Expert: ruth kraft - 6/30/2011

Question
Hello thank you for taking the time to read my question. My daughter is 5 weeks old and exclusively breastfed. It's going really well and she is gaining weight and thriving:) I just recently started pumping and it's taking me 20 minutes to get an ounce or a little more out of one breast at a time. I make sure the breast I pump is "full" before I begin.
My friends are saying they are getting 3 to 6 ounces in 10 to 15 minutes out of one breast! Their babies are a little older than mine but they say they've been getting that amount for a while. Most of them also started pumping right away, whereas I waited till now to make sure breastfeeding and the supply was well established.
Is what I'm getting when I pump "normal" for just starting to pump and my baby only being 5 weeks? Should I have started pumping earlier? Will I get more the older my baby gets or the longer I pump over time?
Thanks again for your time and knowledge. Hope to hear from you soon:)
Beth

Answer
Your body isnt used to pumping all the time. so it makes the perfect amount for the baby to nurse from. Not to mention also that pumps are not nearly as effective as actually breastfeeding. So yes, you are right on target.

To start to produce more, try to pump in the mornings as your milk will be more plentiful then. Pump at the same time every day and your body will start making an extra feeding at that time of day. supply and demand is what produces milk. you will make whatever your baby requires and how much you pump. If you pump for 3 hours straight every day, for those three hours, you will make milk like a cow. if you never pump, you will make only what your baby needs. It is all done by supply and demand. The more you demand the more you will make :)

if you are pumping to go back to work, try pumping only the times you would be pumping while at work and you will watch your breasts adjust to make milk at those times as well. the baby will always get milk too, the let downs might be further in between but there will always be milk.