Cost of breastfeeding - Page 2

[Lisa85]

Originally Posted by Bluegoat

I don't think I'd include a pump in the cost of breastfeeding though, in most cases; it would be a cost of going back to work.

Plenty of women don't return to work, or even plan to and still buy pumps for *gasp* a dinner out or some such.

Total supplies for me was 5 bras/tanks, freezer bags, bottles, a $200 pump, 4 nipple shields, nursing pads, lansinoh, fenugreek, oral and cream nystatin, probiotics and several visits from a lactation consultant. I also ate more food. Whether I needed it or not is debatable but I sure enjoyed the excuse

Plenty of times, breastfeeding is free, but plenty of times it costs more than formula, especially if you're un/under insured. Downplaying the cost isn't doing anything to help with lactivism.

[Megan73]

I think it's great to stress that BFing is cheap/free – especially during this recession! It's just nuts to me that the stats show that more affluent women tend to BF more when formula feeding is not just unhealthy but expensive.
Unfortunately, I've spent – literally – thousands on LCs, herbs, domperidone, hospital-grade pump and baby scale rentals and Lact-Aid supplies.
But breastfeeding my son until he wants to stop is priceless to me...

[limabean]

Huh, I never considered the cost of BFing. My Avent Isis pump was about $35, a box of Lansinoh bags, which has lasted forever because I hardly ever pump, was about $10, a few bottles were about $10, my nursing bras were about $60 total, and my lanolin was about $5. I can't think of any other BFing-related expenses for me -- I've always eaten a lot, so I'm not eating more now than I did before I was pregnant. So, for the 10 months I've BFed so far, the cost per day has been about ... 40 cents. Wow, that's right at their estimate! The thing is, doesn't the cost per day go down as you nurse longer (except for extra food)?

[isfa]

If you're not pumping, then I'm assuming you are at home with your kids, (which is great for you! I'm not saying it isn't wonderful that you do that), but then you have to think about the wages you give up in order to breastfeed. For me, working outside the home when DD can get free formula at daycare, formula feeding was definitely cheaper than the cost of the pump, pump parts, bottle systems, nursing bras, lactation support, nursing pads, extra food for me, tinctures to keep my supply up, etc.
I think the cost argument is persuasive for some, but it's disingenuous to say that it's free or that formula is so much more expensive because unless you're always with your baby and have great supply and no latch problems or anything else, it will have costs. And they can add up.

[ramama]

I always thought that BFing was free, but now I can see how there would be little expenses here and there. I think that for every woman that eats like a Hoover when BFing (me included) there's a woman who eats less, or no more than usual. For every woman who buys expensive nursing bras, there's a woman who wears her normal bras, or the cheap ones from Walmart. It's an average, I suppose, and like most averages, we'll never be able to figure it out!

[CEVmommy]

I know that the cost is a big reason for some people to choose to BF, but for me, it's not about the money anyway. I would breastfeed regardless of the cost. I do think that it is still significantly cheaper for me to BF though, for sure, but it's just like a little added bonus to me, not a motivator. I do work and pump, so I did buy a pump, but I will be able to use it for more than one child so it is very cost-effective. I also don't eat especially more when nursing that I've noticed, not more than when I'm pregnant for sure. I guess I'm not really trying to dispute the $0.39 per day figure, or say it's too high or low or compare it to formula, but more just questioning where that number even came from in the first place.

Re: the argument that if you nurse and stay home that you need to account for your lost wages. That seems to imply that the only reason you are staying home is specifically because you need to breastfeed, and that doesn't seem to me like the main factor in why most people choose to stay home. There are plenty of formula feeding moms who stay home too, for sure. And though I have heard of some daycares that supply formula for "free" (or included in tuition), none of the daycares that I have worked at or had my child in have done this. The argument doesn't hold water to me.

[pdxmomazon]

It costs me $1.60/day in Domperidone to be able to nurse. And that's not factoring in the first few hellish months of lactation consultants, herbs, and a new pump. And yes, it's worth it. But for some of us it's not free.

[StoriesInTheSoil]

I'm going to try and figure out my breastfeeding costs here, just for fun.

-Medela Harmony Hand Pump: FREE from WIC
-New Medela Swing Breast Pump: $30 (Purchased from LLL- it was a Silent Auction unsold item)
-Pump Bags: ~$15 so far? (I don't really pump much.)
-Born Free Bottles: FREE Gift Set from Baby Shower

Total Pump-related costs: $45

-Nursing Bra: FREE from WIC
-5 or 6 nursing tanks: ~$100
-Nursing Pads: maybe $50?
-Sleep Bra: $15

Total Clothing-related costs: $165

-The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding: $12
-LLL Membership: $40
-Lanolin: $5

Total Support/comfort costs: $57

Am I forgetting anything? I don't think I am so... TOTAL COST (to this point): $267

DS has been around for 228 days so far averaging out to be a cost of $1.17 per day. If I buy nothing else and he is breastfed for one year the cost will be $0.73 per day. If he is breastfed to my goal of at least two years and I renew my LLL membership ($40) bringing total cost to $307, the cost-per-day will work out to being about $0.42/day. Not as low as the article but still pretty dang cheap.

I realize that some people have more expenses and some people have next to none. I consider my spending to be fairly average, middle of the road.

While there are many reasons to breastfeed and ideally cost shouldn't figure into doing what's best for your baby, I don't think it is wrong to market cost as a benefit.

[Bluegoat]

Originally Posted by tinyactsofcharity

I'm going to try and figure out my breastfeeding costs here, just for fun.

-Medela Harmony Hand Pump: FREE from WIC
-New Medela Swing Breast Pump: $30 (Purchased from LLL- it was a Silent Auction unsold item)
-Pump Bags: ~$15 so far? (I don't really pump much.)
-Born Free Bottles: FREE Gift Set from Baby Shower

Total Pump-related costs: $45

-Nursing Bra: FREE from WIC
-5 or 6 nursing tanks: ~$100
-Nursing Pads: maybe $50?
-Sleep Bra: $15

Total Clothing-related costs: $165

-The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding: $12
-LLL Membership: $40
-Lanolin: $5

Total Support/comfort costs: $57

Am I forgetting anything? I don't think I am so... TOTAL COST (to this point): $267

DS has been around for 228 days so far averaging out to be a cost of $1.17 per day. If I buy nothing else and he is breastfed for one year the cost will be $0.73 per day. If he is breastfed to my goal of at least two years and I renew my LLL membership ($40) bringing total cost to $307, the cost-per-day will work out to being about $0.42/day. Not as low as the article but still pretty dang cheap.

I realize that some people have more expenses and some people have next to none. I consider my spending to be fairly average, middle of the road.

While there are many reasons to breastfeed and ideally cost shouldn't figure into doing what's best for your baby, I don't think it is wrong to market cost as a benefit.

Hmm, think I'll try this too.

$35 for cheap pump and a few bottles.
$ 5 lanolin
$5 ibuprofen

I got my nursing bras free, but I am going to have to get a new one soon.

So far I nursed #1 for 2 years and #2 for 16 months.

I think, as a really rough estimate, that comes to about 5 cents a day plus food. I do tend to be hungrier though, so I may come out to just about 35 cants a day.

[puddle]

What about the money breastfeeding saves on doctor visits, medicines, etc. by keeping babies healthier than they would be on artificial milks?

I guess that is really a cost of feeding with artificial milks rather than a saving with nursing though.

[2mama]

Probably extra calories, and possibly the cost of a pump and or other breastfeeding aids.