Are silicone pumps really gentle and natural breastfeeding essentials?

A client of mine has kindly agreed to share her recent experience of using a silicone pump:⁣

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‘As a 2nd time mum I decided not to pump unless totally necessary. So when a friend gave me the Elvie Curve, a wearable silicone pump, I thought it was great as I could use it whilst breastfeeding my 2 month old without doing anything… I was amazed as I was collecting up to 60 ml in a few minutes… I used it once or twice a day for about 5 consecutive days. That was enough to really mess up my milk supply… without my realising, this gadget created such an oversupply that my poor baby was finding it hard to feed without choking with the amount of milk that was coming out, crying at the boob and latching on and off. She also started being very gassy. Her poops turned green, and we were both miserable. I didn’t know what was wrong, and even thought maybe I should start pumping instead of breastfeeding as my baby was so upset.⁣

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Ironically, I didn’t realise this gadget was the problem until I discussed it with Cordelia. She explained that this Elvie device is not a passive ‘milk catcher’ but a form of pump and that wearing it on one breast whilst breastfeeding on the other was stimulating my breasts to make much more milk than my baby needed. I stopped using it and within a few days everything went back to normal.’⁣

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Unfortunately this is far from the first time I’ve heard from mums who’ve encountered difficulties due to using a silicone pump.⁣

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As well as creating oversupply, with all the challenges that can pose for mothers and babies (see my article on oversupply: https://www.cordeliauys.co.uk/oversupply ), my colleagues and I have seen mothers developing mastitis and ironically, some babies are also experiencing slow weight gain because the milk they should be getting from being offered the 2nd breast is going to the silicone pump instead. ⁣

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I highly recommend reading the blog ‘How NOT to use a Haakaa’ by Milk and Motherhood https://milkandmotherhood.com/2020/07/how-not-to-use-a-haakaa.html for an in depth explanation of the issues silicone pumps can cause.⁣

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I would say these silicone pump are not gentle and natural and are definitely not a breastfeeding essential! ⁣