Sometimes it can be difficult for mothers to coordinate breastfeeding with doctors’ appointments, work or the occasional evening out. Pumping breast milk can help make it easier to cope with a hectic daily schedule.
Breastfeeding is an special time to bond with your baby, but many mothers find it is not always possible to fit this around their everyday life. Perhaps they have appointments to attend or need to return to work, or it’s simply someone else’s turn to feed the baby. Using a pump to express breast milk offers a practical and flexible solution to this issue, ensuring that your child can still benefit from the valuable nutrients found in breast milk.
When and how to express
The recommendation is that babies should be nursed directly for the first six to eight weeks of life, which helps establish breastfeeding and encourage bonding. Only after then does it make sense to feed them expressed milk. Breast milk can be expressed either by hand or using a manual or electric pump. If you are only expressing milk occasionally, a manual pump is usually sufficient, whereas an electric model is recommended if you will be expressing on a regular basis. Breast pumps can be hired from pharmacies, hospitals or midwives.
Be sure to pump after or between feeds. If you only need small quantities of milk, pumping for around 15 minutes per side after breastfeeding should be enough. If you want to regularly replace multiple feeds, you should express while you are away from your child and collect the entire supply of milk.
Hygiene is key
Make sure to wash your hands thoroughly before expressing. The pump and all receptacles must also be clean, and ideally sterilised to prevent germs. The expressed breast milk should be immediately sealed in an airtight container and then refrigerated or frozen.
Storage and shelf life
- Breast milk can be stored for up to eight hours at room temperature (17 to 25 °C).
- In a refrigerator (4 to 6 °C), it will keep for up to 72 hours.
- In a freezer (-18 °C or colder), it will keep for up to six months.
- Before freezing, milk should be divided into portions and dated.
- Once defrosted, milk must be used or disposed of within 24 hours – it must not be refrozen.
Practical tips for everyday life
If you are out and about, use cooler bags and cool packs to ensure the milk stays fresh.
You should ideally warm the milk to body temperature before feeding the baby. To preserve valuable nutrients, heat it gently by immersing the container in water; do not microwave.
Any milk left in the bottle should not be reused.
Expressing breast milk with a pump brings greater flexibility to day-to-day family life and ensures that your little one can still receive the best-possible nutrition even when you are not there. With the right hygiene measures and correct storage, the milk retains its high quality.
