Advise on Increasing Milk Flow

Try pumping between feedings. Breastfeeding is a supply and demand thing, so if you feel like you're not producing enough, try increasing the demand.

Drink lots of water and eat more protein. Even instead of a snack, munch on some chicken. It works. Good luck and congratulations.

Hi M.,

I was reading other people's comments which I all agree with but please don't over drink water. My friend, who is very rational and intelligent woman, struggled with nursing her 1st boy. She actually messed up her body's fluid balance by drinking so much water and ended up having to go to the hosptial for the day.

If you've been nursing successfully so far don't fret. Make sure you drink an adequate supply of water, eat well, and try to rest. Have you checked in with your pediatrician? They would be able to tell you if they feel your son is not eating enough. I also think you should think if you have tried to change something in your routine that is thruing off your natural rythym?

Also if you've been nursing well don't go crazy with the pumping, you can really wear yourself out if you start over pumping.

If you want to increase your supply try this for 3 days- pump twice a day in addition to your feedings. You should pump for no more than 15 minutes after you nurse your baby. Pump both sides at the same time. You should see an increase in your supply. If doesn't increase I suggest you stop trying to pump to increase your supply as it might interfere with your supply more.

Also I never found the mother's milk tea to work, I found Fenugreek tea to be much better.

I also received very good advice when I was trying to nurse. Every woman's nursing experience is different, it is not a one size fits all type of activity. You have to find what works for you and your baby.

Good Luck!

sorry if this is a repeat, but check out kellymom.com for advice and info on bf'ing.

hth

As the other posters have said, it's all about supply and demand. Drink as much as you can and pump after every feeding, even if nothing comes out. Your body will begin producing more in response to the demand for more.

Good luck! It can be challenging but is amazingly rewarding and a wonderful gift to your child!

Eat oatmeal twice a day and get Fenugreek Capsules.

eat more garlic avoid parsley

Good advice so far. Sleeping with your baby is an age old way of increasing milk because they will nurse more at night. Get comfy sidelying and nurse away. Read Dr. Sears for how to co-sleep safely.

Good luck.

I know it sounds crazy but a dark beer every night does wonders for my milk supply. It is commonly recommended to nursing mothers in Europe. It also helps me to relax which is an added bonus!
Good Luck.

I went to an acuputurist who told me to use sesami oil to sautee veggies and pour a little over meat to increase production. Hope this helps.

Lots and lots of water. You have to drink and drink until you are ready to burst. I am a successful breastfeeding mom (a little too successful my two year old won't quit)and I found that if I wasn't drinking at ALL times it affected my milk- Healthy juices and milk are good too but watch the calorie intake by just drinking lots of water- Your body will respond. Also if your child is in day care try pumping when you are not with her just to push your production.

Drink Healthy nursing tea. It helped me a lot when I was low on breast milk produciton.

Nurse her more or pump if she's not hungry. The more milk you remove from your breast, the more you will produce. And water, of course. But... why do you think you are producing less milk? your daughter might just need less milk so your breasts respond correspondingly. if she started solids, she will nurse less and it's fine. Milk goes up and down in production in response to the demand :-)

Hi M., as far as increasing your milk flow, the first thing I will say is that if you are stressing out about anything, that will effect your milk. Also, the more you nurse, the more you'll make, so if you pump in between feedings, you'll see an increase as well. I've heard of the tea you're drinking, but have never tried it. Malt is very good for your milk too, it's supposed to make it richer, when my mom was nursing us, the Doc told her to have a beer everyday, but now you can go to the store and get malt and make yourself a malted. :) I also find that a lot of people who either haven't nursed before, or don't really have family that have nursed before, tend to focus on the "amount" of milk in "ounces" and they get concerned that baby isn't getting enough because they only nurse for a few minutes. As long as your daughter is wetting her diaper enough, and gaining weight, she's getting enough. My son was famous for nursing for 6 minutes.......and that was it. We said he was a "speed nurser", he had things to do & couldn't waste his valuable time so he made it quick. He was 9lbs at birth and he was 20lbs well before his 1st birthday.
Relax & enjoy nursing your daughter, this is such an amazing time & it goes so fast! Hope I helped, this is my favorite subject so I tend to go on and on! ;)

For me it was making sure I drank enough water during the day. I mean tons of water! (lol) I also let my daughter breast feed more to stimulate more milk production.

