Did you know that breastfeeding might be the most affective from of pain relief during minor procedures like the heal prick test and injections? A new systematic review that came out in 2023 found that overall breastfeeding seemed to be more effective in reducing pain in newborns compared to other methods (ie giving baby glucose, swaddling, rocking, skin to skin, bottle feeding). The pain response of newborns was measured by factors such as duration of crying and increases in heart rate. As you can imagine … the review concluded that breastfeeding is an effective form of pain relief… so if your bab is about to have a vaccination get them on your boob! Paper: Breastfeeding or breast milk for procedural pain in neonates, 2023.