Everything you need to harvest colostrum with confidence

It is easier to store and defrost small amounts of colostrum in syringes, but you can store or freeze your colostrum in any suitable sterilised container, especially if you are collecting larger quantities.

Learning how to harvest colostrum will be a process you become more proficient at the more it is practised. Your breasts will also start to make more colostrum the more they are stimulated and it is harvested. So, in theory, the more colostrum harvesting is practised the more colostrum is made and should be available to collect if it is practised regularly.

Women should not think they cannot breastfeed if they try to harvest colostrum and are unable to, it can be a different experience for everyone.

As colostrum harvesting produces oxytocin, which is the hormone that produces contractions in labour, in theory, it could be thought to induce the onset of labour.

However, it is generally not thought that colostrum harvesting alone would start labour, as having sex and breastfeeding another child during pregnancy also release oxytocin into the body and are considered safe throughout pregnancy, if all is progressing normally.

The reason for this is probably because labour also needs a fine balance of other hormones and triggers in place, rather than just oxytocin, for it to start naturally.