A growing number of med tech startups are entering the breast pump market, redesigning the device to improve comfort and convenience for women who breast-feed, according to ABC13.
Here are four companies creating new breastfeeding devices:
1. A startup called Mighty Mom, based in Morrow, Ga., created the Hush-a-Pump, a device that reduces the noise of pumping by almost 50 percent. The quieter pumping mechanism, still in prototype phase, offers women the convenience to pump while their babies sleep or during phone calls.
2. Freemie is a new company based in El Dorado Hills, Calif. When founder Stella Dao, MD, returned to work as an ER physician after giving birth to premature twins, she struggled to find the time and place to pump. As a result, Dr. Dao was inspired to develop concealable cups that are placed inside the bra and work in conjunction with a compatible pump to collect milk. The device, already on the market, allows women to pump hands free while keeping their shirts on.
3. Burlington, Vt.-based Mamava provides women with a comfortable space to pump wile working in non-office settings or traveling with the creation of their lactation suites. The suites, which are private pods for women to nurse or pump in, are already installed in various airports, colleges, hospitals and malls across the country.
4. Naya Health, a husband-and-wife startup based in Redwood City, Calif., has submitted a new device for approval from the Food and Drug Administration that uses hydraulics, rather than air-based suction, to pump milk. The Naya Health Pump also uses soft silicone instead of plastic to surround the nipple. The company has already raised $3.9 million in venture capital funding and hopes to launch the pump later this year.
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