Formula milk does not provide the same protection from illness and does not give you any health benefits. Health benefits of breastfeeding for your baby In the early weeks, before you and your baby have become comfortable with breastfeeding, "topping up" with formula milk or giving your baby a dummy can lower your milk supply. Some new mums have a difficult time establishing breastfeeding. This might be more likely after a long or difficult birth, or because they or their baby are not well enough to breastfeed straight away. How long to express? When building supply the aim is to express until the milk stops flowing, even when adding in compressions and massage. Then keep going for a few minutes longer, to ‘ask for more.’ Some mum’s like to finish off with some hand-expression. In 2015 I was responsible for Sunderland maternity unit achieving UNICEF baby friendly accreditation. In 2018 I passed the examination to become an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant.

Sam is a volunteer with the Association of Breastfeeding Mothers, and runs a Facebook support group for exclusively expressing mums. There is unfortunately very little information or support dedicated to this subject online, so we asked her to write a guest blog post, explaining what exclusive expressing is, and giving some helpful information and pointers.

Healthy snack ideas for breastfeeding mums

Once milk supply is established, typically 6 weeks plus after birth, some mums are able to lengthen the time between expressing sessions, and this minimally impacts the amount of milk they produce overall. Other mum’s find they need to continue to express very regularly to maintain their output. Breast storage capacity is further explained here – you can use this information to identify whether your own capacity is average, large or small. This link explains why all capacities can work perfectly to feed your baby.

If you have any questions or concerns about food allergies, you can talk to your GP, midwife or health visitor. Some mums decide for whatever reason not to breastfeed directly, but are still able to express their milk and feed it to their baby in a bottle. Giving nothing but breast milk is recommended for about the first 6 months (26 weeks) of your baby's life.Unicef warns that "while on the surface" food banks "seem like a practical solution," handing out formula "can be a risky practice that can inadvertently cause harm". Hands-on expressing and massage help the milk flow and the breasts drain evenly and efficiently. Some mum’s find warm compresses or help too. Also, if your baby has a dummy in between feeds, this may reduce how frequently your baby wants to feed – if your baby is feeding less often, you'll produce less milk. Being apart from your baby Currently there is no published evidence supporting a link between breastfeeding issues and lip tie. Complaints are dealt with in the first instance by Gillian Lund and in conjunction with advice from her indemnifier (Hiscox) and professional body (Royal College of Midwifery). This procedure does not deal with matters of legal liability or compensation or regulation.