I found that stress decreased my milk supply drastically so watch your stress levels.

Good luck!

Blessings M.. I breast fed my son 25 years ago and it was the greatest thing I could do for him and wonderful memories for myself. There are a few things you can do...
1. Drink tons of water, not tap or use Brita or filter if you can - do not use DISTILLED WATER - too acidic.
2. Massage your breasts with pure Vitame E, pure CoCo butter or Pure Sweet Almond oil and think of your baby and it will bring "Milk Letdowns" which is great as more milk product, more milk flow and you don't want to get breast infections.
3. Make sure you clean you nipples before breast feeding. I hope you "toughened your nipples" before had baby by massaging your nipples with a towel, or do it now to keep the nipple "broke in" for the suckling. This also helps with stimulation and no breast infections and no cracks.
4. It got to the point where I would just think of my son and I would get milk letdowns. Make sure you switch breast so they are equally used
5. MOST OF ALL TAKE TIME WITH YOUR BABY AND ENJOY THAT TIME OF BONDING. As you know they grow quick. Myself I had my husband take a picture of us nursing and I keep it in my bible. I look at it now and then and remember that special time as Mom and Son and know God was gifting me to give him the MOST PRECIOUS DRINK HE COULD HAVE, ALONG WITH WATER PERIODICALLHY. BREAST MILK HELPS CHILDREN NOT HAVE ALLERGIES, SICKNESS, it prepares them for life and their Immune System.

I will keep you in prayer and let me know how it goes, and if you ever need to talk just email me, my name is K. and I am 51 years old.

Just to let you know, my son is in the AirForce and he was in the Middle East when he turned 25 and I 50, as I had him when I was 25. We had made a pact to go Sky Diving together to celebrate our 25 year marks, so this year when he gets out of AirForce in August we are going to do our belated birthday celebration together Sky Diving!!!! Never too old to share time with your son or daughgter in any special way. God Bless
K. - ____@____.com PS Hang in there, you can do it and it is so worth it.

Avoid herbs that could dry up your milk supply-- these would be most italian herbs like sage, oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, also peppermint. If you use a peppermint soap on your body stop. Avoiding these herbs where big for me when I was nursing an infant. They dry you right up. My midwife and I were wondering what italian women traditionally ate when nursing.

my sister breast feed my nieace and what she did was pump her breast after the baby feed. it make your body think the baby needs more milk and will produce more. 2nd thing she prayed for increase of milk.

your milk flow will start to decrease a bit around this time naturally, or at least mine did. Your best bet instead of mother's milk tea is to take fenugreek pills and blessed thistle (get doctors approval first). kellymom.com has the soercifics on how much is needed. encouraging your baby to nurse more and pumping between feedings wrks well too.

When I was having problems, my sister suggested pumping right after you nurse. It works.

I would just have your daughter feed more frequently. Breastfeeding is all about supply and demand. If you are not supplying enough, she will demand more frequently, therefore prompting your body to produce more milk. Just watch her weight and general disposition. If she continues to grow as expected and is not fussing, I would think you are producing what is needed.

Feed more often or pump right after feeding so that your body gets the message that more is needed.

im just wondering why you are worried? are you sure she is still hungry after. i was always under the impression when a baby needs to up it, they will start to nurse more until your body responds. are you sure you are "producing less" vs she is growing and needs more, kwim?
if she is growing and happy, i wouldnt worry, but if you really are, i would try is just to have her suck more often so she can stimulate. get her on as much as you can whether she is getting milk or not, and see if that makes a difference as your body should respond. before going any farther, i would contact a lactation specialist and discuss your concerns. you might be perfectly fine so speak to a professional before doing anything that might disrupt your current nursing. good luck!!!

Why do you think you're producing less milk? Are you getting enough calories and hydration? Also, is your daughter nursing at night, or less frequently lately?

