Breastfeeding Archives - The Newhouse Family Blog

Sometimes, owning just 1 breast pump isn’t ideal. A superb electric machine may be fabulous at home, but if you suddenly have to pump when on a day out it most certainly will not be your go-to pump. I have just given birth to our 4th baby, and if breastfeeding and pumping over the years has taught me anything, it’s that sometimes we need a few pumps for a few different jobs. Here is my round-up of my favourite pumps- for ALL occasions!

For Home: Nuby Natural Touch Digital Breast Pump

Electric breast pumps are superb for those who want to pump at home. Due to needing a power source and being a little noisy (but not too noisy!) electric pumps are best kept for using at home.

Family trusted brand Nuby have launched an all new electric breast pump that is ideal for mums planning on expressing every day. I like to pump daily so I have a good supply of milk in the deep freeze ready to grab when I head out of the door to defrost, and when weaning has started we can use my expressed milk in her porridge or even making breast milk ice lollies to soothe her teething pain.

The new Nuby Natural Touch digital breast pump has a series of special features. It has 2 different pumping modes. The first mode stimulates milk flow and the second is the active expressing function, both modes working on the breast like a baby would, meaning that you get more milk expressed in the most efficient way.

The new Nuby Natural Tough Digital Breast Pump is available for £89.99 and can be purchased directly from Nuby’s online shop. To read my full review of the Nuby Natural Touch Digital breast pump, click here.

For Out & About: MAM Manual Breast Pump

Unlike many other pumps available on the market, this pump has only 4 parts to assemble before use! Simply click the funnel to the body, then click the pump handle into place, attach the valve and then screw the bottle onto the pump. Simples!

The MAM Manual Breast pump has some wonderful features, which make it a firm favourite when pumping on the go. The pump has a soft cushioned funnel, that makes expressing a very comfortable experience. It also has a smart little selector dial to adjust suction strength- great for getting milk flowing, and adjusting when milk is flowing easily. It’s also very comfortable to hold, due to its ergonomic design. Many manual pumps can cause some hand-ache due to the repetitive squeeze-release action, but I found this pump so easy to use, that I only started to get a little hand ache after pumping for a very long time.

This clever dial adjusts the suction strength.

It is also a very quiet pump! I have used a few manual pumps in the past that have a really annoying ‘squeak’ every time the handle is compressed. The MAM Manual Breast Pump either hasn’t developed this yet (and I’ve used it lots!) or this really could be a squeak-free pump… gasp!

The MAM Manual Breast Pump is available online from the MAM website, Argos (£39.99), John Lewis (£37.50), Babies R Us (£37.49) and many other stockists, so do shop around to find the best prices! To read my full review of the MAM Manual Breast Pump, you can visit my blog post here.

For Every Use: Haakaa Silicone Pump

The great thing about the Haakaa Silicone pump is that it literally has no parts, it is just one single piece of silicone. This pump is a unique design and super easy to use. The Haakaa pump really is superb and great for use at home, at work and just for occasional use! And it looks beautiful too!

The 100% food grade silicone pump is special. I often use it to catch excess milk when feeding my baby on the opposite breast. I simply latch my baby one side and attach the Haakaa to the other. Doing this, I often catch an extra 2-3oz of breastmilk, by doing nothing… no pumping, no plugs, no handles.

Simply squeeze the pump and place over your breast. As you let go of the pump, the suction holds the pump in place and draws milk from your breast. The pump is super soft, and sits well on the breast. The pump also has a really handy suction cup on the base of the pump, so stop any spillages. Crying over spilt milk is a thing!

I also have a beautiful stopper for my pump. Shaped like a flower, the stopper sits inside of the neck of the pump and creates a seal, meaning milk is kept sterile and away from contaminants for longer. It also means, if the pump is knocked over, you wont loose your precious pumped milk.

The Haakaa 100ml is available from the Haakaa website and costs £18.99 (with stopper).

2 weeks ago I started my 4th breastfeeding journey. Luckily I am a very experienced breast feeder and I have had many different breast pumps over the years. This week, I decided to try out the MAM Manual Breast Pump.

When visiting The Baby Show earlier this year, I made my way to the MAM stand to pick up one of their manual breast pumps and their all-new 6 in 1 electric steriliser.

Baby Jimmy has now arrived, and breastfeeding is going well. My milk supply has gone into over-drive, and the time has finally come for me to review the MAM Manual Breast Pump. I’ve been waiting for this for sooo long!

