When I was pregnant with Alice, I didn’t even think about the fact that there might be some difficulties with breastfeeding. It seemed to me that this is the most natural process. Eeeh! How wrong I was!

We do not want to take breasts (

Yes, our problems began even in the hospital - Alice did not want to take breasts.
Now, I think I can name the reason. After giving birth, my daughter was not put to my chest and Alice received her first meal in a bottle. Let me remind you that in our maternity hospitals a separate stay is practiced, and babies, if they cried, were fed with a mixture. When Alice was brought to me for feeding, she usually slept, and neither I nor the nurses could wake her. And, if she didn’t sleep, then she simply turned away from her chest. The nurses were comforted by the fact that when the milk comes, then the daughter will take the breast.

Yeah, now ... Milk came on the third day after giving birth, but Alice, as before, turned away from her breast. I had to constantly express.

On the fourth day after the birth, we were discharged. I really hoped that at home Alice would finally take her breasts. But no (((She categorically refused to breast. Therefore, I had no choice how to express and give Alice milk from a bottle.
  Those mothers who have already gone through this know how it feels to get up almost every 2 hours, feed the baby, wash the bottle, breast pump, decant, take a nap and then start all over again ... ...

We take a breast, but .... milk is gone. Enter the mixture

Naturally, I did not get enough sleep, walked like a zombie. So, I lasted about two weeks.
  Lack of sleep and nerves, due to the fact that the daughter refused to breast, did the trick - milk decreased every day, and Alice needed more and more .... Therefore, we had to introduce supplementation with the mixture.
And here, one of my friends (Lilya, once again, thank you very much !!!) advised me to buy silicone pads for feeding. In general, they are usually used to eliminate pain during feeding caused by injuries (cracks) in the nipples.
  So, I acquired these things from Avent, and a miracle happened !!! With this pad, Alice took her breasts! Let not immediately, of course, had to adapt, but, nevertheless, she began to suckle.

But, here's the bad luck - by this time, I practically didn’t have any milk, I could not even express 30 ml.
Of course, I always offered Alice a breast with this patch, but, since my milk was almost gone, she did not suck for a long time, and when she realized that there was no milk anymore, she demanded a bottle with the mixture. We can say that she ate already almost one mixture.

Resign yourself and go to the mixture? Or try to establish a GV?

To be honest, I was already ready to transfer Alice to artificial feeding. But, nevertheless, I decided to try to establish GV. It seemed unfair to me that I had little milk right when my daughter deigned to take her breasts.
  I searched the entire Internet for tips on increasing lactation during breastfeeding. I studied a lot of conflicting information, and through trial and error, I discovered for myself a whole range of actions to restore lactation.
  One of the first was taking pills ,   which, surprisingly, gave a very quick effect and, along with it, the hope that HB can be returned. Also, I used other methods described below.

And, you know, milk arrived every day and it was noticeable!
One night, when Alice sucked a breast with a lining and was almost falling asleep, I carefully removed the lining and offered her breasts without it. And in a dream she continued to suck her breasts without lining)
  So, also not immediately, but gradually (during the day she still did not allow herself to be deceived), Alice began to take her breasts without an overlay.

Hooray! Milk arrives) But ... how to refuse the mixture?

When milk began to arrive, I began to gradually reduce the volume of the mixture.
It worked like this: at first, I always gave Alice a mixture, then I offered her breasts.
  For example, for one feeding, I began to breed not a whole portion of the mixture (90 ml.), But 60 ml. and, immediately after Alice ate these 60 ml., I offered her breasts, which she sucked very well already without lining.
  After a week, I reduced the volume of the mixture to 30 ml. for one feeding.
  At this time, I found that I had more milk at night and canceled the nightly feeds with the mixture. At night she gave Alice only breasts.
  One fine day, I noticed that we missed one day feeding the mixture, Alice just ate out of her chest and fell asleep))) So, gradually, removing one by one, I canceled all the feedings with the mixture.

Pure breastfeeding after the mixture is possible!

