How can I produce more breast milk?

Question

My newborn is 2 weeks old and I still cannot produce enough milk to sustain her. At her 2 week check up she was still 6 ounces below birth weight. I am really trying to produce more. At least every 1-2 hours I am either pumping or nursing to increase the flow. I only get about an ounce and a half for both b*****s. I even tried some herbal tea that was supposed to help.

Answer 1

I haven't started breast feeding yet, but my friend told me that anytime she has chocolate she fills up to the point where she leaks all over!!

Maybe try eating some chocolate and see if it works for you?

Answer 2

Drink lots and lots of water. That helps a lot.

Answer 3

The best way to produce more is to feed your baby more often. The more you feed your baby, the more milk you will make.

The more often you express milk, the more you will produce, but frequent shorter sessions (for as long as milk continues to flow) appear to be more effective than longer ones. If you are apart from your baby, try to relax when using the pump and think of him, keeping his photo or an article of his clothing or blanket by you if necessary. This helps stimulate your let-down reflex, which could be temporarily inhibited if you are at all stressed or tired.

Dual pumping - expressing both b*****s at once - seems to produce more milk with a higher fat content and takes less time. Also, feeding your baby on one side while pumping on the other can speed the process up and reduce time. Warm flannels on your b*****s prior to pumping or a warm shower may help to increase the blood supply to the area and so ease the process. Although many mothers find breast pumps easy and convenient to use, not all women's b*****s respond well to breast pumps and in fact they find that expressing by hand is more effective.

If you are planning on returning to work you'll feel less pressurised if you start pumping a few weeks in advance. This not only allows you time to develop confidence in your ability to express but also means you have a stock of frozen milk for future use. (Read more on how to store breastmilk safely.)

Expressing usually becomes more productive with practice, so don't worry if you find you get little milk at first. The best time of day to express varies from woman to woman, but your b*****s often feel fuller first thing in the morning. Choose a time when you are not rushed and are not likely to be interrupted.

Answer 4

Lots of water, oatmeal, fenugreek (spelling?).

Get checked, you may have retained some of the placenta, which could affect breastmilk production.

Have her latch checked--is she tongue-tied or anything?

Try using a suplemental nursing system if you must to supplement with either breastmilk or formula. That way you get stimulated to make more milk.  http://www.medelabreastfeedingus.com/pro...

Answer 5

What's most important at this point  is -- is she gaining.  Sometimes a baby will take longer than average to get back to birthweight, but that doesn't mean you don't have enough milk.  It usually means that she lost more weight than average at first, so it will take more time to get back to where she started. (Did your milk come in late?  Did you have IV fluids during labor?  Both of these can increase early weight loss.)  I would take her in for a weight check in a couple of days.  If she has gained a couple of ounces, then she IS gaining, and you can relax and stop pumping.

Are you feeding the pumped milk by bottle?  This isn't a good idea.  You want her nursing often. Early bottles can cause nipple confusion and lead to far more problems than they solve.  And if you are pumping instead of feeding -- better to just breastfeed.

Finally, 1 1/2 ounces at a time is GREAT for 2 weeks.  If baby is nursing (as would be typical) about 12 times a day, that means she's getting around 18-20 ounces a day (baby is more efficient than the pump)  -- which is more than ample for an 8-10 pound newborn.

So again, try to relax.  Nurse baby as she demands, or about every 2 hours. (Too much pumping will just wear you out, so I wouldn't bother.) Take baby to bed with you and spend the next few days just nursing and sleeping. I'm sure that when you take her in for another weight check in a few days, she'll be well on her way to getting back to birthweight and beyond.  

Answer 6

How long is the baby sucking on your breast. The baby should be on each breast 15 minutes on each breast. Drinking plenty of water and feeding on demand should be getting milk supply up.

Answer 7

the more you pump the more you will produce try massages and drink plenty of fluids and milk, good luck

Answer 8

I wouldn't worry TOO much about the 2 week checkup weight- my Pediatrician advised me that it's very common for breastfed babies to take a little longer to get back up to their birth weight. My daughter was 6 pounds, 11 oz at birth, 6lb and 1oz by the time we discharged. I think it took at least 2 and a half or 3 weeks to get back up to birth weight. Anyway, just keep at it and start pumping on a daily basis-morning is usually best/when your b*****s are the fullest. It could be that she really is getting enough and perhaps is just fussy for another reason? I read somewhere that many moms think their supply is inadequate when it really is fine. I'm sure with time you'll be better able to guage it (i.e., your next checkup to ensure your baby is gaining weight appropriately)

Answer 9

Drink tons of water, keep on with the herbal tea (these things take time to build up in your system) and one dark stouty beer a day.  I don't know why it works, but it does.

Make sure that your babe is on each breast for a good, long time, to get the nutritious hind-milk!

Answer 10

1 hour breaks are not long enough, you need a couple of hours to recuperate. Drink plenty of water, rest between, at least 10 mins each side. Regularity helps

Answer 11

  I was having the same problem with my breast milk, not as early as 2 weeks, but about a month later my daughters weight gained stopped and she was very irritable and cranky all day from not getting enough milk.

I went to GNC and bought Fenugreek capsules (200 for about 12 dollars). I have been taking them 3 times per day, one with each meal, and from the night after day 1 of taking the vitamin, I saw a drastic increase in my milk production and my daughter was no longer cranky and hungry.

I would suggest trying the Fenugreek. It's perfectly natural and it will not harm the baby, although it does smell a bit like maple syrup but who would mind that. It is also something that you do not have to take forever to maintain your milk supply. If you seem to be producing enough milk with the supplement after a few months, you can gradually wean off of it and your body should maintain the milk supply.

I also recommend drinking plenty of water. Every time you nurse your baby, drink an 8oz. glass of water. Breast milk is about 80% water, so in order to make more milk, you need to replenish the supply of water in your body.

I hope this helps and good luck!

Answer 12

There are no specific foods that will allow you to produce more breast milk. But you do need to have enough fluids in order to produce at all. The only thing that can stimulate more breast milk is your baby. She must be properly positioned and must be sucking effectively. The longer she nurses, the more milk will be produced. If you still cannot produce enough milk, you might end having to supplement with formula.

Other things that can help: reduce stress level, drink a lot of water, massage your b*****s often, and eating nutritiously