I'm breastfeeding. How can I increase my milk supply?

Question

I drink 8-10 cups of fluids a day (mostly water) but my milk supply still seems to be dropping the last couple of days. My son is 2 weeks old, and maybe he's just growing lots and needing more milk than he used to, but I'm having a difficult time giving him all that he requires. Any suggestions?

Answer 1

The more you nurse, the more milk you'll make. You can also stimulate milk production by expressing your milk. Some babies need to nurse every 3-4 hours, but some nurse lots more than that. Nurse as often as you can for now because the more they eat during the day, the less they'll need at night, plus you'll have all the milk you need.One of my children was ready to nurse almost every two hours, but she started sleeping through the night at three weeks. Some days, I'd just get her finished, burped,and changed and she'd be ready for more. Hang in there. Nursing your baby is the best thing you can do for him now, and it won't be long 'till you have so much milk that you are soaking several sets of nursing pads every day. Good luck.

Answer 2

Well, You could try a few things.
1) nurse on one side, burp the baby and place him on the other side after he is well burped. But then he will be eating even more. Your body will adjust to his needs. I know it sounds funny but it is supply and demand.
2) you could pump or express milk between feedings.
This goes back to the supply and demand.

It is common for them to go threw spurts were they just seem to be nursing constantly. This may be them going threw a growth spurt and this will help add to your milk supply.

As long as your baby is continuing to grow and gain weight your supply is fine. Your baby will go threw many little demanding spurts where they need to eat more and more often.

If you feel the baby isn't growing, then you can check with the hospital he was delivered and they should have a 800 # where you can call for more advise. Don't worry about calling them too much that is what they are there for.

Just be sure to get a good burp out of baby. Sometimes gas gives them pressure in the belly and that makes them want to nurse then stop, cry and act like they want to nurse again but just keep crying. Try to burp him again.

Good luck.

Answer 3

I would ask why you think you are not making enough milk? Is your baby making lots of pees and poops? Gaining weight? If so, your supply is probably fine--just because he wants to *nurse all the time* doesn't mean you aren't making enough milk! If he's not peeing and pooping or losing weight, then you need to call your doctor and have someone look at your latch first.

I would encourage you to attend a La Leche League meeting in your area (free and very helpful). If there's not a meeting that you can attend right away, call their hotline.

Answer 4

2 weeks old is a common growth spurt time. It's normal to seem like all you do is nurse right now. He'll need to nurse *at least* every 2 hours around the clock at this age. During a growth spurt, you'll find that he may want to nurse even more often for about 2-4 days while he works to increase your supply.

Answer 5

Feed more often, and feed longer. It will take a couple of days for your milk supply to "react" to the demand so you will have to keep it up to see results. Your body will only increase milk supply if senses that your child isn't getting enough ie. if he is feeding more often and for longer. You can use a pump to do this also.

Answer 6

Your body is simply adjusting to your babies needs. It will continue to change as he gets older, too.

www.kellymom.com is a fantastic resource for all breastfeeding questions. They list teas and things that can help increase your supply if you are really concerned about it. Just be sure not to go longer than 2 hours between feedings at this age to keep your supply up.

Congrats and good luck. You are doing a great job keeping hydrated!

Answer 7

Let your baby nurse my often. You might want to pump your breast inbetween feedings to create more milk. If you get discouraged, contact your local LaLache league. Good Luck, and don't give up!!!

Answer 8

If your not still taking the prenatal then you take start taking it again. Then try pumping out milk when he's not feeding, to try to produce more milk. Then I'd say go to Breastfeeding.com and they shouldhave all the information you need. I hope that helps.

Answer 9

stick to giving him only breast milk and pump after every feeding. They also make a tea called "mothers milk" which tastes aweful but does seem to work. My OB has said to pump after every feeding for both my sons and I started out with milk production problems but after continuously pumping I had more than I needed!

Answer 10

Increasing your milk supply

Milk production is a demand & supply process. If you need to increase milk supply, it's important to understand how milk is made - understanding this will help you to do the right things to increase production.

To speed milk production and increase overall milk supply, the key is to remove more milk from the breast and to do this frequently, so that less milk accumulates in the breast between feedings.

OK, now on to things that can help increase your milk supply:

* Make sure that baby is nursing efficiently. This is the "remove more milk" part of increasing milk production. If milk is not effectively removed from the breast, then mom's milk supply decreases. If positioning and latch are "off" then baby is probably not transferring milk efficiently. A sleepy baby, use of nipple shields or various health or anatomical problems in baby can also interfere with baby's ability to transfer milk. For a baby who is not nursing efficiently, trying to adequately empty milk from the breast is like trying to empty a swimming pool through a drinking straw - it can take forever. Inefficient milk transfer can lead to baby not getting enough milk or needing to nurse almost constantly to get enough milk. If baby is not transferring milk well, then it is important for mom to express milk after and/or between nursings to maintain milk supply while the breastfeeding problems are being addressed.
* Nurse frequently, and for as long as your baby is actively nursing. Remember - you want to remove more milk from the breasts and do this frequently. If baby is having weight gain problems, aim to nurse at least every 1.5-2 hours during the day and at least every 3 hours at night.
* Take a nursing vacation. Take baby to bed with you for 2-3 days, and do nothing but nurse (frequently!) and rest (well, you can eat too!).
* Offer both sides at each feeding. Let baby finish the first side, then offer the second side.
* Switch nurse. Switch sides 3 or more times during each feeding, every time that baby falls asleep, switches to "comfort" sucking, or loses interest. Use each side at least twice per feeding. Use breast compression to keep baby feeding longer. For good instructions on how to do this, see Dr. Jack Newman's Protocol to increase intake of breastmilk by the baby. This can be particularly helpful for sleepy or distractible babies.
* Avoid pacifiers and bottles. All of baby's sucking needs should be met at the breast (see above). If a temporary supplement is medically required, it can be given with a nursing supplementer or by spoon, cup or dropper (see Alternative Feeding Methods).
* Give baby only breastmilk. Avoid all solids, water, and formula if baby is younger than six months, and consider decreasing solids if baby is older. If you are using more than a few ounces of formula per day, wean from the supplements gradually to "challenge" your breasts to produce more milk.
* Take care of mom. Rest. Sleep when baby sleeps. Relax. Drink liquids to thirst (don't force liquids - drinking extra water does not increase supply), and eat a reasonably well-balanced diet.
* Consider pumping. Adding pumping sessions after or between nursing sessions can be very helpful - pumping is very important when baby is not nursing efficiently or frequently enough, and can speed things up in all situations. Your aim in pumping is to remove more milk from the breasts and/or to increase frequency of breast emptying. When pumping to increase milk supply, to ensure that the pump removes an optimum amount of milk from the breast, keep pumping for 2-5 minutes after the last drops of milk. However, adding even a short pumping session (increasing frequency but perhaps not removing milk thoroughly) is helpful.
* Consider a galactagogue. A substance (herb, prescription medication, etc.) that increases milk supply is called a galactagogue. See What is a galactagogue? Do I need one? for more information.