Yes) At 3 months, we completely switched to breastfeeding and forgot what a bottle is!
Our pediatrician for a long time did not believe that Alice, who was eating the mixture, at 3 months, suddenly, began to eat only mother's milk. At GV with Alice, we were up to a year.
  In the year and month, Alice herself refused the breast and we successfully completed the GW. If she had not refused on her own initiative, of course, I would have fed longer.

Fortunately, we did not have a problem with Fayochka.
  By the way, after giving birth, she was immediately put on my chest and in the evening she was already well sucking, despite the fact that milk has not yet arrived. Fae has been almost a year old, and so far I have been breastfeeding her. We did not have problems with a shortage of milk for all this time.
Complement - fed Fayu to 1.7.

How to increase lactation during breastfeeding

So, the ways that helped me improve lactation:

• As often as possible, apply the baby to the chest

When Alice began to take her breasts without an overlay, I began to put it on her chest, as they say, for each squeak and for as long as she did not let go of her breasts. And she could eat for an hour or more, especially when she fell asleep. Here, the feeding pillow helped me a lot. Yes, I had to sacrifice my rest and even walks with Alice in order to be able to put her to her chest more often.

• Feed the baby from both breasts in one feed. DO NOT “DRINK” milk!

That is, when the baby releases the breast or you feel that he is sucking “idle”, you need to offer a second breast. And then, if the child does not mind, offer the first one again. And so on until the baby is full. This method VERY stimulates lactation. I consider this method to be the most effective.By the way, all the stories that the child may not get the so-called “back milk” are complete nonsense if you regularly apply it to the chest.

• Do not express!

I read a lot of advice that expressing increases the amount of milk, but in a situation where there is practically no milk (as was the case in my case) this is at least irrational. I admit, at first I followed these tips and expressed myself, I was able to express literally 30 ml. or even less, and this, I note, from both breasts! In fact, it turned out that I only dirty my breast pump and bottle, which I had to wash later, wasting precious time on pumping. Not a single breast pump you can pump out as much milk as a baby can suck!

• Eat better

If you and your child do not have allergies and stomach problems, then you can eat everything that you ate during pregnancy (of course, without fanaticism). I was lucky with both daughters I could eat and eat almost everything - for which many thanks to them)

• Drink enough fluids

It’s enough, you don’t need to force liters into yourself. It’s best to drink a variety of fluids, not only, say, one tea or one water all day. For example, I drank black tea, green tea with lemon balm, stewed fruit or fresh fruit, baked milk. At night, kefir or fermented baked milk, and, of course, during the day - simple drinking water. I drank a lot, because I really wanted to drink, especially during feeding. Before feeding, I always put a glass of water next to it.

• But the child himself does not need water!

If you want to establish a lactation, then no dosing of the child with water!
  You can read about the dangers of drinking a child on HB in this article:

• Take vitamins

I drank Elevit, which I took when I was still pregnant. They contain all the necessary vitamins for nursing mothers. Also, in the morning I drank potassium iodide at a dosage of 200 mcg. Elevit contains no iodine. And iodine is a very necessary vitamin for both the most nursing mother and the baby who receives this vitamin from mom's milk.

• Try Apilak tablets

Provided, of course, if you and your baby do not show allergies to these pills.

• Get enough sleep and rest when you can

Sleep when the baby is sleeping, also try to feed while lying down. If the baby eats for a long time, get a pillow for feeding. So, while the baby is breastfeeding, you can read a book or watch an interesting movie.

And, here, the most important advice to mothers who are faced with the problem of lack of milk: find and learn reliable information about lactation.
If you don’t know where to look or not, you can write to me and I will try to help you find the necessary information about breastfeeding.

Ignorance and misunderstanding of the lactation process is the main reason why mothers are forced to abandon breastfeeding and switch to artificial.
  If you understand this process, understand how breast milk is produced and formed, you just have to put this knowledge into practice and you will no longer have problems with lactation.

Many young mothers worry about decreasing breast milk production.

Lactation is cyclical, and periodically it really decreases. But that should not be scary.

It's important to know , how to establish lactation if there is not enough milk, and not transfer the baby immediately to artificial adapted mixtures.

Milk production occurs in the body of a woman with the direct participation of the hormone prolactin.

And the main stimulant for increasing the amount of breast milk is the frequent application of the baby to the breast. The correct way of feeding is laid genetically.

