Overview to Choosing A Breast Pump
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We hope our readers will find the following articles on choosing a breast pump helpful.
Choosing and Using a Breast Pump
This article expounds on the following aspects of breast pumps:- Electric vs. manual breast pumps
- Rent or buy breast pumps?
- What to look for when you buy a breast pump: Adjustability, efficiency, ease of use, each defined
- The different options: Hospital-grade electric breast pumps, top-end electric breast pumps, mid-range electric breast pumps or battery breast pumps, non-electric manual breast pumps
- Breast pump accessories to try.
"If you're breastfeeding, you probably want your baby to benefit
from your milk even when you're not available. Whether you're getting
ready to go back to work or you just want someone else to feed your child
while you get some rest or go out, a breast pump can be a big help.
There are several different types of breast pumps to choose from.
Whichever pump you pick, it's a good idea to have it ready to go well
before you return to work or leave your baby with a sitter. . . .
Read more =>
Choosing and Using a Breast Pump at www.babycenter.com
Exploring the World of Breast Pumps
This article by Sharon Knorr, a lactation consultant, does an excellent treatment of the issues involved in comfort with breast pumps.
Sharon Knorr, BS, IBCLC (lactation consultant); LEAVEN, Vol. 40 No. 3, June-July 2004, pp. 51-55.
"Bring up the topic of breast pumps and an interesting
discussion is sure to follow....Breast pumps can be categorized and analyzed in many
different ways, some of which are overlapping. They include:
a. Comfort and fit
b. Efficiency
c. Manual or electric
d. Automatic or manual cycling
e. Hygiene
f. Intended use
g. Availability and Support
h. Cost
Let’s talk about comfort. We tell mothers that pumping is not supposed to
hurt. What does that really mean? The most important factors influencing
comfort are the amount of suction applied, the length of time that maximum
suction is applied before it is released, and how well the mother’s breast
fits into the breast pump flange and tunnel. These factors are
measured using: mmHg (millimeters of mercury), cycles per minute, and tunnel
size in mm. Studies by Einar Egnell and others have established that a total
negative (vacuum) pressure of about 220 to 230 mmHg is produced when a baby
is breast feeding and the maximum pressure is usually held for less than one
second. This information about maximum pressures and cycling times has
subsequently been used by breast pump companies to calibrate their pump
settings in order to minimize the possibility of pain and/or breast damage
during pumping. Most good quality pumps cannot exceed approximately 250 mmHg
of maximum pressure. Nipple damage is most likely to occur when the initial
phase of creating suction lasts longer than one to two seconds. Thus, breast
pumps with automatic cycling will usually do so at a rate of 40 to 60 cycles
per minute. With pumps, the phase including the creation and release of
pressure is relatively short and then accompanied by a longer relax phase
where no pressure or slightly positive pressure is being applied to the
nipple. Many of the battery-operated breast pumps have small motors which
can take from 10 to 50 seconds to reach maximum vacuum, and thus may cycle
fewer than 10 times per minute–this exposes nipple and areolar tissue to
increased trauma from prolonged unrelieved suction. Some mothers can
tolerate higher pressures more than other mothers.
Read more =>Exploring
the World of Breast Pumps at www.lalecheleague.org
See also
Choosing a Breast Pump at www.artofbreastfeeding.com
