Colostrum Harvesting Before Birth: Do You Actually Need to Do It?

If you're pregnant and your social media algorithm knows it, there is a good chance you've seen the little syringes.

Freezers full of golden colostrum. Videos of women hand expressing at 37 weeks. Birth bags carefully packed with frozen syringes in cooler bags.

And somewhere along the way, colostrum harvesting has started to feel like another item on the pregnancy checklist.

Wash the baby clothes. Pack the hospital bag. Install the car seat. Harvest your colostrum.

But do you actually need to?

The short answer is no.

Antenatal colostrum harvesting can be incredibly useful in certain situations. It can give you a little supply of your own milk to use if your baby needs supplementation after birth, and learning to hand express before your baby arrives can be a valuable breastfeeding skill.

But not collecting colostrum during pregnancy does not mean you are unprepared for breastfeeding. And getting only a drop—or nothing at all—does not tell you what your milk supply will be like once your baby is here.

Let's talk about what colostrum harvesting actually is, who may benefit from it, when it is generally considered safe, and why I don't think every pregnant woman needs to feel pressured to add it to her third-trimester to-do list.

What Is Colostrum?

Colostrum is the first milk your breasts produce.

Your body actually begins producing it during pregnancy, long before your baby is born. It is usually thicker than mature breast milk and can range from clear or white to yellow or deep gold.

And although there isn't much of it, that is completely intentional.

A newborn does not need bottles full of milk in the first hours after birth. Colostrum is produced in very small amounts and is incredibly concentrated.

It contains protein, nutrients and antibodies while being easy for a newborn to digest. In those first few days, we are generally talking about colostrum in drops and teaspoons—not ounces.

That is one reason hand expression tends to work better than using a breast pump at this stage. When you are collecting tiny sticky drops of colostrum, those drops can easily get lost inside the pump and tubing rather than making it into a container.

What Is Colostrum Harvesting?

Colostrum harvesting—also called antenatal hand expression or antenatal milk expression—simply means expressing some of your colostrum by hand toward the end of pregnancy and saving it for your baby after birth.

Typically, the colostrum is collected into small sterile syringes, labelled and frozen.

If you give birth in hospital, you can usually bring a small amount of your frozen colostrum with you in a cooler with ice packs, following your hospital's instructions for storage and transport.

Here in Toronto, Mount Sinai describes antenatal hand expression as something generally done in the final weeks of pregnancy, typically after 37 weeks.

Other maternity guidelines commonly begin around 36–37 weeks.

This is something I would discuss with your midwife, obstetrician or primary maternity-care provider before starting rather than choosing a gestational age based solely on what someone online was doing.

Why Would You Collect Colostrum Before Birth?

The biggest benefit is actually quite simple:

If your baby needs extra milk after birth, you may already have some of your own colostrum available.

Most babies will go directly to the breast and won't need a syringe stash waiting for them.

But there are situations where we can reasonably anticipate that a baby may be more likely to need supplementation or may have difficulty feeding effectively right away.

Antenatal colostrum can be particularly helpful when:

• You have gestational or pre-existing diabetes

• Your baby may be at increased risk of low blood sugar after birth

• Your baby is known to be small or growth restricted

• You are expecting twins or multiples

• Your baby has a condition such as cleft lip or palate that may affect feeding

• You know your baby is likely to require neonatal care

• There is concern about delayed milk production

• You have previously experienced significant breastfeeding or milk-supply difficulties

One of the best studied groups is women with diabetes in pregnancy.

The DAME randomized controlled trial studied pregnant women with pre-existing or gestational diabetes who were otherwise considered low risk. Those advised to hand express from 36 weeks did not have an increased rate of NICU admission or earlier birth compared with those receiving standard care.

This makes sense as an area of particular interest because babies born to mothers with diabetes are more likely to require monitoring for neonatal hypoglycemia.

Having a few syringes of colostrum available can sometimes mean that when additional milk is needed, your own expressed milk is available first.

But Do You Need to Harvest Colostrum if You Have a Normal, Low-Risk Pregnancy?

No.

And I think this part is becoming lost online.

Colostrum harvesting is a tool.

