Breastfeeding can be a wonderful experience for you and your baby. It helps with bonding between the two of you and your baby gets the best nutrition possible. That doesn’t mean, however, that breastfeeding is stress free. This is especially true if you find your breast milk supply is decreasing. If this is currently happening to you, don’t panic. Increasing breast milk supply is actually a lot easier than one might think. Just follow these simple steps and you’ll increase breast milk supply faster than you think.
Pump, pump pump. The key to increasing breast milk supply is supply and demand. The more you pump your breasts, the more milk your body will make. If you’re currently nursing, make sure to pump after each feeding. If your baby is feeding more than two hours apart, it’s best to add a couple of pumping sessions in between. It may mean your baby is getting less at the breast, but it will mean more milk for baby in the long run. If you’re pumping exclusively, pump every hour during the day and every two hours at night. This may seem tedious, but to increase breast milk supply, you’ll only need to do this for two or three days.
Get a hold of some galactagogues. Galactagogues are anything that are known to help milk production. Two of the best things to get are malt drinks and Fenugreek. Malt drinks, like Malta India, are non-alcoholic drinks made much the same way beer is made. They have hops and barley in them, both of which help with increasing breast milk supply and production. They’re pretty tasty too so it’s easy to drink one every night. Fenugreek is an herb that is widely used to help increase breast milk supply quickly. You can get it by itself, or in a special mix like More Milk Plus or Mother’s Milk tea. I’ve found the special blends to be more helpful than just the fenugreek capsules alone.
De-stress. Easier said than done, I know, but excessive stress has been shown to decrease breast milk supply significantly. We all get stressed out at some point, so the best thing to do is to find something that relaxes you. Meditation, and massages work particularly well, but even something as simple as taking a 15 time out to sit and sip on your favorite drink may help you relax a bit more. Relaxation is quite important to increasing breast milk supply because the more relaxed you are, the easier your milk ejaculation reflex, or “let down” as most people know it, is triggered. Mutiple let downs while pumping have been shown to quickly increase breast milk supply.
Take care of you. It’s easy to lose focus of ourselves when a new baby is around, but making sure you get what you need helps the baby too. Make sure you’re drinking enough. The general rule is a glass of water every time you sit down to pump or nurse. I would also drink a couple of ounces passed quenching thirst just to be on the safe side. While drinking lots of water doesn’t directly help you increase breast milk supply, not enough fluids will cut down your production. Aside from hydration, it’s important to rest frequently, and to eat 1800 calories a day minimum of healthy foods. A multivitamin and an EFA supplement us also helpful because the body needs EFA’s to make breast milk and a multi-v will keep your body running at its best, increasing breast milk supply.
It may seem like a lot to do, but once you put it into action, you’ll find the steps above to be easier you think. And just think, in a couple of days, you’ll be rewarded with an increase of milk for your precious little one.
