Bebeta manual pump review

I've been trolling local sites about discussions of manual breast pumps and was bothered by two things. First, some moms seem to have been told that you should NOT pump in the first 4-6 weeks of baby's life. Second, that manual breast pumps are expensive (P4-6 thousand depending on the brand). Both beliefs are dangerous for a new mom's chances of continuing breastfeeding.

Pumping is not bawal in the first month. WHat doctors mean is that if you CAN nurse then nursing is better, but if for some reason baby is having a hard time nursing because of latch or strength issues it is not bad to pump. In fact you can pump in between nursing sessions to increase supply. It is true that in the first 2 weeks babies should be nursing as much as possible because the stimulating action of their tongue on your breast will signal the arrival of milk in good volume. What WILL be bad for your supply is exclusively pumping in the first month, the nursing is critical, nursing AND pumping is ok too, but pumping ONLY can diminish supply.

Breast pumps do not need to be expensive, there are ok manual pumps out there for less than 1,000 pesos. Moms who cannot afford to drop a lot of money on a pump when they are not sure that they will be able to breastfeed will just not buy a pump. I think this is a mistake and jeopardizes the chances of successful bfing over the long term. Since some moms seem to think they need to spend at least 4,000 pesos for a manual pump, they end up delaying the purchase to be safe, no sense in spending that much cash if their supply is not enough. In fact the decision process should be reverse, you buy a pump to increase supply, not decide to buy a pump only if there is enough supply.

One of the most important things you need to consider when buying a manual breast pump is that it can be operated with one hand. You'd be surprised how many models out there need two hands to operate. And believe me, when you have a baby you need that other hand to be free. The Medela electric pump I inherited from a friend came with a manual pump that needed two hands, I never used it. The second thing, buy one that has a bottle where the milk will go, you'll see what I mean when I discuss my Chicco purchase below.

I bought my perfectly useful manual breastpump for 700 pesos, some sulit people are selling it for 500-600. It is a Bebeta pump that I picked up from Shopwise (in Libis). It's got some minor issues (described below) but it is a decent pump and has paid for itself over and over.

Photo credit on top of photo. Not an endorsement of seller.

There is only one problem with this and once you learn how to deal with it you can pump without interruption. If you are pumping at an angle where milk travels into the silicone cap on top, or if the silicone cap is wet inside from the wash, you lose suction. So before starting to pump make sure that cap is bone dry on the inside. The whole thing comes apart so it's not that hard to do, a lampin does an excellent job of wiping off all moisture. Then once you start pumping do not hold it at an upward angle, hold it slightly downward so the milk just flows downward. I do not put on the silicone tube thing that goes on the flange, it will help with suction but I find it's not completely necessary.

This thing has taken me through many night-pumping sessions and a 3-day trip to Bangkok. For a few weeks I used only this instead of the electric because it's gentler on the boobs. I never felt the need to buy a more expensive manual pump.

The first one I bought was this Chicco thing that the SM lady recommended. I didn't want to buy the more expensive Chicco manual pump because it was too much money to drop when I had an electric at home, I just needed a back-up. When I got home I found to my dismay that not only was the reserve too small for any real pumping, it was also not recommended that the expressed milk be given to the baby, although honestly I don't believe that part. So stay away from this one:

Photo credit: Chicco

I still don't understand what it's for, but it's apparently not for expressing milk that you want to feed to your baby. Go figure.