It isn't a requirement.

If you're 38 weeks pregnant and seeing someone online with 30 perfectly labelled syringes in her freezer while you've collected absolutely nothing, you have not failed some secret breastfeeding preparation test.

You don't even have to try antenatal expression at all.

Your body is not supposed to be producing large volumes of milk during pregnancy.

The major hormonal shift that happens after your placenta is delivered is part of what signals your body to transition toward larger-volume milk production.

So what happens at 37 weeks pregnant and what happens after your baby is born are not the same physiological situation.

“I Tried Expressing and Nothing Came Out. Does That Mean I Won't Make Enough Milk?”

Absolutely not.

This may be the most important takeaway from this entire article.

Some women can easily express several millilitres of colostrum before birth.

Some get a few tiny beads.

Some leak colostrum spontaneously during pregnancy without touching their breasts at all.

Others see absolutely nothing.

None of those scenarios, on their own, can tell you whether you will have an adequate milk supply after birth.

Even hospital breastfeeding guidance reminds parents that obtaining only tiny amounts during early hand expression is normal and should not be interpreted as evidence of low milk production.

Pregnancy is already filled with opportunities to wonder whether your body is “doing things properly.”

This doesn't need to become another one.

Does Colostrum Harvesting Increase Your Milk Supply?

This is where social media tends to move a little faster than the research.

There is some promising evidence.

A Canadian study published in 2026 looked at an obstetrical practice in Saskatchewan that introduced antenatal colostrum-expression education during 36-week appointments. Women who received the education had greater odds of fully breastfeeding by their first postpartum check-up.

That's interesting.

But it was a retrospective study rather than a randomized controlled trial, so we cannot simply say that antenatal expression caused those women to have better breastfeeding outcomes.

A small randomized trial published in 2025 also found that women who expressed during pregnancy were able to have stored milk available at birth, but it did not find a significant difference in breastfeeding outcomes through eight weeks.

So I would not tell a pregnant woman:

“Harvest colostrum now so you'll have a good milk supply.”

I would tell her:

“Learning hand expression before birth may help you feel more comfortable with the skill, and having colostrum stored can be useful if your baby needs it. But breastfeeding success depends on much more than whether you expressed colostrum during pregnancy.”

That is a much more accurate, and much less stressful way to look at it.

Learning to Hand Express May Be More Valuable Than Filling the Syringe

This is one of the reasons I actually like introducing hand expression during pregnancy.

Not because I think everybody needs a freezer stash.

Because hand expression is an incredibly useful postpartum skill.

After your baby is born, it can help when:

• Your baby is sleepy and reluctant to latch

• You and your baby are temporarily separated

• You want to give your baby additional colostrum after breastfeeding

• Your breasts become very full and your baby is struggling to latch

• You need to stimulate milk production

• Your baby requires supplementation

• You don't have immediate access to a breast pump

And learning the movement while you are pregnant, when you're rested and there isn't a hungry newborn crying beside you, is very different from trying to learn it for the first time at 3 a.m.

Even if you collect only a drop, practising the skill itself can still be worthwhile.

When Can You Start Harvesting Colostrum?

Most guidance recommends waiting until late pregnancy—commonly around 36 to 37 weeks—and confirming with your maternity-care provider that it is appropriate for your pregnancy.

Hand expression releases oxytocin.

Oxytocin is involved in milk ejection, but it is also the hormone responsible for uterine contractions.

Research in appropriately selected low-risk pregnancies has been reassuring. The DAME trial found no evidence of harm when low-risk women with diabetes began expressing at 36 weeks, and a smaller 2025 randomized trial even studied healthy first-time mothers expressing from 34 weeks without finding earlier birth.

That does not, however, mean everyone should start expressing at 34 weeks.

Clinical recommendations remain more conservative, and your individual pregnancy matters.

Who Should Talk to Their Provider Before Trying It?

Really, I think everyone should mention it to their provider before starting.

But it is particularly important when there is already concern about premature labour or another pregnancy complication.

