Colostrum Benefits for Newborns: Healthy Nutrition from the Start

New moms prepare their minds and bodies to feed their infants after birth. They understand the benefits of breastfeeding but often still contemplate what feeding method and style will work for them. We'll discuss colostrum and examine colostrum benefits for your newborn, whether you are nursing or feeding breast milk from a bottle.

What is Colostrum?

Colostrum is a mother’s “first milk.” It’s the thick, yellow-to-orange colored, and sometimes sticky secretion from the mammary glands of all mammals, but today, we will focus on humans.

This thick mammary secretion is higher in protein, more filling, and lower in sugar and fat than a mother’s more mature milk that comes in later. It contains many properties to protect your baby from infections and has bone repair and wound healing factors. Although the volume is less than the milk they will take in later, it provides complete nutrition for the first days after your baby is born.

Colostrum is often referred to as “liquid gold.” Its properties are as precious as it contains antibodies and white blood cells that build a strong immune system. Another plus is that it acts as a laxative to help your little one pass the dark first bowel movements (poops) called meconium.

Differences Between Colostrum and Breast Milk in Other Stages

Colostrum is only produced by the mother’s body for about two to four days, depending on how the baby nurses. Then, transitional breast milk will be made for approximately two weeks. You often hear this transition called the mother’s milk “coming in.” Finally, mature breast milk will be expressed and will continue to be produced until the breastfeeding experience is concluded.

Let’s view a comparison of the differences between the three stages discussed:

Colostrum Benefits for Newborns

Colostrum is considered the “superfood” for your baby. Why? The benefits of colostrum make it essential to provide a multitude of advantages to your newborn. Even preterm infants receiving colostrum from their mothers have “significantly better health outcomes” than those who do not.

Let’s discuss the benefits of colostrum for newborns:

• Complete nutrition - high levels of proteins, fats, salts, and vitamins

• Strong immunity - contains antibodies and white blood cells.

• Easily digestible - supports gut health.

• Prevents low blood sugars

• Laxative properties - helps baby pass meconium (dark first “poop”).

• Brain, eyes, skin, bone, and heart growth

• Decreases the chance of jaundice

When Should Newborns Start Eating Colostrum?

Ideally, newborns should start eating immediately after birth or within the first 30 minutes to two hours. Skin-to-skin contact is best during and between feeding sessions.

Breastfeeding on demand is best, but you want to awaken and feed them every 2-3 hours if they don’t give you feeding cues before then.

Remember, breastfeeding takes practice. Because the colostrum is thicker, your baby may take longer to nurse, even though the volume the baby consumes is small. Take advantage of the assistance your healthcare provider, neonatal nurses, other medical professionals, and your lactation consultant provides.

How Much Colostrum Does a Newborn Need?

It is usual for mothers to produce 1-4 teaspoons of colostrum daily, but many babies take one teaspoon per feeding. If you think of your baby’s stomach as only one small marble in size, you will understand how they become so full of this thick consistency so quickly.

Again, remember that this colostrum contains nutrient-dense concentrated milk that meets all your baby’s needs. Mothers' tiny colostrum production is all your newborn’s tummy needs compared to the milk supply days after birth.

When Do I Stop Producing Colostrum?

Mothers will continue to produce colostrum only for about 2-5 days, then begin to produce transitional milk. Transitional milk will have some colostrum in it, but as more milk is made, the volume of colostrum compared to regular breast milk diminishes.

Your milk supply will continue to increase to keep up with your infant’s demands. Your ability to produce milk will continue until you decide to decrease your breastfeeding, have an event that decreases your milk production, or stop breastfeeding altogether.

What Do I Do with Leftover Colostrum?

Whether you have hand-expressed or are leaking colostrum before birth, there are rules to follow when storing it. You must ensure it’s stored in a sterile container or syringe, marked clearly with the date it was expressed. It can be kept in the refrigerator for two or three days and then moved to the freezer. This sterile container can be stored in the freezer for up to six months and then defrosted under warm water or at room temperature. After thawing the colostrum, you can keep it in the refrigerator for 24 hours only; then, it must be discarded.

