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Your Choice Midwives

Feeding your Baby

Every woman's journey to motherhood is different, but one of the first decisions every new mother makes is how to feed her child.

The foundations for a healthy life are laid down in pregnancy, infancy, and childhood. There is plenty of evidence that breastfeeding contributes positively to infant and maternal health, as well as the social wellbeing of the baby, mother, family, and community.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) and New Zealand Ministry of Health recommend that a baby be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life to achieve optimal growth, development, and health. Thereafter infants and young children should receive nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods while breastfeeding continues for up to two years of life and beyond.

Breastmilk contains antibodies which nurture and protect the developing gut and help your baby to fight infection. Breastfeeding supports the physiological, psychological, and social needs of babies and young children.

Antenatal breastfeeding education is available from several different providers. Check with your LMC midwife to discover what is available in your area.

Your LMC midwife will be able to support you in your baby feeding decisions. You may find these apps useful; both are free to download.

Mama Aroha App

Yourchoice mid Wives

Mama Aroha Breastfeeding Principles and Information App, in collaboration with NZBA and Hāpai Te Hauora, includes the key principles to breastfeeding. This toolkit is designed to be visual and informative making it an easy to follow tool while learning the art of breastfeeding. This version provides health professionals, mothers and whānau with the most essential information and principles to better understand breastfeeding. They say a picture paints a thousand words, so you will find the images do all the talking. Download free to you phone through App Store or Google Play

BreastfedNZ App

Yourchoice mid Wives

Nau mai Welcome to the BreastfedNZ App! This resource is grounded in both experience and evidence, with content thoughtfully curated by our team of qualified and compassionate breastfeeding specialists and lactation consultants. Our primary audience is the breastfeeding whānau families based in Aotearoa New Zealand. What sets this app apart is its content and guidance has been informed by the personal stories of the whānau families we serve. Thank you to all those whānau and friends whose generosity contributed the richness of this platform. We wish to also acknowledge the tangata whenua indigenous peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Other Resources

Canterbury Breastfeeding Advocacy Services


Lactation Consultants / Breastfeeding Peer Counsellors


Rotary Community Breastmilk Bank

The Gift of Liquid Gold

Human Milk for Human Babies

mother to mother informal milk sharing Facebook page

Private Lactation Consultant

Catherine Rietveld, IBCLC

rietveld560@gmail.com     0272286747