Quite often, not without the participation of adults, the baby forgets about it.

It’s easier for him to get enough of the bottle, it does not require additional effort. In this case, it is important to awaken what is inherent in nature.

Many believe that the child is saturated for the first 10-15 minutes, and then begins to indulge. And for this reason, parents limit the time they suck. Doing this is not worth it, because being near the mother, feeling her breathing, the baby enjoys, calms down, warms up. This allows not only to improve lactation, but also to maintain contact bodily and emotionally.

Skin-to-skin contact is especially important if the baby was born through cesarean section. A woman at the time of contact is more sensitive to the hormone oxytocin, which is responsible for maternal instinct.

Warm shower before feeding

If you experience problems with lactation, experts advise taking a warm shower.

The benefits of this procedure are as follows:

• Water helps to relax the body, which makes it possible to leave milk better.
• A light massage of the breast can increase the permeability of milk.
• A warm shower helps not only with a lack of milk, but also with its stagnation.
• The noise of water affects the receptors of the brain, which are responsible for the production of hormones that trigger the process of milk formation.

It is enough to stand for a few minutes under a warm shower before feeding.   This water treatment is also useful when a woman needs it.

Breastfeeding and sleeping

A full sleep is very necessary for a nursing mother. With a lack of rest, the production of the hormone prolactin, which is responsible for, is reduced.

Therefore, during the sleep of the baby, you should not try to redo all the cases, it is more important to relax high-quality. The main component of good lactation is sleep.

Sometimes it is necessary to get up to babies from 3 times per night, since the opinion that the night break between feedings should be at least 6 hours is considered erroneous. Some mothers can easily tolerate night climbs, others need a long continuous sleep.

At night, children are often asked to eat. At the same time, babies need not only another portion of milk, but also constant contact with their mother. You can solve the problem if you combine the needs of two parties - go to bed together. Sleeping together was previously considered undesirable, but it has several advantages.

The baby will feel calm and protected, and the woman will produce the right hormone, this is best done at night. Lactation problems will recede into the background.

Lack of decantation

Expressing milk after each feeding provokes its greater production. Whether this procedure is needed is currently a moot point.

If the mother feeds the baby on demand, there is no need for regular pumping.

On the contrary, with sufficient stimulation of the breast, the woman’s body itself “understands” how much milk needs to be developed for feeding.

Expressing breast milk disrupts the body from receiving the correct information. . By the next feeding, a greater amount will be developed, which the child will not master.   This can provoke stagnation of milk in the breast, which increases the risk of developing inflammatory processes in the mammary glands.

Straining should be used in the following cases:

• coarsening of the nipples;
• cracks;
• weakened baby;
• premature baby;
• forced separation from the baby.

Expression will allow feeding a weak baby who quickly gets tired and falls asleep when feeding with breast milk, without replacing it with artificial mixtures. After the child gets stronger, you can refuse this procedure.

Refusal of a dummy and a bottle

Another important condition for establishing lactation is the rejection of the nipple.

Experience has shown that the use of bottles interferes with breastfeeding. The fact is that the child gets used to the nipples.

From them, the fluid flows more freely. After the bottle, he no longer wants to make an effort and stretch his mother’s nipple to get milk. As a result, the baby refuses to take the chest, turns away and screams.

If there is a need to feed the baby or give him other food products, it is best to use a special spoon. Use for feeding bottles only after breastfeeding has been fully established. In the first days and weeks of a small person's life, you only need to breastfeed him.

Cancel additional drinking for a newborn

Many mothers think breast milk is food. And they finish the baby with plain water.

Therefore, until the age of six months, the child does not need to give additional water, unless there is no medical indication for this.

Giving water to the baby is also dangerous. This forms a feeling of false satiety in the baby, he lacks nutrients, which can affect his health, development and weight gain. Drinking can lead to disruption of the digestive system of the baby, and also it gives an additional burden on the kidneys.

The composition of breast milk at the beginning and at the end of feeding varies. In the beginning, the child receives lactose, and then lactase. This enzyme supports the breakdown of lactose, contributes to its absorption. If the baby is doped with water or decanted after feeding, he will not receive the necessary substances, which will lead to indigestion of food. In most cases, this is what causes colic in the tummy of the baby.

