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is produced on demand so during the first few days, you should nurse frequently. The more often you nurse, the more quickly your mature milk will come in and the more milk you will produce. A good practice to adopt is to breastfeed for 10-15 minutes per breast at least 8 10 times a day. If, for any reason, you are not able to nurse your baby, you can help encourage your breasts to produce more milk by applying a breast pump to it. One recommendation is to use an electric pump on the lowest setting for as long as you would otherwise nurse your baby.

5. Ignore advice to "give the baby formula until your matured milk comes in" or "until you have more milk". Remember, breast milk is produced on demand and that means only a baby on the breast can encourage your body to make more milk. If your baby is full on formula, he or she won't be suckling at the breast. Without the suckling action, the body won't know it needs to make more milk. Therefore, offering formula as an interim measure is not only pointless was potentially damaging to your milk supply.

6. Breastfeeding for the first time can be quite a challenge and it is important to get as much support as possible. If you have any questions or problems, make sure you get help from the hospital's lactation consultant, or a good friend or family member who has breastfed a baby before. Having the right support can sometimes make the different between mothers who persist with breastfeeding and those that eventually give up. Remember that breastfeeding is an art that will require a lot of patience and practice.

7. If your baby has trouble finding or staying on your nipple, don't panic. Remember that there are two inexperienced individuals in the picture you and your baby and you both need time to adjust to one another and develop a nursing relationship. Breastfeeding might come easily for some mothers, but this isn't necessarily the norm so don't worry if you find it difficult. The important thing is that you learn how to get a correct latch, position yourself comfortably and to break the suction when you need to before you leave the hospital.

8. A proper latch at the start should not be painful. However, nursing during the early days can cause your nipples to feel raw. This sensitivity will eventually subside but be prepared for it to last a couple of weeks. Applying a barrier cream like Bepanthen after each nursing can help to lessen the sensitivity. Because of this initial tenderness, it

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