How to increase milk supply?

moneypanicker

Hi i'm hoping some of you knowledgeable lot will be able to help me out. I've just had my 3rd child and i'm breastfeding and he is not putting on much weight, which the hv suggested supplementing with formula.

I don't think my milk supply is fantastic but this is a problem i've not encountered before with my other children i could have set up a dairy farm!!!! I've not been eating much (i guess run down) so i've been trying to eat more high fat foods etc and making sure i drink plenty. i've also had problems with blood pressure since the delivery and i'm now on medication so i guess i've been worried about that!

What is the best way to increase milk supply other than the baby latching on all day as obviously i have to do other things. If i supplement with formula do i express what i would have given?

any ideas/advice gratefully received
Thanks!

alwaysonthego_2

You need to start eating, small amounts at regualr intervals throughout the day. The thing with the centile charts is that they are based on babies that drink formula rather than bf babies. Bf babies do not put on as much weight as formula fed babies and this is something that hvs don't seem to grasp. I would recommend you carry on breast feeding and consult with a bf support worker who will have more knowledge than a hv. As long as the baby is getting plenty of wet and dirty nappies and is settling well.

becky_sleaf

Hi there,

I would say you have got all the right ideas. Get baby to latch on as often as you can & express too. Even if it means doing it in the middle of the night when your boobs feel full. As you already know the more you feed/express the more you will start to produce.

You really need to start eating though otherwise your going to struggle. It's not alway's easy as you don't always feel hungry but just set your mind on thinking about all the good that it will do for your milk supply & your baby. :T

Above all else don't feel to upset if you do need to give your baby formula. I had a few times where I gave in as I had such sore boobs. I would just give a formula feed so I could give them a bit of rest & recovery! It's not done my daughter any harm.

Good luck! x

Hell_Dans_Un_Handcart

How old is your baby? I'm wondering how established your supply is.

The best way to really get milk supply going is to take to bed with baby for a while and have some good skin to skin. Baby needs to stimulate your supply so even if you can't manage this, do try to put them to the breast often and take your top off so you still get the skin contact. Let baby take their time with the feed as the fatty hind milk comes last - I'd offer one breast at a time to make sure they are getting this. It's common in the first few months for baby to feed very regularly - sometimes every hour - so they will get the other breast soon enough. I'd also try breast compression to help make the most of a feed:

http://www.kellymom.com/newman/15breast_compression.html

Good quality protein is important for milk production (chicken, eggs etc) and oats can help too. You can also pick up fenugreek at health food shops, which Indian women swear by to boost their supply.

One thing I will say is that slow weight gain in breastfed babies is incredibly common and I would be wary of supplementing with formula. I've spoken to so many women whose otherwise contented babies only gain 1oz, maybe 2oz a week max (and sometimes nothing). If baby is having wet and dirty nappies and seems happy enough, I would not supplement. I wouldn't wean early either; I ended up weaning my daughter at 20weeks due to slow weight gain and it made an initial difference, then her gain slowed down once more. My daughter is now 18 months and a great eater, but is an absolute livewire and still in 9-12 month clothes. It's just the way they are sometimes and I do find some health visitors to be obsessed with weight. Don't fall into the being weighed every week trap; it's unreliable and there is talk of phasing it out for this reason.

Sarahsaver

My DD lost 7% of her birthweight in the first 10 days but by 8 weeks had put on 2lb, 100% breastfeeding.
rest rest rest and these things you 'need' to do do you really need to? If you and the baby are clean and warm, you have had food and drink you do not need to do much else for the time being.
constant sucking (or what seems like it) will stimulate milk supply.
i have heard that fennel tea, real ale and porridge increase supply, but i have found relaxing and eating and drinking enough of ANYTHING also works.
You need 500 cals extra a day.

be wary of supplementing with formula in fact try to put that thought off your radar

when i stopped worrying about dd things got easier!

Horlicks is good for loads of calories in an easy format! Best of luck;)

pokey128

Hey,
my ds is just turning 6 months and I bf for 5 months - he didn't put on any weight at all (not even 1/2 oz) for 5 weeks and I was really worried even though he seemed ok in himself. My HV sent me to a bf workshop thing at the hospital to see if they could help and they recommended trying domperidone which is known to increase supply. I tried it for 10 days and it didn't work for me (this was with expressing 3 times a day and feeding every 2 hour - expressing never gave me more than 1/2oz a time) - I think my boobs just weren't good enough for ds!!! Now I give him formula twice a day and still bf just as often - he does seem a lot more settled now and sleeps loads better. Once he is on solids regularly and his demand for milk decreases then I am going to try and drop the formula feeds and go back to just bf.
I was also recommended to try Brewers yeast to increase supply but again this didn't work for me!
xx

Js_Other_Half

I used domperidone too - my GP wouldn't prescribe it though, even though the midwife asked him to. I ordered it online, but it didn't work.

Raksha

I can't believe that a HV is suggesting supplementing bf when it's based on supply and demand and the baby appears to be peeing and pooing and is otherwise contented........ When #2 son was born, I stayed in hospital for a week to help get bf established, and was only discharged very reluctently as he'd lost 8oz from his birth weight - had to go back at the same time every day for 10 days to have him weighed (regardless of wether he'd just had a feed or a dirty nappy!) Health professionals are too governed by charts and not by gut instinct these days

moneypanicker

I was up in the night worrying about it! He is coming up 3 weeks and he's put on 3 1/2 ozs in 8 days so at least he's putting on. The thing is i feel dreadful about it. My middle child put on 1lb a week:eek: from breastfeeding i feel like i'm failing him. I did give him formula last night and he finished 4ozs in seconds but i expressed this morning and got 4ozs so it's obviously the same as what he is getting. the hv was concerned that he has dropped from his birth weight centile. I'm trying to eat and drink more so hopefully in the next few days my milk will pick up!

thanks all

moneypanicker

I forgot to add he's a real sucky baby and i've given him a dummy (reluctantly) as he would stay on all day he also sleeps for up to 7 hours at night - surely he wouldn't do that if he was not getting enough!! He wees and poos loads!!

Krystaltips

As long as he is showing you he is getting plenty (with his nappies) then he's getting enough. Are his nappies the normal yellow? It might also be helpful to sit down with someone to observe a feed, check he is positioned correctly and feeding effectively. As someone said, weight is not the be all and end all that a baby is getting enough it is merely a factor in the bigger picture.

Also, if you've fed your other children succesfully then you would more likely have an abundance of milk rather than a lack of, your body has been here before, it knows what it is doing...