Here are a few additional suggestions specifically for women physicians with infants who need to travel for work. Your baby can travel within the US for free on airplanes as an unticketed “lap child” until the age of two. International lap children must pay 10% of the adult fare. Pack one diaper per hour of planned travel and several changes of clothes in your carry on bag and you should be safe.

If you take your infant to a conference, then you won’t have to transport your breast pump through airport security! If you decide not to bring your infant and you are breastfeeding, then you may want to use a battery-operated travel pump. As of 2008, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) have very specific rules for transporting breast milk, the details of which can be reviewed at http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/children/formula.shtm. TSA has recently modified the rules associated with carrying breast milk through security checkpoints. Mothers flying with, and now without, their child will be permitted to bring breast milk in quantities greater than three ounces as long as it is declared for inspection at the security checkpoint. If you are traveling by car, most electric breast pumps also come with car battery adapters.