Most herbs and other preparations used to increase a nursing mother’s breast milk production are available in tincture form, capsules, or could be made as a tea. Other herbs that have been utilized as ways to increase breast milk production are milk thistle, motherwort, asparagus racemosus, red raspberry, and chamomile. Many mothers will make a tea containing one or more herbs.
When using herbal preparations for production of milk, there are some herbs that may produce some side effects that can be harmful and should be avoided, or taken with caution. These include comfrey, sassafras, ginseng, and licorice.
Many professionals believe that the best way to produce more milk, is for the mothers to feed on a more frequent basis. It is thought that the baby should be fed at two hour intervals during the daytime hours, and should be awakened for their feeding.
If a baby sleeps for periods of 4 to 5 hours at night, the mother should try to give an extra feeding. More milk is produced when a mother feeds. There have been studies that have proved that when a baby is fed at more frequent intervals, they receive milk with a fat content that is higher, experience a greater weight gain, and the mother has increased milk production.
A technique known as double nursing will also increase the volume and calorie content for the milk. When the baby seems to be done nursing, the mother should carry the baby around for approximately 10 or 20 minutes, making sure the baby is upright and awake. This give the baby a chance to burp, and make room for more milk. The baby should then be nursed on both breasts before returning to sleep.
A women can increase her milk production if she is relaxed. This can be accomplished by taking the baby to bed and nursing him there. Rest and relaxation will help in producing milk producing hormones. A lot of skin to skin contact can help both baby and mother relax. Bottles and pacifiers should be completely avoided. They will only interrupt the balance of the mother’s milk production and the baby’s feeding needs.
If a mothers nipples are getting sore, the breast are becoming engorged, and there is an impatient baby, a mother could apply some warm compresses and lightly stroke her breast with her fingertips for stimulating the milk. The mother can also shake her breasts while leaning forward, to allow gravity to be the encouragement for the stimulation of her milk.
If the herbal remedy for increased milk production and techniques do not work, a professional should be contacted. There are consultants for lactation that can examine the baby’s suck and latch on, to make sure the baby is getting nourished, and the mother can keep producing milk.
There are actually a number of ways that concerned new mothers can increase their natural breast milk supply. This is quite a common concern among women who can’t seem to get their breasts to express enough milk for their infants. Incidentally, the additional stress this causes hampers the breast milk supply even more.
Which brings us to the first of our recommendations for increasing your breast milk supply. It’s essential that you de-stress and take time out when you start to feel overwhelmed. Some studies have shown that stress may add to the problem even more.
Relax with some of your favorite activities, or even do some light yoga or other physical activity to get the stress hormones diminished and to release “feel good” chemicals in the body. This can actually help with the flow of the breast milk. Not coincidentally, it also makes you a better mommy!
There are some excellent herbal remedies that may help you in increasing your breast milk supply. One is called Natures Milk Drops, and it contains several plant-derived extracts which have been used in helping women to increase milk production capabilities.
Women have reported some pretty good results with these types of remedies. Plant based remedies do contain certain bioactive compounds that can trick the body into producing more milk. While it is unknown exactly why this happens, the results are nonetheless well documented with women trading stories about how they have been helped by one or another of these types of remedies.
Again, if you are interested in reading about other womens experiences, see some testimonials. Another tip is to make sure you are pumping your breasts often, even when you are not feeding your baby. Keeping your breast milk pent up actually mistakenly sends signals to your body that you may be done feeding your infant, and makes you dry up quicker.
Keeping the milk flowing several times a day, at least once every few hours, will help ensure that you signal the body to keep making it, and make plenty for your hungry baby. Don’t hesitate to let your baby drink as much as they can. Nursing for longer periods of time has been shown to help increase milk supply as well.
Some mothers are worried that they may be over feeding their baby, but babies usually know when to stop. They have not learned to over eat yet like us adults have J Getting plenty of water is important as well. Part of what breast milk is made of is water.
When your body is dehydrated, it is less likely to produce a lot of breast milk. Your bodys first priority is still to keep your organs functioning correctly when dehydration sets in, and breast milk supply may take a back seat to this if you are not getting enough water. The recommendation is at least 8 glasses of water per day.
This is actually what I get every day since I am a naturally thirsty person, but this does not come naturally for some people. You can flavor your water with a little lemon juice or some other fruit juice if it is hard for you to get that much water every day.
One of the last resorts for increasing breast milk supply is usually to visit your doctor and see about prescription or medical options. If you are not having luck with the tried and true natural methods, and you really are at a standstill with breast milk production, then you should seek the consultation of a Doctor.
