Momsense measures the amount of breastmilk consumed by babies in real time, giving mothers the confidence to feed their newborns naturally.
Happy World Breastfeeding Week!
This week, governments, NGOs and health organisations come together to raise awareness and encourage mothers around the world to breastfeed their babies. The health benefits of breastmilk are numerous. To name just a few, it provides the infant with essential nutrients, energy, protection against diseases such as diarrhea and promotes optimal mental development. It even reduces the mother’s risk of breast cancer. Another aspect of breastfeeding that is rarely mentioned is its eco-friendliness: maternal milk is renewable and comes without packaging or transportation.
Nonetheless, not all babies get the opportunity to consume maternal milk. Of course, there are plenty of valid reasons not to breastfeed, such as severe infectious illnesses. But there is also a lot of misinformation. According to a recent study, half of mothers who stopped breastfeeding mentioned concerns that the baby was not getting enough milk as a reason.
An Israeli startup decided to solve this problem by creating a smart breastfeeding metre called Momsense. The innovative tool looks like regular headphones, except that it has a third ‘earbud’ which must be attached under the baby’s ear. This additional ‘earbud’ is in fact a sensor which tracks the sounds made by the infant as it swallows milk. The Momsense app then calculates the amount of breastmilk consumed based on the swallow sounds.
© Momsense Momsense developed a cutting edge patent technology and sensor that fundamentally detects and analyzes BF sessions in real time applying signal and pattern recognition tools. The application viewed by users is backed up with a complex algorithm that analyzes the effective swallow sounds, by identifying unique audio signals,such as individualized baby swallow sounds, and in turn translates them into quantities of milk consumed. The technology can report in real time infant swallow sounds, and differentiate between other infant non-swallow sounds.
– Momsense
In addition to measuring how much milk the baby is consuming in real time, Momsense generates detailed nursing reports, allowing the mother to keep track of her infant’s feeding habits over time. She can also listen to the sounds her baby makes while it is nursing thanks to the headphones.
Momsense is a groundbreaking tool which is being praised for promoting breastfeeding. It recently won the 2016 Gold Mom’s Choice Award. The device can be purchased online and in large retail chains such as Target and Babies R US. It currently sells for 89 US Dollars apiece.