Ignorance of these features contributes to the belief that the mother has poor milk or the baby has lactose intolerance.

Using the mother’s milk, the child eats and drinks at the same time, therefore, additional watering with water is simply not required. But this is true for those babies who are breastfeeding.

Another situation is in babies who are breast-fed. Children receiving the mixture should be given clean water between feedings. This is especially important in cases where children are fed an unadapted or overly concentrated mixture.

Proper attachment of the baby to the chest

  To establish breastfeeding, you need to learn how to properly apply the baby to the chest.

Improper technique will cause cracks in the nipples and disrupt milk production.

The radius of capture of the areola during sucking should be about 25 millimeters relative to the base of the nipple.

This will effectively stimulate the mammary glands, which will lead to improved lactation.

A woman needs to control the depth of capture of the breast by the child. It is not difficult to do this - if the nipple “eats” during sucking, it will experience pain. During feeding, you should just listen to your feelings.

Every mother should breastfeed her baby. No artificial formula can replace breast milk, this is the only product that is fully suitable for newborns. Lack of milk is most often associated with the fact that women do not know or do not follow the rules of lactation. Exceptions are cases when a woman has serious hormonal disorders that do not allow to establish high-quality breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding is a natural process. However, not all mummies manage to establish it immediately after the birth of the crumbs. So, we will learn how to do it right.

On the formation of lactation

This process takes place in several stages. First, colostrum forms in the mammary glands, which is a thick yellowish liquid. It has a high nutritional value, has a pronounced immune activity. Colostrum begins to be produced during pregnancy, and after giving birth, the baby provides it with biologically active substances during the first 3-5 days of life. During this period, the body of the newborn experiences enormous loads, because it adapts to the new environment. Colostrum is a valuable product that allows not to burden the digestive system with a large amount of nutrition, and the kidneys and liver with the need to process and remove unnecessary substances from the body. Thus, the baby can save energy in the process of nutrition and effectively spend energy.

Already on the 4th-5th day in the breast milk begins to be produced, which is called transitional. Its composition changes gradually: the protein concentration decreases, and the content of sugar and milk fat increases, the amount of mineral substances normalizes. The transition stage is characterized by an increase in milk production. A woman feels it like a rush. The breast increases in size, coarsens due to the filling of the milky ducts.

In the third week of the baby’s life, his mother’s milk is already mature. Its composition is more stable. The volume of production is regulated by the individual needs of the crumbs. So it should be normal.

Features of feeding in the first days after birth

The quality of breastfeeding is largely determined by the development of skills to properly attach the baby to the chest in the first days of his life. Ideally, the baby should be applied to the mother’s chest for half an hour after he is born. This is very important, because it is the sucking of a tiny breast that triggers the lactation process and helps the uterus muscles contract. At the chest of the child should be about 20 minutes. Together with colostrum, the baby at this moment receives a strong energy boost, the first portion of the immune defense and substances that stimulate the growth of microflora in the intestine.

Yes, sometimes there are contraindications for applying crumbs to the mother’s breast immediately after birth. These are the Rhesus conflict, the prematurity of the baby, the oppression of its central nervous system. But these limitations do not mean at all that lactation will be more difficult to establish.

Already in the first days, mother should tune in to the regime of free feeding, that is, the child should be applied to the breast as often as it wants to. It can be 10-12 times a day. At night, the frequency of application is higher than during the day. As for the baby’s stay at the breast, this is individual, but the duration of one feeding should not exceed 20-30 minutes. Too long sucking provokes irritation of the nipples and the appearance of cracks. If the baby is weak, sucks sluggishly and often falls asleep near his mother’s breast, it is recommended to stir it. You can just stroke the cheek lightly.

Breastfeeding experts advise women to place a baby on both breasts at each feeding until full milk arrives. This is what will serve as a stimulator of lactation. Further, when the milk has arrived, you need to continue to act like that, and then give only one breast for each feeding.

