On returning to work it may be necessary for breastfeeding women to express breastmilk [7] for the following reasons:
Advice about expressing breastmilk can be provided by:
There are three methods of expressing breastmilk:
The following general hints apply regardless of the method chosen [4]:
It is important for women to develop their expressing technique as early as possible.
It is a skill that can be learnt while in hospital.
A breast pump or milk collection kit should be well rinsed in cold water immediately after each use to remove surface milk. The equipment should be stored in a thoroughly cleaned, closed container until you are able to sterilise it. All breast pump equipment needs to be thoroughly cleaned and sterilised according to pump care guidelines.
Learning how to trigger the let-down reflex is often helpful.
The let-down reflex is a hormonal response to a baby's sucking. Stimulation of the nerves in your nipple results in these nerves carrying a message to the brain to release a hormone called oxytocin. Oxytocin flows through the bloodstream to the breasts, where it causes tiny muscle cells around the milk glands to squeeze milk out of the glands and into the milk ducts. It enables the baby to get most of the milk produced by the breast. When expressing it is important that milk 'lets-down' so that a good quantity of milk is obtained.
Ways to encourage your let down reflex [8]:
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