Pump overview…

The MAM manual breast pump is super easy to assemble, use and clean as it only has 4 parts (and a bottle).
Ideal for use at home, at work (great for breastfeeding mums returning to work and still needing to pump) and out and about on the go.
Soft cushioned adjustable funnel, which rotates 360* for comfortable expressing positions.
Selector dial which controls expressing strength.
Comfortable ergonomic shaped handle for a secure and comfortable hold.
Comes with a 160ml Easy Start Anti Colic Bottle.
BPA BPS free.

Putting it together…

The instructions are easy to follow, in depth, have clear illustrations and even has some handy tips for using the pump. It’s always nice when a product comes with good instructions, and often takes the sweat (and tears) out of trying something new!

Comfort…

This pump is so comfortable to use! One of the most comfortable I have ever used. The funnel has 4 soft cushions, making a more gentle pumping session.

The funnel can be rotated 360* so you can find the most comfortable angle for you to express at. Turning the funnel to different positions can also mean you can draw milk equally from the breast as the pump can work different areas of the breast tissue, reducing the risk of blocked milk ducts.

4 soft cushions to make pumping more comfortable.

I did find the handle a little stiff at first, but I put this down to the product being new out of the box. After the second time I had used the pump, the handle loosened up a little and was much easier to pump with. Many women complain of hand ache when pumping with a manual pump. This is common because, after all, you are just doing a mini gym session on your hand! I did have a little ache, but this kicked in after a huge half hour pumping session… so it was my fault really!

Suction…

The pump has a special little clever design feature (one that I have never come across on a manual pump before), a selector dial to adjust the suction level that the pump works at.

Many women find that a stronger suction with a quick rhythm stimulates the milk let down more effectively. Then, once milk starts flowing, adjust the suction to lower and pump with a slower rhythm for the remaining time. The dial on the pump is super easy to adjust and isn’t fiddly at all.

My personal tips for pumping…

As a mother who has breastfed 4 children, please trust my handy little tips 😛 *Review for the MAM breast pump is continued below.*

Relax! Feeling anxious or stressed can affect your let down reflex. Sit back, have a cuppa and pump when you are feeling calm and comfortable with your surroundings. Perfect excuse to put on Netflix and binge watch too!
How much you pump IS NOT an indication of your milk supply. Many women think that they have a low milk supply because they only manage to pump an ounce or 2 at a time. A baby works and drains a breast much better than any pump, so please don’t allow yourself to think that your supply is low. Many women think this, when their supply is perfectly adequate and end up stopping breastfeeding 🙁
A fussy baby doesn’t indicate a low milk supply either. Your baby will go through periods of fussiness during growth spurts and developmental leaps. As a baby grows, they need more milk so being on the breast more often (cluster feeding) is just your baby building up their supply. This fussy phase doesn’t last long and will pass. Babies also need comfort, what they find at the breast as the world is still a new and scary place. You CANNOT ‘spoil’ a baby!
Sit straight when pumping. It’s easy to slouch when using a breast pump. This gives you back ache, bad posture and can even stop your breast from releasing as much milk as possible.
It’s best that you use your breast pump AFTER feeding your baby, to build supply. I often like to pump the opposite breast to what I am feeding on. I find the milk flows better from a pumped breast if my baby is suckling at the same time.
Away from your baby? If your baby is in hospital or you are pumping at work you may find that your milk flows faster and easier while looking at a photo or video of your baby… so make sure you fill your phone up with cute pics!

Cleaning…

Cleaning the MAM Manual Breast Pump is very easy, as it only has 4 parts! You can take the pump apart in seconds, give it a quick wash in hot soapy water and then put it all in your electric, microwave or cold water steriliser. Just don’t sterilise the handle as this part of the pump isn’t safe to do so. The handle of your pump doesn’t come into contact with breastmilk, so you can wash it in just hot soapy water.

Sterilising the pump in the MAM 6 in 1 electric steriliser is easy!

Any other points?

A very quiet pump! I have used a few manual pumps in the past that have a really annoying ‘squeak’ every time the handle is compressed. The MAM Manual Breast Pump either hasn’t developed this yet (and I’ve used it lots!) or this really could be a squeak-free pump… gasp!

The plastic used to make this pump is very thick and strong. It feels like it is made to last, with some fantastic designing. It also looks pretty, and is a lovely colour. As far as pumps go, this is definitely a pretty pump!

We love MAM bottles and the pump can have any MAM bottle attached to it. It’s great that I could pump straight into the bottle and feed direct to Jimmy if I wanted too. Jimmy is still a little too young to introduce a bottle of expressed milk (I don’t want him to develop nipple confusion) so I’ve been pouring my expressed milk into special milk storage bags and popping into the freezer for later use.