World Breastfeeding Week 2016: Step-by-step breastfeeding guide for premature babies

Worried how to breastfeed your premature baby? Here are a few helpful tips.

Breastfeeding is essential for both full-term and premature babies. However, for premature babies, breastfeeding is the best way to provide them with requisite care and attention needed for proper growth and development.
‘Since breast milk is more easily digested than infant formula, it is compatible with the infant’s immature stomach and boosts the baby’s immune system to fight infections, which a premature baby is vulnerable to. Growth agents like various antibodies, minerals and vitamins present in breast milk help a preemie become stronger,’ says Dr Sunil Eshwar, Consultant Gynaecologist, Apollo Cradle, Bangalore. There will be times when the mother will not be able to meet the baby’s milk requirement, and it is important to not give up breastfeeding, because keeping at it will improve the milk production.

A premature baby will not start sucking at the breasts right after birth and might need to be tube fed. Instead of feeding formula milk, it is essential that you start giving breast milk to the baby at the earliest. According to Dr Eshwar here are things the mother of a premature baby should do to establish proper breast milk supply.
Start expressing breast milk within 24 hours of birth: This will help a mother establish a healthy breast milk supply. Remember, when you start to express, you will produce a thick yellowish substance. It is colostrum, which is nutritiously dense and helps the baby’s growth.
Use breast pumps or massage your breasts: You will need to kickstart the breast milk flow. Start expressing milk using a breast pump – manual or electric – whichever suits your purpose. Breast pumps come in handy when one needs to express milk to improve breast milk supply. Massaging your breasts stimulates it to produce more milk. Consult a lactation expert to learn how you can massage your breasts.
Breastfeed as much as you can: When breastfeeding a premature baby, make sure you feed your baby at least six to eight times a day. The gap between two feeds should not be more than six hours.
Provide enough skin-to-skin contact: Kangaroo care, as they call it where the baby is placed on the mother’s bare chest to improve circulation, keeps the baby warm and increases chances of natural breastfeeding.
Keep expressing milk along with breastfeeding: It is essential to keep expressing milk in between feeds to improve breast milk supply. Expressing milk in-between signals the brain to increase the milk production. So if you are trying to build your milk supply, make sure you express milk regularly.
Be patient: During the initial days, your premature baby will be fed through a tube. It is necessary to offer your breasts for the baby to learn how to suckle. This will help the baby get used to the process and breastfeed naturally. However, once the baby gets accustomed to taking feeds from the breasts, she might take just a few gulps, as premature babies get tired too soon. Do not lose heart and continue feeding your baby on demand. Constant support from the mother and continuous breastfeeding can help her develop better.

source: thehealthsite.com