The World Health Organization and other groups recommend breastfeeding exclusively for a baby’s first six months and continued breastfeeding with other food for 12 to 24 months (or however long the mother and baby wish to continue). According to a study published in Pediatrics, the most common reason mothers stop breastfeeding is the concern that their babies are not consuming enough.
Momsense, Inc.‘s Momsense Smart Breastfeeding Meter presents moms with an easy to understand solution for their concern with real-time data on their baby’s milk intake. Momsense works by recording and analyzing baby swallows with signal and pattern recognition algorithms. The Momsense system includes a smartphone app and an earset with an attached sensor. The mother uses the earbuds and the sensor is applied with a soft hypoallergenic 3M sticker just below the baby’s earlobe in alignment with the top of the ear. The mother can listen to the sound of her baby swallowing while the app tabulates the amount of milk the baby has actually consumed. In addition, the app maintains a recording of each breastfeeding session.
Momsense is an example of health tech that answers a real world concern. The relatively simple algorithm application can answer questions and quell the frustration of many moms who wish to breastfeed their babies but just aren’t sure the infants are receiving enough nourishment.
