Turning worry into innovation: new breastfeeding tech gives parents peace of mind

For many new mums, breastfeeding brings more questions than answers - especially around milk supply and whether baby is getting enough.

For Dr Faezeh Marzbanrad - head of the Biomedical Signal Processing Research Lab with the Department of ECSE Monash University and first-time mum - that uncertainty became the inspiration for Infafeed: a breakthrough device that uses AI to instantly measure how much milk a baby drinks during breastfeeding.

“My baby wasn’t putting on enough weight, which was a stressful and difficult experience as an overwhelmed new mum,” Dr Marzbanrad tells The Australian. “I also found that this was a common experience for other women in my mother’s group. So, I developed a device to solve this problem, and many mums I know are now waiting for it and willing to pay for it.”

Infafeed uses a small, non-invasive sensor placed on a baby’s neck to measure milk intake in real time. In a recent pilot study of 24 newborns, it demonstrated accurate tracking of feeding, offering a game-changing tool for both parents and health professionals.

Co-developed with Associate Professor Atul Malhotra from the Monash Department of Paediatrics^* and Monash Children’s Hospital, the technology has potential to support exclusive breastfeeding; reduce unnecessary formula use; and identify feeding issues early, particularly for premature and low birth weight infants.

Still in development, Infafeed is already attracting strong interest from both families and clinicians looking for better ways to support infant health.

Read about Dr Marzbanrad’s research here DOI:10.5005/jp-journals-11002-0121.

Read Fae’s exclusive article in The Australian here.

^* The Department of Paediatrics is a department within the School of Clinical Sciences at Monash Health