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Breastfeeding
sosoph
member
cost of breastfeeding
sosoph
member
What have been the real costs of breastfeeding for you? It's totally worth it, but it hasn't exactly been free in this house!
From our first: 1 pump, 3 nursing bras, 7 nursing tanks, and 4 bottles made the total around $500
For our second, my insurance covered a pump. I got 2 new bras. Our bottles are glass so I only had to replace the nipples. $50
For the record, the baby is still the cheapest mouth to feed in the house.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: cost of breastfeeding
Hmm. Pump $163 but a gift.
Two nursing bras at $40 each (I bought).
8 Avent bottles for $26. Gift.
Additional newborn nipples for $20.
Extra set of flanges $12.
Extra valves $10.
Lansinoh bags $40 or so (all gifted).
Earth Mama Angel Baby Nipple Butter $11. Gift from my sister! Best gift ever!
I never needed breast pads, etc. I've been beating the same 2 nursing bras to death. (Probably could have used 1-2 more!)
Total I spent: $122. Total $ gifted: $240. TOTAL: $362.
What am I forgetting?
With dd2, I got two more pumps. One was another medela covered 90 percent by insurance so I paid 20 bucks for it. Then I bought an evenflo pump for 60 to leave at work. Freezer bags have cost me around 50 so far. And nursing pads around 40.
New nursing bras from leading lady website only cost me around 20 per bra so maybe another 60.
So all in under 550? Anyway when dd1 was put on formula for colic it cost us ten to fifteen bucks a day. She only ate the premade expensive 10 dollar quarts of alimentum. She would go through at least one bottle and then some a day.
The only real cost we've incurred is replacement flanges, tubing and freezer bags. I figure I would have needed bras anyway and I got mine BOGO free and I have two (would love some new ones, but why?). The pump was 90% cover by insurance like PP so it was cheap. No breastpads, no lanolin cream (I gifted what I had to someone else).
BFing has been incredibly cheap for us.
no bottles here, not till 8 months and we only used two for when I worked. But as pp said that doesn't count really since you need them anyways.
Pump $200
Nursing bra 2 for 13$ at walmart and one 40$ from motherhood
nursing tanks 3 at 15$ each at target
breast pads maybe 40$ total
about $351.
Still compared to formula saved a ton...also no smelly poop diapers till 6 months when started solids..priceless. Plus this baby number two I can re-use a lot and it will be even cheaper
I certainly could be doing it cheaper, but for convience and sanity I have spent the following..(I won't count bottles since I would need anyway). Also, I have used my medical HSA for a lot of covered nursing supplies, including my doula who is a LC as well.
1) Medela Electric Pump = $280
2) Extra Flanges/collection bottles/valves = $40
2) Nursing Bras x4 = $60
3) Glamourmom Nursing Tanks = $100
4) Nursing Pads = $20
5) Lanolin for nipples = $20
6) My Brest Friend Nursing Pillow (absolute must for us the first 3-4months) = $45 (gift)
TOTAL : $565
I am guessing for a working mom or mom who also bottle feeds it is about a quarter to half the cost of formula, assuming you pay out of pocket for pump and counting bras etc? (I am large chested but skiny and spent 100 on the only two bras I could find that fit correctly) My friend who FF spends roughly 30 a week on formula and if you multiply that by 52 weeks assuming you stop at a little past a year given babies don?t take as much at first you are looking at just over 1,500 for formula.
I think it saves money. My pump (ameda PY) was a gift so I would say I spent @ 450$ out of pocket(Bottles-30$, Replacement parts- 50, Storage bags-100$, Deep freezer- 150$, Nipples cream-20$, Nursing bras and tanks 100$). That seems reasonable to me. My biggest expense was the deep freezer to store my stash in but DH and I will still use that once I stop BF.
I kept a list!
ALL ARE TAX FREE THANKS TO FSA FUND
Pump (on clearance ) freestyle= $156.00
Extra membranes/flanges= $60
Nipple cream/APNO= $80 (APNO is EXPENSIVE)
Handfree bra= $20
Nursing bras/tanks= $100
Nursing Cover= $15
Boppy and My Breast Friend= $45- one secondhand
Pads= $25
Extra freezer= $125
Extra Bottles for milk storage and bags =$30 and just ordered more for $15
Not counting any bottles to feed since I would need those anyway with formula
My husband bought me an IPad to use during nursing so i'm not sure that counts but it's been a LIFESAVER !
So about 675 or almost 1000 with the ipad
I spent a lot, I will admit.
I was gifted an expensive Medela pump, bought extra flanges, another set of connectors, lots of bottles for daycare, a few nursing tops, a few nursing bras, disposable breast pads, reusable breast pads, nursing covers.... I'm sure there was more.
But, the other thing to consider is what you save by having breastfed -
My period didn't return for 9 months, so I saved on sanitary supplies. I would have needed new bras whether nursing or not, because I was a different size than pre-preg and pregnancy. Clothes wouldn't have lasted as long because of formula stains, so I'd need new shirts after spitup instead of nursing tanks. I would have needed lots of bottles for daycare either way, so you can't count those costs.