Breast milk should be a supply and demand thing. Your baby's stimulation sends the signal for more breast milk. If your baby nurses more frequently, or for longer, it signals to your body to produce more.

When your babies appetite increases and/or they go through a growth spurt, they'll nurse more to increase your supply. It's not that you are producing less milk, it is that they need more.

if you want to make more milk try to pump immediatly after you nurse. it may trick your body to produce more. it may take a few days but if you do it every time it may work. it did for me!

you got good advice here, i wont repeat, just wanted to add that oatmeal with maple syrup (fake syrup - it has fenugreek in it) helped me a lot. drink a lot but dont go overboard. nurse and pump as much as you can, always pump after nursing, not before. and getting in a nursing or pumping session overnight will help a lot. eat drink and sleep well. take care, D.

When my milk decreased I was advised to add pumping into my schedule in addition to breast feeding. The increased demand on your body triggers your body to produce more milk. This really did the trick for me as well as really increasing fluids. I saved the milk I pumped off and let my husband bottle feed the baby with it.

Pump after nursing :)

Pump, Pump, Pump! Make sure your body feels as if your baby needs more milk. I had the same problem and I was so tired I didn't keep up with it - it takes about three days to show the increase in your flow - so be patient. But it works. That is my advice - it worked for me.

You've gotten some good advice, but I was wondering, what makes you think that your milk production is too low...is your daughter acting hungry after feedings? Eating more frequently? What cues have you gotten that a problem exists?

I KNOW how to do this. I'm sure if you follow my suggestions, your milk flow will be flowing fully.

First, get a large water bottle (one of those nalgene ones is good)...large enough that you don't have to refill it often. Drink often. I put some juice in my water to sweeten it so I drink more because water is boring for me. Drinking coffee and tea only dehydrate you. They're okay to drink but, if you do, drink even more water. You should be drinking at least 100 oz a day.

Second, have your kid drink frequently from both breasts. The more nipple stimulation, the more your breasts will make to meet the demand. So, at each feeding have him/her feed from both and allow more frequent feedings.

Within three days, you'll see a difference.
Good luck,
N.

In addition to good nutrition and fluids for you, make sure you are getting adequate REST. Fenugreek capsules can help, too.

Besides everything that is being said make sure you drink, drink, and drink some more. Water that is :o) You have to drink plenty of water to also aid with milk production. When I started working my milk production went down significantly as soon as I diminish my liquid intake. I was spending half the day in the bathroom and the other half pumping so it was hard to get anything done at work so I cut back in the liquids and the results inmmediately showed with reduced milk production. Also keep in mind that your milk production will go along with what your baby needs so if your baby is not taking as much milk and you are not pumping in between your body will assume you don't need it and reduce its production of milk. So bottoms up and drink, drink. This is the reason you see many breastfeeding mothers lugging bottles of water around all day. Hope this helps.

You have gotten great advice from everyone; however, the one thing no one else has mentioned is Medications. I would have to ask you, Are you taking any medications? There are some medications that are "safe" to take but they dry you up. My one girl firnd was taking the mini birth control pill that "is safe" and right around 4-6 months post partum she started to dry up, no matter what she did she could not get her body to get the message, because the medications contridicted everything she did. Please check with your Doctor or pharmicist.

Does your daughter seem like she is less satisfied after feedings? If not, you don't have anything to worry about. Do you work away from home? Sometimes that distance can decrease the supply.

Many mothers feel they aren't produsing enough milk when they really are. Your breasts go back to that not full feeling over time but you still have plenty of milk. Is she gaining weight? poopie and peepee diapers? Are you taking any medications that would lessen your supply? You can try to pump after feeding her a couple times/ day or just have confidence that you are producing especially if your baby is growing nicely.N. S. RN,IBCLC
Go to Kellymom.com for a good website on breastfeeding

Try pumping immediately after each feeding for one week. 5 or 10 minutes max. It's exhausting, but it really did the trick for me. And drink lots of water--keep a pitcher around, especially when you pump. I am the mother of a baby born with a cleft lip. She was not able to nurse efficiently, and the extra pumping was really the only thing that worked--believe me, I tried everything. That said, everyone is different, so perhaps some of the other suggestions will work better for you.