Thinking about feeding your baby

During pregnancy you will have a chance to discuss caring for and feeding your baby, including information about the value of breastfeeding for you and your baby’s health, and how to get breastfeeding off to a good start. It’s never too early to start thinking about how you’re going to feed your baby, but you don’t have to make up your mind until your baby is born. Talking to your midwife about your thoughts and feelings about feeding your baby can be really helpful. You will be supported whatever way you decide to feed your baby.

To help feeding go well, ask your midwife about antenatal breastfeeding classes at your maternity unit or in your local area. This can help you and your partner/supporter to feel more confident and prepared, and help you to avoid some common feeding problems early on. If you have particular questions or concerns about feeding, ask your midwife for an appointment with an infant feeding specialist during pregnancy.

All women are offered the opportunity to hold their baby in skin-to-skin contact straight after birth, for as long as they want. Discuss the benefits of skin-to-skin contact for both you and your baby with your midwife, and how you feel about it.

A midwife will offer to help you to start breastfeeding, or show you how to bottle feed responsively as soon as your baby shows signs that they are ready to feed, usually within the first hour after birth. Your baby won’t be separated from you unless he or she requires special care. After your baby is born you will be offered support from your maternity team to ensure breastfeeding gets off to a positive start. There will also be support available when you are at home.

Human milk

Colostrum: Liquid gold

Explore this topic and the related links to find out more about infant feeding.

Hand expressing colostrum before your baby is born

Close up of woman in a bra demonstrating hand-expressing using a model of a false breast held against her chest

Mothers start to produce colostrum (early breast milk) mid-way through pregnancy. Learning how to express this milk before your baby comes can be very useful, particularly if your baby is likely to be premature or separated from you after birth or if you are diabetic or taking medication for high blood pressure. You can start this from around 37 weeks gestation, and you can collect your colostrum and store it in the freezer if you wish. You may only express a few drops of colostrum when you first start hand expression – this is normal and does not mean that you don’t have any milk. It is still worthwhile practising the technique in preparation for your baby’s arrival. Read the related links for more information and talk to your midwife or infant feeding specialist. See How to hand express within Expressing milk in the After your baby is born section for a step by step guide and video.

When to consider hand expressing

Any expectant mother can express her breast milk from 37 weeks gestation. It is particularly useful if you know that your baby is at an increased risk of having a low blood sugar in the first few hours after birth. This can include:

women with gestational diabetes or pre-existing diabetes in pregnancy
infants diagnosed during the antenatal period with cleft lip and or palate and congenital conditions
mothers having a planned (‘elective’) caesarean birth
infants with intrauterine growth restrictions
mothers with breast hypoplasia
women with hyperandrogenesis (polycystic ovarian disease)
women who have had breast surgery
women with multiple sclerosis or rheumatoid disease
strong family history of allergies or inflammatory bowel disease
mothers with high blood pressure
mothers taking beta blockers (e.g. labetalol).

Breastfeeding and diabetes

babies who are breastfed are less likely to develop childhood diabetes
it is recommended that mothers who have diabetes avoid giving their baby any formula milk
if you have diabetes and are insulin dependent you may find that you need less insulin when you are breastfeeding and may need to eat more
if you have gestational diabetes and breastfeed you are less likely to go on to develop diabetes in later life.

When hand expressing is not recommended

Antenatal hand expression is not recommended in the following circumstances:

history of threatened or premature labour
cervical incompetence
cervical suture in situ.

How to harvest your colostrum

Antenatal expression of colostrum Expressing your milk before birth Storing expressed breast milk