When to offer a second breast????

[Penrithmum]

Hi, I am new to mumsnet (first ever post!).

I was wondering if any-one could give me some advice on if I should be offering my 3.5 month old baby a second breast, after sometimes just 5 minutes of feeding? He comes off the breast quite natually and cries if I try to get him latched back on, but will happily go on to the other breast.

I am worried that he is only getting fore milk, as the mw at the breastfeeding group I go to said that she would only offer the second beast after 20mins minimum.

Any advice/experiences would be greatly appriciated.

Thanks

If baby is done with the first side, then offer the second, when they are done with that (and not in a milk induced coma) offer the first again.

It really is as simple as that.

I'm very sorry that the MW at your bfing group doesn't seem to understand how timing feeds isn't evidenced based. Perhaps you could ask her to show you her source for this? Have you got LLL's Breastfeeding Answer Book at the group or the Womanly Art of Breastfeeding? They will have the most up to date info in them (unless they haven't sprung for a new book since 1972 in which case your MW will look right!!)

I was wondering about this as I rarely get to offer the second breast when feeding. DD nearly always ends up milk drunk from one boob. Can I assume that all is well seeing as she's producing the required dirty / wet nappies, content and gaining good weight?

showtunesgirl you can indeed assume all is good

If she is not a newborn and if she is happy on one side and you do offer the second if she is awake not eyes rolling back in her head zonked then no problem what so ever.

If she falls asleep with in a minute or two, doesn't feed well and sleeps a lot and her age is counted in days then you need to see a MW though.

That midwife doesn't know what she's talking about, unfortunately for your group!

Offer the second breast after he's come off the first one, and then go back again - and again if necessary. 4 month growth spurt can be tough, but if you just go with it and feed, feed then you'll be fine.

Just to say - foremilk is a bit of a myth. Have you had a look at the Kellymom.com website? It has loads of great information about all aspects of breastfeeding.

TruthSweet she's 8 weeks old on Tuesday. I do offer the second breast when she wants it though like when she's cluster feeding for the night which she has just done. It's just taken an hour until she was finally happy and has dropped off!

I think my supply is ok as when she has come off by accident I am literally shooting milk all over her!

showtunes that all sounds perfect, trust your boobs and your baby to know what they are doing

If's she's 8 weeks then no bother! I just was arse covering in case you said she was 3 days old or something....

Great! Thank goodness she's gone off to sleep. I have finally, finally had some dinner!

Offer the 2nd breast If she comes off the first. My DS has always drank from both at most feeds. He seems to like the faster flow you get at the start of the feed. I used to worry about it but He is just 7 months and is 20lb and has never had a days illness since he was born. Think the foremilk / hindmilk thing is just something else for us breastfeeding mums to worry about despite the fact it's probably pretty irrelevant!

Thanks all,

I have just tried the method of switching sides a couple of times and it has worked so well. Finally feel like I am feeding him enough!

Thanks again

I always fed both sides as was uncomfortable otherwise.

When you offer the second breast baby actually gets the richer milk on the second breast straight away

Sorry, Dalrymps that's not true. Each breast acts independent of each other so if the 2nd breast has not been fed from for sometime it will have lower fat milk regardless of how much the baby has drunk from the 1st breast.

I understand that but the lactation consultant at my Breastfeeding drop in told me this on Monday. I am also a Breastfeeding peer supporter

Then you know that your LC was talking twaddle! Just because someone more trained than you tells you something 'interesting' doesn't mean it's the truth - though I'd love to see her sources If she is right I'll be very contrite

It's part of the training (I have done PS with LLL & MS with ABM and both covered this) where did she do her training??

Genuinely not a go at you - it is difficult when you get told something by someone in authority to go against it.

Well I believe her as he is very well informed and very good at her job. I certainly wouldn't say she was talking twaddle!

I don't know where she did her training, she keeps up to date on all the latest info and research though. She is also a midwife.

No offence taken, I'm sure you are very well trained/informed also

Oh and I wasn't talking about when the baby is offered a second breast 'after some time', I was referring to putting the baby straight on the second breast.

But how does it work? I'm really interested in this (seriously not being a snark). I was under the impression that each breast ran independently of each other, with regards to amount made and when (i.e. if you only feed on the left the right will stop producing milk sooner or later).

How does the left breast know that the right has been fed from and change where the fat is in the milk (or stuck to the duct wall if it's not freshly made milk)?

From personal experience (tandem nursing/pumping) that if you pump one side you get 'fore'milk to start with then it moves to more 'hind'milk, if you then pump the next side the same happens you don't get 'hind' straight away? With tandem nursing, the two nurslings don't take the same amount of milk each so often if the toddler just hopped on for a few sucks then the milk is still lower in fat post feed on that side even if the baby has had a massive feed.

Very bad advice, my 12 week old can finish one side in 10 minutes now. He gets fussy because there is no milk coming.

Just seen your next post - by some time I meant - Left was fed from at 9am, then right at 9.20, next feed is at 11.15am on the right and the left is started at 11.40am, it won't have been fed from for nearly 3 hours so will have accumulated milk which has been losing fat to the duct walls all that time.

She didn't explain how or why, she was just said it in general conversation in a 'do you know' kind of way

Maybe I'll try and ask her next time I see her..

I agree with you that the breasts work independently and one breast will eventually stop producing if not used. I'm not going to guess how it works cause it would be just that, a guess!

Hmm it's an interesting one..

Dd was always single side fed unless a growth spurt, ds has been needing both to be offered. Oh and being milk drunk doesn't mean anything to him, he sobers up pretty quick.