It is very important to master the technique of applying the baby to the chest. It will provide more effective emptying of the mammary glands. The correct capture of the nipple by the baby is the prevention of cracking and does not allow the baby to swallow air during sucking. Then the baby will suffer less from colic.

the baby should have a tummy to the mother’s stomach and eyes to eyes. With proper grip, the baby’s lower lip is turned outward, and the cheeks, nose and chin fit snugly against the mammary gland. The child draws in the nipple and areola, presses on them with the tongue and, thus, squeezes the milk.

It is not necessary to wash the breast before each feeding. It is enough for a nursing mother to take a hygienic shower once or twice a day. If the gland hardens and hurts, and milk arrives at a rapid pace, then pumping may be necessary. But in this case, you must definitely consult a doctor. And in order to avoid decantation and establish healthy lactation, it is necessary to apply the baby to the chest at least once every two hours. In order for the milk to arrive regularly and in sufficient volume, Mommy should drink a lot of fluids.

There are mothers who do not have much milk. They begin to do two things at once. First, they introduce supplementary feeding, which is natural, because the child wants to eat. And the second - they are trying to increase the volume of milk. Mixtures - go choose, apparently invisible. How to normalize lactation?

You can increase the volume of milk, for example, with beer (taking inside, of course), but this, of course, is not suitable for everyone! You can still drink tea with milk, a decoction of walnuts, a decoction of nettles, a decoction of dill - to each his own. For example, tea with milk and dill broth helped me a lot. Yes, now there are many different imported mixtures to improve lactation! Yes, but not all of them are effective - once, and not every newly made mother can force herself to drink this - a fact!

Even for such an important purpose, I could not dare to try the milk formula with vitamins for improvement. No, she’s like milk powder. I understand that almost all milk is from bags, it is also processed and made from a dry product, but at least you can at least pretend that you don’t know about it. And here the thing is different - you make it yourself!

So, about breast milk! I wanted to say that many mothers, introducing supplementary foods and increasing the natural, “live” milk, forget about the main purpose, for which they went, for example, to brew a nettle broth. Namely: lactation is normal, and the amount of supplementation is not reduced!

It is very important to give the breast to the child, because due to this there is an influx of milk! And if you have increased lactation and the baby is not breastfeeding, what's the point? Here you need to think about it.

I also know that milk disappears, or the amount of its production decreases for those who worry a lot! It should be simpler (although this does not apply to me). There are just things to worry about, that's all!

Many mothers, while still pregnant, persuade themselves that if they do not have milk, then they do not mind! It’s even somehow strange, but there are some. By the way, they usually either have little or no milk at all.

I didn’t think about milk at all: whether it will or will not. There was no time! And there was plenty of milk. She herself tore off when she became pregnant again!

They often talk about the problem of establishing lactation in women undergoing a caesarean section. Well I do not know. My children are Caesars. I had so much milk, and my chest was so swollen that I didn’t know how to go home from the hospital! This is at a time when women giving birth have not yet received milk or appeared drop by drop. In our maternity hospital, there were three people who had Caesar’s besides me (whom I knew), and all had milk above the roof. And it came earlier than the rest of the mothers.

By the way, there is one more “but”. It happens that a woman has weak nipples, or the baby sucks too intensely, and the breasts crack, and the mother continues to feed him with breasts, which crack even more. And mother comes to the fact that she can no longer breastfeed.

Stop! Here you need to carefully think through everything and not rely on "maybe"! If the baby in the hospital was transferred to a bottle, urgently write out of your house (only the best) with the smallest hole! The fact is that the maternity nipples have a very strong stream, while the baby does not need it at all. He must learn the skills of getting food! This is labor. Yes, even what. After all, a child has just been born! And then everything is ready for him (I'm not talking about milk, but about the stream). Subsequently, when your breasts heal and your child gets used to the Maternity bottle (mixture), it will be very difficult for you to enter the role of a nursing mother, and sometimes it’s even impossible.

We had such Julia in our ward. They told me that she then tormented herself: she constantly expressed herself, did not sleep at night, trying to replace the bottle with her breast ... She did it. In fairness, I must say that she suffered in the hospital too. But suffering is not always enough, here you need perseverance and a great desire to feed your own child!

