Nursing Issues with My 6 Month Old...

As a nursing mom of a 13 month old and a nurse midwife, you are feeding your child too much baby food. Breastmilk is her primary food source, not baby food. You will not feel the let down as the child gets older. Keep tabs on her wet diapers to make sure she is staying well hydrated. Eat protein at each meal. Nursing has been very important to me and my precious daughter. To keep my milk suppy up, I nurse her when she wakes up in the morning, prior to her morning nap and when she wakes up from her morning nap. Prior and after her afternoon nap and prior to bedtime. I have been very intentional about keeping my supply up. I drink mother's milk tea every evening and have taken the herbal supplement, More Milk Plus, from Motherlove as needed. I had a lactation consultant come to my home for an evaluation and check in with the lactation consultants and the hospital where I gave birth just to stay on track. My daughter has been very healthy and is so happy and such a sweet little girl. It has been so worth it. Blessings.

Sounds like she is getting too much food. I agree 3 meals a day for a 6 month old is too much solids. I have a 5 1/2 month old and he still nurses exclusively....it is better to wait till 6 months to start solids at all. Always nurse first before solids, and I would slowly start cutting down on the solids. She should be getting most of her nutrition from breastmilk...solids are only for the experience and learning how to eat at this age. The PP that said they should be eating all solids is not correct at all. It is true that as they get older you may not feel letdown and they do get better at getting the milk so nursing sessions should be faster but it sounds like she is taking less milk because she is eating too much food. Cut down the food, encourage her to nurse as frequently as possible, and your supply will go up. If you need a helping hand a little fenugreek might not be bad but your daughter will be able to do it if you just allow her unrestricted access and less food because she will be hungry and want to stay at the breast longer and more often.

She soesn't need the breast milk at all anymore if she's eating babyfood and fresh foods. Be careful of the weight gain from the breast. She's probably getting all she needs with the whole foods What's your dr. say?

HI! My son is 7 months old. I was told at his 6 month appointment that he should be getting at least 24 oz. of milk a day besides food (table/baby food). I used the herbal supplement of more milk which is available online or at Whole Foods. It increased my milk supply when I had to go back to work.

I would say to use your gut instict if you think that she is getting enough/satisfied then it is fine to feed her 4 times a day. Currently, I am feeding my son milk 4 times a day. Best of luck with what you decide.

I see you have received some conflicting advice. As always. Talk to your Ped. and then see what they say. Your babe should be getting 18-24 oz of breastmilk a day. You can usually get that in 4 feedings because she is much more efficient. As I recall it was at about 6 months that I stopped feeling the intense let down and it was more about the length of time she was on the breast - remember your body is also getting better at breastfeeding and knowing how much your darling girl needs. Keep up with the food and milk - but milk should be priority until she is 12 months old. Good luck!

For really accurate info on breastfeeding go to kellymom.com They really know their stuff. That said, I believe that 18-24 ounces per day is accurate. They tend to take about 5 ounces per feeding. So 4-5 sounds about right. Just follow her lead. You'll be able to tell if she's hungry.

Your milk supply has probably evened out, and she's probably getting more quicker at this age. I do agree that she absolutly needs breastmilk or formula at this age. So I would think favoring the nursing over food if you were going to drop something. You could try nursing before meals if you wanted to, to make sure she's not filling up too much on food. And give her reasonable amounts (I'm assuming it's small portions for the meals).

If you are concerned about supply go to kellymom and reasearch that issue. I doubt it would be a problem, but check their site. If you use an herb I would recomend Fenugreek. Again get the dosage form kellymom. It helped me with my third. You can get it at GNC, or probably any health food store.

By the way, my 8 moths old nurses once or twice at night/early morning, once before each of his three naps, and before bed. But every baby is different. I think sometimes he doesn't get a full feeding becasue he is too distracted with the older kids.

Check w/ your ped...Usually three meals and a snack starts around 9mos. If you are giving her that much food, she won't be as hungry to nurse.

I completely agree with Maria, she needs breast milk not baby food. If you cut back on anything it should be food. Breast milk has everything she needs to thrive until 12 months, she cannot get all her nutrients from food. She should fill up on milk before she is offered a meal. As our dr. says, baby food is more for learning than nutrients and necessity

It sounds like your daughter is getting what she needs. As the babies get older they are much more efficient at the breast. Introducing foods will decrease you milk supply just because they now get food in addition to milk to feed them. If your daughter is not fussy at the breast, she is probably satisfied with the amount she is getting. If you want to increase your milk supply you could always start pumping once a day (most effective usually in the mornings- an hour or so after a feeding)...and within a few days your supply will increase. But if your daughter isn't fussy and is still willing and happy to nurse you probably don't need to worry. Just keep nursing as long as you and her want to.

You're doing great... stop worrying about it! Nurse her BEFORE you feed her solids. Nurse on demand. Don't cut back unless she stops asking for it - that will surely decrease your milk supply. ...and everything will take care of itself. A few things are probably happening:
1. As she eats more food she will cut back on her nursing
2. As she gets older she will be more efficient at nursing so she may get the same amount in less time

That said, 3 meals and a snack seems like a LOT of solids for a 6 month old. Try cutting back to 2 meals and nurse her first. Drink lots of water. Eat well. Don't bother with the herbs, and don't stress over it. You're doing great.

Breastmilk should be her main source of nutrition til age one. Three meals and day, plus snack, is alot of food for a 6 month old. At most they should need 1 meal a day at this age. And, the food is not to fill them up, but rather just taste new tastes and textures and get used to eating off a spoon.

They do get really efficient and can drain the breast quickly around this age, so your supply is probaby fine. But, if you want to bump it up, nurse more often and feed less baby food. The best way to increase your supply is the eat healthy foods, drink lots of water, rest, and nurse frequently on demand. Your body will catch up to her demand if you offer a couple more feedings a day pretty quickly.

Are you sure your supply is going down? Babies that age have gotten vary efficient at nursing so it will seem like they don't nurse very long. Best way to tell is to take your baby's cues. Does she seem satisfied after nursing? If so, then she is getting enough!

At 6 months (IMO) you could probably go to feeding every 4 hours instead of every 3 (which would naturally convert to nursing 4 times/day). But like the PPs said, breastmilk should be the priority-- breastmilk then solids.

If you are going to cut back on anything, it should be baby food, not breastmilk! That's what she really needs, not food. Food is great, but it is a supplement, not a replacement for breastmilk. If you are going to start weaning, then you need to add some formula to her diet. She needs the nutrients in either BM or formula to thrive. If your supply is being affected,it's because she isn't nursing as much as she was. Always nurse before a meal, so she doesn't fill up on solids and then doesn't want milk.