So, to me the cost of feeding an infant came down to what formula would have been vs. pump+spare pump parts and a nursing cover, which totaled about $400. $300 of that was gifted to me.
This time around, I will be getting a new pump free from my health insurance, will only replace a few of the bottle nipples, and re-use the rest. Looking at $25-40 I think.
I spend like a drunken sailor though. So no surprises there.
Probably about $50 just for half a dozen nursing tanks.
I was given a hand pump in the hospital and bottles and a boppy as gifts.
With my first son I spent maybe $50 on a several nursing bras and only needed nursig pads for the first few months which cost maybe $30 total. I had a $40 pump that I rarely used.
Total maybe $120
With my second I reused the pump and the bras. I probably spent $20-$30 on nursing pads and that's it.
It didn't cost me very much.
EDIT I saved a huge amount compared to what I would have spent on bottles. My kids never used bottles at all. But, saving money had nothing to do with breastfeeding.
EDIT I never added up the months before, it certainly sound like a long time although at the time it went so quickly. I nursed each of my sons for about 2 years. (just over 2 but it's easier to say 2)
Nor is it on mine, but before being pregnant I hadn't thought much of the logistics and what it would take to work and bf. All I ever heard was that nursing is free, which it wasn't for me. Sounds like it is close to that for some SAHM.
It was very high on my list. But, we don't make a lot of money. I don't know what we would have done if BFing didn't work out.
I've never even tried to compile the cost... I guess I don't care. I mean, I do, but really I never wanted to formula feed and I can afford to do BFing my way, so I did. DD has a milk protein allergy and her formula would have cost a fortune, so I am glad I could go dairy free and EBF. I work a demanding (long hours) FT job, and so I have a lot of "gear." I love BFing. I can't even begin to put a "price" on how much I have gotten out of doing this on a personal level. I never thought I would feel that way. Every time DD seems like she's going to drop a feeding, I get nervous because I know we will wean at some point (maybe soon?) and I think I will have a much harder time with it than she will!
--Pump (PISA) was a gift, so free.
--Pump parts (extra set, new tubes, membranes) Probably $50 over time.
--A TON (like 20+) of bottles (Medela for pumping & storage and Dr. Browns for feeding, which I HATE.) Probably $100 over time.
--Nursing bras (6) and tanks (6 or 7) and shirts (3) mostly from Target. Probably $200
--Hand pump $35
--Car adaptor for pump $10?
--2 rounds of diflucan and 2 jars of APNO for wicked thrush: $140
--A boat load of freezer bags (probably 1500 oz frozen over time): $100??
--Visit with an amazing LC $150
Pump (PISA) = $220
Pump (Harmony)= $36
5 nursing bras $18 each = $90
extra parts for pump = $24
Pump wipes = $8
Stam bags = $10
bottles for daycare (ill count them but I would have had to buy them anyway if we FF) 12 at $22 for 3 = $88
bottle warmer (DH couldn't live without it)= $24
Lansinoh bags = $40
I guess that is a lot, $540 and he is now 15 weeks old, so at this point breastfeeding has cost $36 a week. The good news is that is keeps going down every week because all of the costs are up front.
BFP#1 10 wk missed mc
BFP#2 DS born at 40+2 on 8/14/12 BFP#3 DD Born at 39+3 on 5/13/14
Most of these are rough estimates...
PISA: $0 (gift)
Nursing bras: $150
Freezer bags: $30
Bottles: $50 (it took a while to find the one LO liked)
Avent manual pump: $35
Boppy: $0 (gift)
Lanolin & breast shells: $0 (gift)
Breast pads: $30 (mix of disposable and washable)
Total: I'll round it up to $300 -- not too shabby.
DD 8/28/2014
DD 5/24/2016, stillborn at 40 weeks
I got my breastpump for free so I won't count that. I also don't need to pump (SAHM) but I like to donate so I pump once a day.
Nursing bras: $50
Nursing pads: $10
Milk saver: $25
Freezer bags: $50
Bottles (one or two): $5
So about $140.
Manual pump: $25
Bottles: $15-20ish
Nursing bra: $0 (I never changed size, so I took an old bra and made it a nursing bra)
Nursing tanks: $40 (that's 2 Glamourmom tanks from ebay and 6 Forever 21 tanks that I converted into diy Undercovermamas and Glamourmoms)
Nipple butter: $12
Nipple pads: $15-20ish
Total cost: $120ish
Edit: Just wanted to clarify that as a SAHM, the majority of this list is a bunch of wants. I could easily make do with just the nipple pads and nipple butter. I just wanted the other things for further comfort and/or convenience.
Pump: $300 (which was a gift)
Extra pump parts: $25
Pump wipes and freezer bags: $100
4 nursing tanks: $50
Total: around $500
Cost of 1 year of formula: $1200'ish
yes- this is me also
You're not alone. With DD I had to eat 6 to 7 times a day to just to stop losing weight. ( I was below average for my height. Had to buy all new clothes.) I probably should have eaten more/bigger meals to produce more but I just got so sick of eating.
Oh. Well, if we're factoring in food costs here, then yeah...I'm ridiculously hungry all.the.time.