So if you are healthy and full of optimism, then milk will be! And if there is not enough milk, or if there are problems with the breast, then do not despair and do not give in to the stream of events, but immediately take action and work!

Maria Pomazkova

For medical questions, be sure to consult your doctor first.

Comment on the article "How to establish a lactation"

The article does provide concise information on how to establish lactation. I didn’t have any milk “at least pour it” after cesarean, we lost a critical mass in the maternity hospital and had to introduce complementary foods for the night, while in the afternoon it would be solid on my chest. It is really only persistence and faith in something that cannot be otherwise. This helped me - by day 14, milk came for real and never left. And how much was the temptation to make the mixture and give the screaming child out of a good bottle! I am very grateful to the people who helped me, especially the words of my cousin sunk into my soul: "And do not let yourself think about the bottle! As soon as you start, you won’t get milk!" The most annoying thing is that you can’t alter people! I have many friends of girls who, after giving birth, faced a similar situation, I told them everything that I took and helped as I could, but, unfortunately, the desire to lead a free, not burdened by constant 3-hour feedings, life overpowered. After a week of “struggle” they gave up (although they didn’t really fight) - they sip beer with pleasure, smoke, and leave their baby for at least the whole day to their grandmothers. "Yes, I have little of it, why torment myself and the child!".

16.11.2006 10:11:18,

How to increase the amount of breast milk

Sometimes it seems to a nursing mother that she has low-fat breast milk or too little, how to increase lactation in the most difficult situations and make her milk high-calorie?

Breast milk is given to women by nature itself. Each mammal is able to feed its young. So why do we sometimes have problems with this? How to increase breast milk lactation at home and keep for a long time, ideally - 2 years, as recommended by WHO. But at least until 6-8 months, when the child gradually begins to switch to adult food? These deadlines are very important to maintain for various reasons:

• material (adapted milk and sour milk mixtures are not cheap, and sometimes they need to be changed, since the composition may not be suitable for the child);
• artificial nutrition often provokes stool disorders in the child;
• eating from a bottle at times increases the risk of intestinal infections in the baby;
• the child is likely to need a dummy, more than one year;
• the baby's immunity will be at a lower level than that of his peers who feed exclusively on breast milk.

How to understand that a child is short of milk and needs to increase lactation

There are false and true signals. Softness refers to the softness of the mammary glands. By the way, this is a common misconception. Even among pediatricians. But if the breast seems empty, while the woman is breastfeeding often and does not feed the baby, this does not mean anything. Apparently, the child sucked front milk from her mother. But there is also a back. One that is rich in fats and nutrients. Thanks to which the child is gaining weight.

Often babies cry while feeding. Doctors again say that this is due to a lack of milk. Especially if it happens late in the evening when the chest becomes soft. In fact, the baby may cry because of an uncomfortable posture while feeding. For example, many mothers feed their babies while lying down. Moreover, they lie on their backs, and their heads are turned to their mother’s nipple. Try to drink yourself in this position and understand the dissatisfaction of the baby.

Another common cause of baby crying during feeding is lactase deficiency. With her, while feeding, the baby also rumbles in the stomach. And there are disorders of the stool - it is green, plentiful and frothy. Children with lactase deficiency suffer from gas formation, sleep poorly and gain little weight, as a rule.

Breastfeeding experts say that this technique will not show how much milk a woman has in her breast. Very few can express it completely. It is almost impossible to decant milk from the posterior lobes of the mammary gland. And few women can express themselves fruitfully, correctly.

Another “study” that pediatricians often recommend is control feeding. But it can only be suitable for those children who are fed according to the regimen. For example, classically 1 time in 3 hours. By the next feeding, the children manage to get hungry and suck well. But if the baby is fed on demand, if it is small and weak, then in 30-40 minutes it can suck out very little milk, doze off at the breast. But after 30-60 minutes, eat everything that is due.

There is another way to find out if a child is hungry - offer him a bottle with a mixture or his own expressed milk. Only necessary after feeding. If he sucks a lot, he will suck with desire, apparently, really wants to eat.

