Preterm babies may not be able to feed from the breast or a bottle for a period of time. If they are mildly preterm and have a weak suck reflex, then it may be just a matter of the baby having milk through a 'nasogastric' tube for a few days, or a week or more. This is a fine, flexible tube placed through the baby's nose or mouth and fed down into their stomach.
If the baby is very preterm, or unwell, they may not be able to tolerate any milk and will need to gain their nourishment and hydration through a drip in their vein. Once they adjust and are able to breathe on their own, they will gradually be weaned onto milk feeds through a nasogastric tube. Eventually they will be able to have the occasional breast or bottle feed until they are strong enough to suck and have every feed this way. This can take many weeks and they will usually only be fully breast or bottle feed in the last few days before going home.
In the meantime, if you are breastfeeding, the staff will assist you to express your
colostrum and breast milk for when the baby is ready to have milk feeds. The expressed milk can be frozen (this is possible for up to 2 months), and it is important to establish your milk supply so that it can continue until your baby is ready to partially, or fully breastfeed. This can be difficult to keep up and stay motivated with over a long period of time, but for women who persevere, they are usually pleased they did. You may wish to read
expressing and storing breast milk.
Providing breast milk may also make the woman feel she is positively contributing to the care and recovery of her baby. Preterm babies who have breast milk (rather than formula) are also less likely to develop health complications. You may wish to read more in
Class C choosing how to feed your baby, or
breastfeeding or
bottle feeding.