<< It has not been shown that breast size equates to storage capacity for
milk. Women with large breasts may just as easily have a comparatively lower
storage capacity than a smaller breasted women and vice versa. Its not
possible to really know what a mother's storage capacity is without doing a
24 hour computerised breast measurement in conjunction with milk production
(You'll have to come to Perth for that!). The important point though is that
storage capacity is not related to milk production. Mums with a smaller
storage capacity can easily produce the
volume of milk required for their infant over a 24 hour period, its just
that these infants will need to feed more frequently in order to get it.
Cathy Fetherston CM MSc IBCLC>>

I have found all the information and the resulting discussion about breast
storage capacity really fascinating but I find myself puzzling about the
application of this knowledge.

While the size of a mother's breast should not play a major factor and our
understanding leads us to believe that a mother with a smaller storage
capacity will need to feed more frequently than one with a larger storage
capacity, I can not fit this pattern into my own breastfeeding history or
into the experiences of the considerable number of mothers that I have
worked with over the years.

My bra size before my first pregnancy was 36 AA and at the end of that
pregnancy was 38 A and that was the general pattern with all three of my
pregnancies except that the size 38 stayed and I was still breastfeeding my
second child when I was pregnant with child number three.

My first child had a pattern of sleeping for 4 hours, then waking up and
needing a feed (I really thought that this was how all breastfed babies
worked). She slept through the night at 6 weeks and grew very quickly, had
round, rosy cheeks and fat rolls on her arms and legs. I would judge from
that
experience that I would have fallen into the category of large storage
capacity, in spite of small breasts.

Child number 2 was very different. She did not stop crying for 2 years,
hardly ever slept (five minutes here and there) and needed constant small
and frequent feeds. There was no time for any fat to adsorb to anywhere and
she did not sleep through the night until after she was two years old. She
had green explosive stools and would probably have
benefited from one sided breastfeeding, except that info was not around 23
years ago. Although she grew adequately, she was not really all that well
covered. Looking at that experience, I think it fits the picture of a small
storage capacity, with the same small breasts.

Child number 3 was a complete mixture of the two. Sometimes she would sleep
for long stretches and at other times she would feed frequently. She was
well covered - neither fat nor thin. So if there was a category between
large and small breast storage capacity, then that is where I would fit in
with this baby and of course, using the same small breasts.

And hence my question - how do we apply the knowledge of breast storage
capacity when each baby seems to have a pattern of feeding that is unique
unto itself? Could the storage capacity of the mother change to fit the
needs of the baby rather than the storage capacity dictate how the mother
needs to feed the baby? If I had visited Perth with each baby, would the 24
hour computerised breast measurements have shown different readings ?

Just trying to understand!

Rose Gauld RN RM IBCLC pondering in a wet and soggy Cape Town

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