Some maternity services specifically advise against antenatal expression in situations such as:

• A history or increased risk of premature labour

• A short cervix

• A cervical cerclage

• Vaginal bleeding during pregnancy

• A low-lying placenta

• Certain higher-risk multiple pregnancies

Recommendations can vary depending on your exact situation, so this isn't an exhaustive “safe/not safe” checklist.

If expressing causes cramping or regular contractions, stop and contact your maternity-care provider for advice.

How Do You Hand Express Colostrum?

Once you've been cleared to begin, you don't need anything complicated.

Wash your hands and get comfortable somewhere warm and relaxed.

Gently massage your breast first.

Then place your thumb and fingers in a C shape a few centimetres behind the nipple.

Rather than pulling or sliding your fingers toward your nipple, press slightly backward toward your chest wall and gently compress the breast tissue between your fingers.

Release.

Compress again.

And repeat.

You may need to move your fingers slightly until you find the area that works best.

At first you may see nothing.

Then you might notice a tiny shiny bead of colostrum appear on your nipple.

That counts.

Seriously.

You can collect those drops directly into a sterile syringe or clean collection container according to the instructions you've been given.

Should You Use a Breast Pump to Harvest Colostrum?

Generally, hand expression is preferred during pregnancy.

There are two reasons.

First, colostrum is produced in such tiny volumes that hand expression makes it much easier to capture individual drops.

Second, antenatal-expression protocols and the research we have are largely based on hand expression, not sitting down with an electric pump.

Save the pump for postpartum unless your maternity or lactation provider has specifically given you different instructions.

What If You're Having a Scheduled C-Section?

This can actually be a situation where some families feel especially reassured having antenatal colostrum stored.

Having a C-section does not automatically mean your baby will need supplementation or that breastfeeding will be difficult.

Many babies latch beautifully in the operating room, recovery room or shortly afterward.

But sometimes there may be temporary separation, maternal nausea or sedation, neonatal blood-sugar monitoring, a baby who is sleepy after birth, or simply a delay before breastfeeding gets established comfortably.

Having your own colostrum available gives you another option.

That does not mean you need a freezer full.

Even a few small syringes may be useful because newborn colostrum feeds are naturally small.

Don't Let Colostrum Harvesting Become Another Pregnancy Competition

I genuinely like antenatal hand expression.

I teach hand expression. I think it is a valuable skill. And in certain pregnancies, I absolutely see the advantage of having colostrum stored before birth.

What I don't like is women feeling as though they are already behind before their baby has even been born.

Pregnancy social media can turn optional preparation into an expectation incredibly quickly.

One person freezes 2 mL.

Someone else freezes 20 mL.

Then someone posts a freezer drawer containing 50 syringes and suddenly a pregnant woman who couldn't express a single drop is wondering whether something is wrong with her body.

There isn't.

You can breastfeed successfully without ever expressing a drop prenatally.

You can collect an impressive amount of antenatal colostrum and still encounter breastfeeding challenges.

And you can struggle to hand express anything at 37 weeks and go on to produce exactly the milk your baby needs.

Colostrum harvesting is an option—not a measure of how prepared your body is for motherhood.

If it makes sense for your pregnancy, learn the skill, collect what comes easily, put it in the freezer and consider it a useful little bonus to bring with you to birth.

And if you collect three drops?

Those three drops are valuable too.

If you collect nothing?

Your body hasn't failed.

Your baby hasn't even arrived yet.

Preparing for the First Days After Birth

The first few days with a newborn involve so much more than feeding.

Knowing what is normal—from bleeding and uterine cramping to newborn feeding patterns, milk changes, sleep and postpartum recovery—can make the transition home feel much less overwhelming.

My free Fourth Trimester Postpartum Guidewalks you through what to expect from the first hours after birth through the weeks and months that follow, including breastfeeding, recovery and postpartum warning signs.

You can grab it completely free of charge today here!

Further Reading

For evidence-based information on antenatal hand expression, useful resources include Mount Sinai Hospital's infant-feeding guidance, the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine's maternity-care recommendations, Cambridge University Hospitals' antenatal hand-expression guidance, and the DAME randomized controlled trial on antenatal milk expression in pregnancies complicated by diabetes.