Baby Parenting Guide

Whats the difference between breast feeding from the breast and feeding the baby pumped beast milk?

The baby is getting the same milk, but instead it will be pumped from the breast into a bottle for the baby.. What is the difference? if all the baby needs is the milk to be healthy why are so many people making a big deal about feeding the baby from the boobs? You're holding the baby so the baby is still close to you

Public Response to Whats the difference between breast feeding from the breast and feeding the baby pumped beast milk?

1. It's just a whole lot more work to pump and bottlefeed. It's also harder to keep up your milk supply.
2. I don't think people make a big deal out of it, necessarily...I just don't understand why someone would WANT to pump into bottles exclusively rather than actually nurse...it just makes no sense. ETA: This is just my opinion, but I HATE pumping. It's such a drag and every time I do it (because I work and have to), all I can think about it is how much I'd rather be nursing my girl.
3. It's more expense, a colossal waste of time, not as effective as nursing directly, it's inconvenient since you have to take the pump EVERYWHERE and often pump every 2 hours during the day and 4 at night for many months, and the child doesn't get the close contact of nursing that perhaps contributes most to all the benefits of breastfeeding.
4. I will be doing both with my baby. I am not comfortable feeding in public so I will be pumping for when we go out and so my husband is able to have that bonding time with baby and with be feeding whenever I can when we are at home to keep my milk supply coming in good. It really is a personal preference but beware that your milk supply may deplete if you only pump.
5. 1. Pumping is a LOT of work, and many moms find that, because the pump isn't as efficient as the baby in stimluating supply, their supply drops after a while. Or they just burn out on pumping. All of which means that a baby fed by pumped milk is much less likely to get the full year of breastmilk recommended by the AAP, or the 'up to 2 years or beyond' recommended by the WHO than a baby nursed at the breast. 2. There really are a few medical differences between the two methods as far as benefits go: Nursing at the breast strengthens baby's jaw in a way that a bottle cannot. This makes crooked teeth less likely. When baby nurses his saliva gets into the breast. This helps the milk create the appropriate antibodies to whatever might be getting ready to ail him. 3. It's something that's really impossible to measure, but one of the reasons that breastfeeding is said to enhance bonding is that when baby nurses she is relating to the mother herself. When she drinks from a bottle she connects with the bottle. (Think about the difference between a nursing toddler cuddling with mama while nursing vs. a toddler walking around all day drinking from a bottle.)
6. Pumping and bottle feeding is much more classy then feeding from the breast.
7. Pumping does not effectively trigger supply like baby does, pumping is a pain in the rear, pumping can cause unnecessary worry over supply issues that are nonexistent (having trouble pumping, not pumping enough, thus thinking you are not producing enough, unnecessary supplementation, reducing supply...all downhill from there). Also, direct nursing has many benefits in itself, for mother and baby, that pumping does not. Plus, direct nursing is much more comforting to a baby than using a bottle, as well as allows the baby to have a better control on eating and preventing overfeeding.
8. it takes twice the time (the pumping and then the feeding, versus just nursing) and then there's the whole storage issue. if you're going to take it out with you, it needs to be cool and then how do you heat it up when you're at a restaurant or on a walk? breast milk from the breast is always the perfect temperature and you don't need to worry about sterilizing bottles or contamination. plus, the properties in breast milk are sort of 'delicate' if you will -- shaking, heating up too quickly or too much, and freezing all destroy at least some of the beneficial properties. it's hard to maintain your supply by a pump because your body can tell the difference between one and a baby. babies are more efficient. it's hard to do it long term (and the AAP recommends at least one year of breast feeding). there's also suggestions that babies tend to overeat more with bottle feeding in general. that being said, if there's a choice between bottle feeding breast milk or formula, pick the breast milk. it'll still retain some of it's health benefits and at least you know it where it came from. it's much easier for baby to digest breast milk than formula too.
9. it is so much more work to pump, store, sterilize and wash bottles and nipples, prepare bottles... plus you can't just feed them on demand - you have to go get a bottle and warm it up, (then wash up everything afterwards) feeding from the breast is so much simpler, it's just easier that way. Also, apparently your body can tell if it's a baby feeding or a pump expressing milk - and your milk supply can suffer from it. Your body will not produce as much because it knows there's no "baby" there.
10. same liquid -same nutrient level. the only difference is the container in which it's stored.
11. Pumping and bottlefeeding can decrease your milk supply - pump is not as efficient as extracting milk as baby. Pumping takes a long time and is a pain in the butt. Why pump when you can just pop boob in baby's mouth? Personally, I feel feeding directly from the breast is more enjoyable and love the fact that I am the only one who can do it. But some women may like the flexibility of bottles - other people can feed baby if they so choose. Who is making a big deal about feeding baby from the boobs? Are they saying you should or shouldn't feed baby directly from the breast? I don't understand. I have never heard anybody make a big deal out of it.
12. I think most people have listed the main differences here. Just a couple of thoughts to add. Breast milk has the fore milk (watery, thirst quenching milk) and hind milk (rich, fatty and satisfying milk) which follows a few minutes later. When I express, that all gets mixed together, so sometimes my baby has to have some water as well to make sure his thirst is quenched. I went back to work when my baby was 3 months, so pumping was the only way he gets my breastmilk in the day time. So from that point of view, it's a real positive. But if I had the choice between breastfeeding or pumping, I'd choose straight from the breast every time.
13. It's not that it's any less nutritionally sound to pump and give milk to baby. Although there is some debate as to whether frozen breast milk does indeed lose some of its nutritional properties. It is generally more difficult for a mom to be able to exclusively pump and then give baby a bottle of the breastmilk. If you spend 15 minutes pumping, and then feeding baby a bottle for 15 minutes, you spent 30 min. just pumping and feeding. That's not including the time spent to clean the pump. If one just breastfeeds, it would generally take less time for baby to feed directly from the breast. It is up to the individual however. If you want to exclusively pump, that is up to you. If you can deal with it, then I say good for you.