Discuss your desire to express colostrum with your healthcare provider and get their advice. Understanding colostrum helps in so many ways after your baby’s birth is crucial. Colostrum is rich in growth factors for cell growth, strengthens immune responses, and supports the gastrointestinal tract to make a healthy gut.

Besides storing extra colostrum for your baby’s consumption, colostrum is a therapeutic remedy for skin infections, diaper rash, other soft tissue irritations, conjunctivitis, and cracked nipples in moms. Giving leftover colostrum when your baby is sick is another use, as it has increased antibodies. Also, if your baby does not need your colostrum, you can always donate it to a human milk bank for others to use with their infants.

Tips for Pumping Colostrum

Your body starts making colostrum mid-pregnancy. You can begin harvesting your colostrum for your baby when you are 36- 37 weeks pregnant to have a supply before delivery. If you start before this time, there is a slight chance that nipple stimulation will encourage your body to produce oxytocin, the pregnancy hormones that help begin active labor.

It’s not necessary to pump colostrum after your baby's birth, but if there are issues, such as medical complications with your infant, premature birth, or your baby does not want to latch on, pumping colostrum may be necessary.

Hand expression of colostrum is recommended, but pumping can also be done. Hand massage before pumping is encouraged as positive pressure to the milk glands helps the colostrum flow through the ducts to the areola.

The pump provides only negative pressure to extract the colostrum. So, the massage squeezes the colostrum through the ducts, and the pump removes it from them. Because of the small volume and consistency of the colostrum produced by mom’s breasts, it may stick to the pump parts and be difficult to collect. Colostrum extraction is also more uncomfortable because it takes more suction to express the thick liquid.

When you see signs that colostrum is becoming transitional milk, you can pump to help build your supply. This milk helps your baby take advantage of all of the immune properties and other benefits that mom’s body produces.

When you’ve decided to nurse and bottle-feed your infant breast milk, Momcozy has a breast pump for you!

Momcozy Mobile Flow™ Hands-Free Breast Pump | M9 offers efficient milk extraction, maximum milk flow, and more freedom for moms in less time. Its app allows you to control the pump from your mobile phone and be active, doing other things while you express breastmilk. A perfect pump for moms on the go!

FAQs about Colostrum Benefits for Newborns

Q: Will colostrum help a sick baby?

A: Yes. Colostrum will help a sick baby. It’s filled with white blood cells, and they produce antibodies, which strengthen a baby’s immune system. This protects from infection after the baby’s birth.

Colostrum is nutrient-dense and has antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals, such as magnesium, for your baby’s heart and bones. It is also rich in copper and has four times as much zinc as breast milk for immunity against environmental germs.

Q: Do you burp a newborn after colostrum?

A: Yes. Even though your baby may not burp as much initially, you should burp your infant after colostrum feedings. Breast-fed babies do not usually burp much as they swallow less air than bottle-fed babies.

Q: Is it good to collect colostrum before birth?

A: Yes, this practice can be beneficial, especially if the mom is diabetic, as it helps the baby’s body regulate blood sugar. Colostrum collection before delivery is called “antenatal colostrum harvesting.” Some moms do it to have colostrum saved for use later if the baby becomes sick to boost their immunity.

Q: Can I bottle-feed my newborn colostrum?

A: Technically, yes, but this would be difficult as your baby may only need about a teaspoon per feeding. Feeding your baby with a sterile syringe (no needle) would be more appropriate. Wash the syringe thoroughly and sterilize, if necessary, between feedings.

Conclusion

We’ve discussed the benefits of the baby’s “first milk,” colostrum. This “liquid gold” jump-starts your baby’s immune system and provides a nutrient-rich, healthy beginning to your newborn’s life. Colostrum is rich in antibodies and antioxidants that protect and defend them from harm.

A mother’s milk is best, and colostrum is the stage that packs it all in first. It’s highly concentrated, and a tiny amount provides all your infant's healthy growth and developmental needs for the first few days after birth. It’s your infant’s superfood!