Your Breastfeeding FAQs Answered!

Hats off to the mums at BabyChakra on showing such strong commitment to breastfeeding. Here is a selection of some of the most helpful questions asked by you. Thanks to Dr. Deeksha for her (very) practical advice on best breastfeeding methods.

Q. I have a 2 months old baby. He is unable to drink breast milk directly. I use an artificial nipple. What should I do make him drink directly?

Dr. Deeksha: Kudos to your commitment to breastfeed your baby!

Often baby are not able to drink breast milk directly due to a combination of reasons like if he is given bottles early on, or mother’s nipples and areolas are swollen. However, the only way a baby learns to breastfeed is by breastfeeding. Try to wean from nipple by ensuring good positioning and latch i.e. hold baby skin-to-skin on your chest and maintain eye contact while supporting baby’s whole body. Sign of good attachment are baby’s chin touching the breast, mouth wide open, lower lip turned outward and you should not experience any pain. Pump milk before feeding your baby, as it will help elongate your nipple for a good latch and provide baby a smoother breastfeeding experience.

Q. Until when after delivery is the colostrum milk produced?

Dr.Deeksha: Colostrum, the first yellowish fluid is high in protective substances and provides all the nutrients and fluid that a newborn needs in the early days.

On the day, a mother gives birth, she has enough colostrum to nourish her baby. Mother’s body will produce colostrum for first 3-4 days after delivery until her milk increases in amount, which is frequently referred to as the milk “coming in.”

Q. My 1 year baby boy feeds for long (45-60 min)sometimes. I have tried putting him on top feed but he now refuses bottle. Is this normal? Should I take shatavari powder to increase lactation?

Dr. Deeksha: It’s so good to hear that you are breastfeeding your child post infancy. For toddlers, breastfeeding frequency and session duration varies greatly from child to child, as they breastfeed for comfort in addition to nutrition. Sometimes, baby is so overwhelmed by developmental changes happening within himself that he wants to spend more time at the breast to reconnect with mom. Sometimes toddlers go through phases of increased night nursing the reasons can be teething, decreased breastfeeding during the day, developmental advances and reconnecting with mom.

However, along with breastfeeding a child also needs complementary foods from six months of age because after six months breastmilk alone cannot supply all the nutrients needed for growth and children are able to eat and digest other foods. Young children have small stomachs, so they should eat often, with an increasing number of times as they grow older. For the average healthy and frequently breastfed child, appropriate family foods should be given 3-4 times a day at ages 9-24 months with additional 1-2 good snacks per day.

Young children are often slow and messy eaters who are easily distracted. They eat more when their parents supervise mealtimes and actively and lovingly encourage them to eat. This is especially important for children until they are at least 3 years old.

Please check the link below for more information on

Breastfeeding after the first year: kellymom.com/category/ages/after12mo/

Feeding Young Children Aged over Six Months:www.fao.org/docrep/007/y5740e/y5740e0a.htm

Q. While the baby’s doc advises me to exclusively breastfeed, my relatives and friends advise that I should start a one night time feed by bottle or formula for my 2.5 month old. They insist that baby will sleep longer and get used to bottle else she will not drink milk when weaned from breast. What do you think?

Dr. Deeksha: First of all, I would like to congratulate you for exclusively breastfeeding your infant through the most challenging few months when breastfeeding supply is getting established and new mothers get overwhelmed by the common breastfeeding problems like nipple sore, engorgement and leaking of breasts.

I understand the concerns of your relatives and friends, as easily digested human milk passes quickly through digestive system and breastfed baby needs more night-time feeding. However, you have to weigh your decision by taking into account that exclusive breastfeeding is an optimal practice, compared with which other infant feeding practices carry risks.

Exclusive breastfeeding protects your baby against otitis media, asthma, types 1 and 2 diabetes, atopic dermatitis, and lower respiratory tract diseases and any formula use in the first 6 months is significantly associated with increased incidence of these. Please see the link below to know many benefits of breastfeeding and why exclusive breastfeeding is recommended by doctors: kellymom.com/pregnancy/bf-prep/bf-benefits/#lists

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