Parenting Magazine

Top Ten Tips For Expressing Breast Milk

I couldn’t have put together a better list myself.

Top Ten Tips For Expressing Breast Milk
By Hannah Will

I’ve been expressing breast milk for several weeks now, so I thought I would share some important tips that have helped me greatly.

1. Be sure to drink plenty of water. It’s hard to produce milk without it, as I’ve learned. I started out expressing four to six 3oz bottles a day, but then tapered off to two or three bottles. I realized I had not been drinking much water. Increasing my water intake helped to get my milk production back up. If you decide to increase your water intake, express 15 to 30 minutes later than you normally would for a while.

2. Expressing is usually better in the morning, or after a bath or shower. You get a good let down from it. (Let down is a basically a reflex that moves your milk from the milk ducts into your nipple where your baby or breast pump can suck milk out.)

3. If expressing more than once a day, try to keep to a routine. I express two to three times a day, at 8am, 2pm and 8pm. Although it’s often recommended, I don’t express through the night, since I always have to feed through the night because my partner won’t get up to feed by bottle.

4. About 5 minutes before you’re going to express, prepare two face cloths or flannels and a bowl of hot water. Don’t make it too hot! I prefer to double express using an Ameda Lactaline dual pump. I put the hot cloths on both of my breasts for five minutes before expressing. If the cloths cool too quickly, reheat them.

5. Before expressing, remove one cloth at a time and massage that breast, rubbing softly. Pay special attention to massaging any lumps or sore areas. If you’re expressing off one breast at time, put just one cloth on the breast your planning to use first. Once you feel you are ready to express, take the cloth off that breast, reheat it and place it on the other. If you’re planning on double expressing, place hot cloths on each of your breast, wait five minutes, then massage both at the same time. Read more of this Parenting Magazine Article