experiencing this right now!
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