Foods to Eat to Increase Breastmilk Supply

A family member of mine has asked me about increasing milk supply. I will probably be posting more articles on breastfeeding once I find them and for now I would like to share this photo of foods that are known to increase the milk supply. I always suggest discussing your troubles with a lactation consultant or midwife or doctor in case there are other factors. The best advice I usually give with specifics is to make sure you are drinking lots of water to stay hydrated, eat enough calories to support the food supply, skin to skin contact, and pumping between feedings. Stay tuned for more…

Storing Breastmilk~ alternatives to the plastic milk storage bags

The information I am providing today comes from my midwife: Robin Lavis of Blessings of the Womb in Rapid City, MI.  I completed her birthing classes and this is some of the information she taught us.  I thought it was pretty ingenious to use this method since I have spent what seems like an enormous amount of time pumping and storing breast milk from my first two children.    I would store it in the bottles until I got home and then I would measure certain amount of ounces depending on the baby’s age and labeling…ugh…seems ridiculous now but I thought I was doing the best I could to preserve my supply and use wisely.  So, to fill you in…this is the information below:

“If you find that you must return to work after the birth, please know that it is still possible to continue breastfeeding your baby.  Many women find they can manually express milk easily and do not need a pump.  Others still prefer using a pump.  You can either buy or rent a good breast pump for an affordable price.  I recommend the Medela Breast pumps (So do I).  Every model is excellent but the double electric is what you need if you are returning to work full-time.  Women generally have the greatest milk supply in the morning and find it is a convenient time to pump.  If you must pump while you are away from your baby, bring a photo of your baby along with you to help get the milk flowing.  One of the easiest ways to collect breast milk is while the baby is nursing you can use a ‘Milk Saver’ on the other breast. 

Using ice cube trays to freeze the milk and then immediately transferring them to a glass jar is a convenient and safe way to store your breast milk.  It keeps the milk away from freezing in plastics and every ice cube (in a 14 cube tray) is one ounce of milk.  You can store breast milk in the freezer for 6 months in a two door fridge/freezer, 2 weeks in a 1 door fridge/freezer and 1 year in a deep freeze.  Refrigerate milk if you plan to use it within 24 hours.  Remember to put a date on the stored breast milk.”

 

I love this idea!  Im planning to buy a lot of mason jars 🙂  Here is the link to what a Milk Saver is: http://www.mymilkies.com/milksaver

In support of National Breastfeeding Awareness week…

This is great!  Studies show that more moms are choosing to at least try breastfeeding than in the recent past.  I was not surprised that they found that Hospitals and Birthing Centers helped to sabotage efforts of new moms and their breastfeeding attempts.  Its hard when you first start and not the most comfortable feeling especially when you don’t know what to expect.  With my first daughter the local hospital sent me home with formula and fortunately I did not use it.  I did keep it in the cupboard “just in case” even though I had no intention of using it.  With my second daughter I went to a different hospital and they did not send me home with samples and I was thrilled to learn that they had abandoned that practice.  On a positive note, I remember both experiences where the nursing staff encouraged skin to skin contact and did not discourage my co-sleeping efforts.  Actually, I had every intention of having my first daughter sleeping on her own but after 4 hours of non-stop screaming and consoling the nurse encouraged me to snuggle my little girl and nurse her to sleep.  She even showed me how to get comfortable so I could sleep while nursing her.  Very much appreciated!  Here’s the link”

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/07/31/207285165/more-moms-are-breastfeeding-but-many-babies-still-miss-out