Breastfeeding can be a beautiful experience, but there’s no denying the unique toll it takes on moms’ sleep and stress levels. Most nursing moms have had the experience of being awake breastfeeding at 2:30 in the morning and looking over scornfully at their snoozing partner.
It can be difficult to leave the baby with dad, grandparents or another caregiver if they refuse to take a bottle. Luckily, tech companies are on the case. Here’s a look at a wearable dad breastfeeding device (and a few other ideas) that could help make infant care more equitable.
What is the Father’s Nursing Assistant?
The Father’s Nursing Assistant is a breastfeeding device invented by Japanese tech company Dentsu. It was originally unveiled at the 2019 South by Southwest Festival in Austin, Texas. The wearable feeding machine is designed to resemble breasts, and it comes complete with a large tank for storing breast milk or formula and a flexible plastic nipple. It can also track a baby’s nursing intake and send the data to a linked smartphone app.
During its initial unveiling, the nursing assistant made a big splash on social media. In the comments on a viral video about the product, dozens of parents chimed in to express everything from excitement to confusion and dismay.
“OMG…I would seriously divorce my husband for wearing this,” one commenter wrote. Another added, “I’ll say it… fathers are not supposed to form this bond.”
But many others pointed out that this device actually has the potential to truly benefit not only breastfeeding moms, but also solo dads and mothers who have undergone mastectomies or other medical treatments that make breastfeeding difficult or impossible.
Why do we need a male breastfeeding device?
In a press release, the device’s creator, Osamu Takahashi, says the main goal of the product is to allow dads to be more involved in carrying out child care duties.
“My older sister has a baby, and while I was spending time with her family, I noticed that when her child started crying, she was usually able to soothe and put her baby to sleep,” Takahashi explains. “Almost as soon as my sister started breastfeeding, the baby stopped crying and, before I knew it, fell asleep. It was wondrous to watch, and I thought it would be fantastic if a father could do the same thing.”
A study published in 2019 in the journal Sleep showed that, on average, new mothers lose about an hour of sleep per night during the first three months postpartum. Meanwhile, fathers lose sleep too, but only an average of about 13 minutes per night.
The burden of infant care disproportionately falls on moms, and when a mom is also breastfeeding, it can seem like there’s no way to truly achieve balance. Many breastfed babies also struggle to take bottles, and there aren’t viable alternatives. A male breastfeeding device might be a way to even out the workload and reward dads with a new and unique opportunity to care for and comfort their kids.
Are there other breastfeeding devices for fathers?
It’s also worth noting that this isn’t the first proposed breastfeeding device for men. In 2018, Marie-Claire Springham, a college student in the UK, won the grand prize in the Meaning-Centred Design Awards for her Will and Way “chestfeeding” kit. The kit actually requires men to take the hormones progestin and domperidone to stimulate their own milk production.
While neither the Father’s Nursing Assistant or the Will and Way kit have been widely produced, infant product company Medela currently sells a supplemental nursing kit intended to help both mothers and fathers feed breastmilk to babies. Additionally, there are dozens of bottles on the market intended to help men, grandparents and other caregivers have an easier time with getting involved in feeding.
A breastfeeding device for fathers may not be commonplace yet, but we have to give props to the innovators who are working hard to make parenting better and more equal for everyone.
