Using a breast milk collector

If you are breastfeeding, it is useful to build a small stock of breast milk for when you need to go out without your baby. One of the newer ways to do this is to use a breast milk collector. It’s a very simple method to collect breast milk without having to express with a pump!

A breast milk collector — is it for you? Let’s see what it is (and what it isn’t) and how it works.

What is a breast milk collector?

It is a small silicone device that collects breast milk from one breast while your baby feeds from the other, or while you are expressing. A breast milk collector uses your body’s natural response to breastfeeding to help you collect more milk. While you breastfeed, attach the collector to the opposite breast. It will create a gentle suction to help draw out the milk that would usually leak and be lost in the pads.

Bonus: it is completely silent and fully hands-free.

How does it work?

When you breastfeed, two hormones work together to make it happen: prolactin and oxytocin. Prolactin helps your body produce milk and oxytocin helps release it. It is oxytocin that tells the breast muscles to contract and push milk out of your milk ducts when the baby feeds. If you have breastfed before, you know milk is often released from both breasts, causing leaks and loss of milk from the side the baby is not feeding. A breast milk collector benefits from the let-down reflex, plus an extra suction, to extract that additional milk. You keep the milk in a baby bottle or a storage bag / jar, according to your need.

When should I use a breast milk collector?

You can start using the collector from the first milk coming in, which usually occurs between the third and fifth day after your birth. At this stage, the collector will relieve you and help to empty your breasts as milk production rapidly increases.

Once your milk supply is established (around 4 to 6 weeks), you can use the breast milk collector whenever you breastfeed / express. Start slowly to find what works for you. How you use it will depend on your storage goals. Using it several times a day could increase your milk supply.

How is a breast milk collector different from a breast pump?

It is important to know that a breast milk collector cannot replace a breast pump. Why?

A breast pump uses repeated suction to trick your body into thinking a baby is feeding, which allows you to obtain a good volume of breast milk and store enough to feed your baby when you are away. The breast pump also helps stimulate the milk coming in and supports parents who have milk supply concerns.

The breast milk collector does not create repeated suction, so it will not be as effective at removing milk from the breast as a breast pump, but it is ideal for collecting a little extra milk so none of your precious milk is lost!

Is this "let-down" milk nutritious for baby?

Yes! Breast milk, in all its forms, is the most amazing superfood we can offer our babies. When you breastfeed, the first milk contains less fat than what comes later in the feed, because it takes time to draw the fat from the back of the breast. Since a breast milk collector only captures the initial "foremilk", it will have a lower fat content than pumped milk. Using the breast milk collector alongside breastfeeding and/or expressing with a breast pump will provide your baby with a healthy supply of breast milk over time.

Will it work for me?

Everyone is different and results vary from parent to parent. But because breast milk collectors are such an easy way to collect extra milk, it’s worth trying!