Breast-Feed a Premature Baby

A premature baby may be too tiny and weak to latch onto a mother's breast at birth, but it is still possible to build a successful nursing relationship and to provide the baby with many of the benefits of your milk from the first day of life.

Instructions

1

Start pumping as soon as your baby is born. Your colostrum (the milk you secrete for a few days after your baby's birth) can be fed to your baby through a tube at the first feeding, followed by feedings of your fresh milk. The colostrum is important because premature babies are extremely vulnerable to infection.

2

Buy or rent a hospital-grade electric pump; this will help to build your milk supply so that you have enough milk to nurse your baby when it becomes possible.

3

Fortify your milk if medically necessary - ask about this option before agreeing to formula supplements.

4

Try to avoid artificial nipples when your baby is ready to make the transition to your breast. Feeding the baby your expressed milk by gavage tube rather than by bottle will help to prevent nipple confusion.

5

Try tickling your baby's lips and chin and expressing a few drops of milk onto the tip of your nipple to get her interested, since a premature baby may need extra encouragement to open her mouth wide and latch on.

6

Follow your baby's cues when she's nursing well, and let her nurse as long as she wants to. If her suck still is not strong, she may need extra time at the breast to stimulate the letdown and get the milk flowing well.

7

Build and stabilize your milk supply with the help of a breast pump until your baby is able to maintain the supply on her own.

8

Contact a lactation consultant and your local La Leche League for support. You may be able to arrange both hospital visits and follow-up home visits.

9

Place a breast pad soaked with your milk next to your baby, even when you can't hold her; this will familiarize the baby with the smell of your milk, and may make her more willing to breast-feed when she is able to do so.

10

Enlist the assistance and support of neonatal nursing staff. Try to let them know in advance when you plan to be with your baby.