Third latch
A really short clip that shows very clearly the baby’s jaw going up and down, and shows the ‘pause’ as the baby’s mouth fills with milk.
So many mothers, their confidence eroded by others well meaning (and not so well meaning) comments, become paranoid that Baby Isn’t Getting Enough Milk!!!
You wonder how we made it out of the caves, huh?
Proper hydration is vital for the baby, especially in the first few days, whilst you wait for the transmission of your milk from gold milk (colostrum) to white milk. Production is low in the first few days, in order not to flood baby out, and let baby build in both confidence and skill. Constant licking and stimulating of the nipples as it laps up gold milk, will keep baby well hydrated, even if its not latching on yet. It will also build your milk supply wonderfully!
However, as we mention in ‘Breast Crawl’:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=G3K87l9…
modern birth practices mean that some babies come out sleepy and disinterested for the first couple of days. It’s vital that these babies get gold milk from the mother dribbled into their mouths often. If the mother is traumatized from the birth (such as an unwanted caesarian section, a too long labor or a too quick labor) then her milk may be difficult to express and sometimes stress levels can be so high, the mother’s stress prevents ‘letdown’ – thus convincing her she has no milk. In these circumstances, donated human milk should be given to the baby. If there is no donated human milk available (do ask at the hospital – there are human milk banks) and the baby is dehydrating, then formula will have to be given.
Don’t think this means we need formula… if it wasn’t for the need to make huge profits from formula for shareholders (and thus push formula on mothers), there would be enough human milk for such babies.
Many hospitals in the world are ‘formula free’, and they have happy healthy and well hydrated babies in them!
A genuine word of caution here. If you are in the unfortunate position of having to give formula to your newborn, the World Health Organization states that only pre-mixed UHT liquid formula can be used for the first 8 weeks of life. This is because powdered infant formula is not sterile, as it’s impossible to ensure this in the manufacturing process. About 14% of batches of powdered infant formula have nasty bugs in them, and every now and then, a new born baby dies from infections from the powdered infant formula. It’s not very many, but it is a risk – and as parents you have a right to know about this risk, so you can act accordingly. Full details on how to safely prepare powdered formula can be found on:
http://www.who.int/foodsafety/publica…
Back to the babies! Most babies will be well hydrated by nipple contact in the first few days, but dehydration is serious and if you are worried at all (all new mothers worry about EVERYTHING!) there are a few simple things to look for, such as is baby peeing? These links explain it all for you…
http://www.kellymom.com/newman/04enou…
http://www.llli.org/FAQ/enough.html
http://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/bfinf…
.. but if you are worried – phone someone for help. Don’t wait until the next midwife or doctor’s appointment – phone someone qualified and ask for help. The ‘First Latch’ video has links to organizations who can talk it through with you if you’re panicked enough to wonder, but Not Really Sure!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ox8ht-…
They’ll also explain that the baby sneezing in the first few days is not a sign that baby is about to drop dead of bubonic plague! We’ve been there… we’ve sat and watched baby breathe all night too! 
But the best sign that all is well when baby is on the breast, is the ‘pause’ you see so clearly in this video. Every pause means baby’s mouth is filling up with Mama’s Magic Milk!
Good Luck
