The extra sucking of two or more babies means that your body will produce the extra milk they need. Knowing this can help you cope, especially when your babies seem extra fussy or hungry. Understanding that supply equals need can reassure you when your babies ask for extra feeds.
Your body will produce more than enough breast milk for your babies if you have twins, triplets or more. But finding time to breastfeed and manage life's demands can be daunting. Arrange plenty of help and support from family and friends.
Aim for pumping 750-800 mL (25-27 oz) per day by 7-10 days postpartum. If you have twins or higher order multiples, aim for pumping 800-950 mL (27-32 oz) by 14 days postpartum. It's useful to evaluate mom's 24 hour pumping output at 10 days.
Yes. This is because the more your babies feed, the more milk you make. Research shows breastfeeding mums of triplets can produce three litres a day2 – bearing in mind the average male baby drinks 831 ml (29 fl oz) a day.
You can increase your milk supply by: Nursing your baby often. Nurse every 2 hours during the day and every 3 to 4 hours at night (at least 8 to 16 times in 24 hours). If your baby will not nurse, use a good quality double electric breast pump to increase milk production.
After two or three days of regular pumping you should see a significant increase in supply. For advice on getting more milk from each pumping session, read breast pumping tips.
As long as your milk supply is well established, you can reduce the frequency of nursing without totally stopping. Your body will adjust. Even parents who decide to nurse just once or twice a day can typically maintain their milk supply. All experts agree that, however you decide to wean, it should happen gradually.
If you're planning on pumping breast milk for your twins, there's no reason to wait for their stomachs to catch up to you. To help establish your supply, try pumping every two hours — or about eight to 12 times in a 24-hour period.
If you're a mom of twins, breastfeeding can be doubly challenging at first: After all, you've got two mouths to feed, two little bodies to balance and three people who need to figure out this whole breastfeeding thing. Of course, the many benefits of breastfeeding make it well worth the effort.
The number one reason for low milk supply when breastfeeding twins is poor latch and failure to sufficiently drain the breasts. It's the same as for singleton babies. So the first thing to do is make sure your babies are latching correctly.
Ultimately, if your baby has reached its birth weight and you're pumping enough milk during the day, it's okay to sleep eight hours without pumping at night. Keep in mind there is an adjustment period for your body as it begins to acclimate to the decrease in overnight milk removal.
The breastfeeding initiation rate for twins ranges from 38 to 80%, and the rate of any breastfeeding at 6 months from 10 to 50%, with 8–22% of twins breastfeeding exclusively [8, 9, 12,13,14,15,16,17].
Pumping milk burns the same amount of calories that nursing burns. Pumping milk burns anywhere from 200 to 600 calories per day. This will also vary from mother to mother, pumping session to pumping session, and the number of pumping sessions per day.
Mums expecting twins aren't always encouraged to consider breastfeeding; but twins, and even triplets, can be breastfed exclusively. Only a few women won't have enough milk for their babies. Milk supply works on the principle of supply and demand.
The hardest thing about having twins is...
“Managing the movement of two babies. Carrying them both up and down the stairs, getting them into the car, etc.” —Simeon R. “Often having to make one baby wait!” —Catharine D. “Being outnumbered—the logistics of two on one is definitely the hardest.
Saint et al. (1986) found that among 8 mothers of twins, all the babies were breastfed for only 2 - 3 months, 3 babies continued being breastfed for 6 months, and the mothers produced twice as much milk due to the increased sucking of the babies (15).
If you have twins, you might choose to breastfeed them separately at first to see how each baby is doing. Later, if you'd rather breastfeed them at the same time, try the football hold — with one baby in each arm. Hold one baby on each side, with your elbows bent. Your babies' backs will rest on your forearms.
Research shows that from 36 weeks of pregnancy, mothers can begin hand expressing and harvesting colostrum (Forster & al, 2017). This can provide valuable insurance against the babies not being able to feed effectively straight away, or needing a boost to stabilise their blood sugars.
Most experts suggest it is best if mom can come close to matching what the normal nursing baby would do at the breast, and recommend she pump about every two hours, not going longer than three hours between sessions.
Previous twinning studies
Dr. Steinman found that women who become pregnant while breastfeeding are nine times more likely to conceive twins than women who are not breastfeeding at the time of conception.
One reason is that mixing breastmilk and formula can result in breastmilk being wasted, if the baby does not finish the milk (since the formula needs to be discarded). Giving your pumped milk to your baby first, and on its own, ensures that all of your “liquid gold” will be used and less will be wasted.
Remember, an empty breast produces more milk, so start with the low-producing breast when you nurse your baby and encourage him to empty it completely before moving the the more productive breast. The more you nurse with the low-producing breast, the more milk it will produce.
Your healthcare provider would likely recommend that you continue to pump until your baby is able to breastfeed effectively and once you have a sufficient milk supply. Once this has happened, they will likely advise you to stop pumping and just breastfeed - and, of course, get plenty of rest in between.