Posted on

When you become a mother, you have many decisions that you have to make concerning your child’s well-being. One of the things that you have to decide about is how you will be feeding your baby. Some mothers will decide to feed their babies using breast pumps, while others will breastfeed their kids. The choice is yours as a mother.

You need to know that whichever decision that you make, there will always be consequences. Take breastfeeding; for example, you have to be there whenever your baby wants to feed, and therefore, you will never get time to go out.  Also, each of these methods of feeding the baby has its benefits.  Most mothers will want to take some time out or even work as they raise their babies, so breastfeeding is not an option. This is why they go for breast pumps.  It comes with some benefits and also some side effects.

Side effects of using a breast pump

Most mothers will go for breast pumps since they know how beneficial they may be.  The thing they forget is the fact that it comes with certain side effects that are untold. This means that you only get to experience these side effects since you are using the breast pumps, but you may never expect that there may be any side effects.  The following are some of the side effects of using a breast pump to feed your baby.

  • It can lead to the reduction of the milk supply

Most mothers think that using a breast pump will increase the supply of the milk they produce. This is very true, but the pump’s constant use will also reduce the supply of milk.  This is because both the newborn latching and breast pump have different working mechanisms. When the baby is latching, the baby recognises it, leading to the stimulation of more milk. Therefore, when you are using a breast pump, there are no stimulants to make the milk increase, and instead, the milk supply reduces.

  • The baby feeds on nutrient-depleted milk

You need to know about using a breast pump because you feed your baby milk that has depleted nutrients. When you freeze the milk, you will have to heat it when you are giving it to your baby.  Therefore, you will be feeding your baby milk that does not have the important nutrients your baby requires.

  • It can damage the tissues in the breast and nipples

You have to worry about this if you will be using the breast pump to feed your baby. Unless you are very careful with the pumps’ settings, you may end up damaging the tissues of your nipples or breasts. This can lead to pain in the affected areas.

  • Tooth decay in babies

The use of breast pumps is not only harmful to mothers but also to babies.  This is because you will be using a bottle to feed the baby every time.  Therefore, milk reaches the baby’s teeth when you are using a bottle but never happens when the baby breastfeeds. If the baby falls asleep when you are bottle-feeding him or her, the milk covers the mouth resulting in tooth decay.

How to prevent the side effects

In case you want to prevent the above side effects and many more like milk contamination, you have to do the following things.

  • Consult a doctor before you use the breast pump
  • Breastfeed your baby
  • Avoid sharing breast pumps.
  • Replace an old pump

Buy your breast pumps from one of the most trusted names in the business – Ameda Australia.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *