A breastfeeding bracelet is a bracelet that has been primarily designed to help mothers keep track of when they have breastfed their babies. However, these bracelets can be used in a multitude of ways regarding the care of a baby. They can even be applied to a mother's personal life to help remind her of medication times, appointments and nutritional needs.
Breastfeeding bracelets are created from simple materials. Many are made out of colored glass beads, beads with numbers on them and charms. The numbered beads correspond with hours in the day, and each glass bead is meant to stand for a 15-minute increment. The charms can be moved to serve as marker for when breastfeeding takes place.
In many ways, breastfeeding bracelets are constructed with mothers in mind. For example, these bracelets simply wrap around the wrist and do not require two hands to attach them to a wrist. Similarly, charms can be moved around the bracelet using only one hand. Their ease of use can also allow mothers to switch the bracelet from one wrist to the other as a way to remind them of which breast they've had their babies feed from. Memory wire in the bracelet lets the bracelet easily conform to the wrist of its wearer and keeps it in place without the need for clasps or other complex closures.
A breastfeeding bracelet has a number of uses when used in conjunction with an infant's feeding schedule. Breastfeeding bracelets can help mothers keep track of the last time their babies ate, how many times they've fed, the number of diaper changes they've had or, if the mother is pumping breast milk, when the mother has last pumped. A breastfeeding bracelet can even monitor a baby's sleeping and nap schedules. For older babies, it can be used to remind mothers of food type intake. Expectant mothers can use a breastfeeding bracelet to time kicks during the third trimester of pregnancy or count down the arrival of a new baby.
Hypothetically, a breastfeeding bracelet can be used as a way to monitor many other events not related to infants. For example, individuals can use a breastfeeding bracelet to remind themselves of when they've taken medications or how many glasses of water they've had throughout the day. They also can be used to remind wearers of appointments. The uses for a breastfeeding bracelet are countless and are limited only by the needs of its owner.