But the best way would be to count the number of wet diapers. Children of the first months of life should urinate at least 10-12 times a day. If you are used to using disposable diapers and you do not mind spending a little more than disposable diapers per day - get these diapers in which the control strip appears when they get wet. When a strip appears, you must immediately put on a new diaper, and put off this one. Such a strip is on the diapers "Pampers premium kea" and "Haggis elite soft", for example. The number of diapers used will equal the number of urinations.

If this option does not suit you, then try to weigh the diaper before use and after use. Young children should urinate about 300-350 grams per day, no less.

Any of these calculations will be informative only if the child does not receive any other drink, for example, he is not given water.

Look at the number of bowel movements is not informative. A breast-fed baby with absolutely adequate nutrition can defecate both once a day and 7. Or once every few days, if mom’s milk is good, it is completely absorbed by the body.

Preparations and products that increase breast milk lactation

What you need to eat to get more milk? Unfortunately, the amount of milk does not directly depend on the products. You can eat a lot, but milk from this will no longer. Milk comes in response to irritation of the nipples and their areola. The more nipples break out, the more lactation hormone, prolactin, will be produced, and more often emissions of oxytocin, a hormone, will facilitate the approach of breast milk from the posterior lobes of the mammary glands to the nipples.

As for the products, walnuts are usually recommended. Allegedly, not only will there be more milk from them, but also its composition will become better, fatter, more nutritious for a child. In fact, each woman’s milk is divided into two types - front, low-fat - drink for the baby, and fat - from the back lobes. To get the baby milk rich milk - it needs to be kept longer on one breast. Try to give as much as possible only one breast for feeding.

An increase in lactation can in some way contribute to an increase in the amount of fluid consumed. It can be plain water, sour-milk drinks. Summer watermelons. But you should not get too carried away with watermelons, as they help increase appetite, contain a lot of sugar. Coffee and tea can be drunk, but moderately and not strong. A nursing woman should consume at least 2.5 liters of fluid per day. This volume also includes liquid dishes - soups, borscht, etc.

But various folk remedies and methods that increase lactation of milk at home should be used very carefully. Often for these purposes they offer various herbs and spices, for example, fennel, anise, caraway seeds. But the use of some of them can provoke the development of an allergic reaction in a child and change the taste of milk, which will also negatively affect lactation.
   Drugs that increase lactation of breast milk also do not have proven scientific studies of efficacy and safety. These are ordinary dietary supplements. And also often containing allergens. Is it worth the risk?

Reasons why milk is lost at the nursing and methods of resolving the situation

In order not to try incomprehensible methods and tools on yourself, it is better to understand the causes of poor lactation and eliminate them.

1. Bad dream.   It’s not commonplace. A woman should sleep at least 7-8 hours a day. If you cannot sleep so much at night, you need to sleep during the day. Let along with the child. They say that 2-3 days in bed with a child help to significantly increase the amount of breast milk better than any dietary supplements.

2. Inadequate, varied nutrition.   Milk, of course, will still get all the nutrients. But mom may not have enough vitamins. And from there fatigue and, as a result, weak lactation. Even if your child is prone to allergic reactions, try to make your diet high-calorie, varied and tasty.

3. Bad mood, stress.   If the mother has a poor psychological state, then she is not up to feeding and not to the baby. Severe stress, such as the loss of a loved one, can almost simultaneously lead to “burnout” of milk.

4. Rare applications of the child.   If a child is applied 5-7 times a day, lactation may begin to fade. Feeding “on schedule” in the first weeks after the birth of the baby, when lactation is in progress, is especially dangerous. Want to have more milk? Attach your baby to your chest more often. Even if it seems empty to you.

5. Lack of night feedings.   Sleeping well at night is a necessity for both mother and baby. But you should not forget about feeding. After all, it is nightly feeding that helps to increase the amount of breast milk due to the production of the hormone prolactin.

To make the sleep as calm as possible, you can lay the child next to you. Sleep together. If this is unacceptable for you - lower the side of the crib and put it to your bed. Then it will be possible to give the child a chest in a prone position, while not getting out of bed.

6. Frequent sucking dummy.   The more often the baby sucks the dummy, the less it is applied to the chest and it stimulates. Remove the dummy and give the baby a breast. In addition, the dummy does not contribute to the formation of the correct bite in the child. And often, children sucking a dummy begin to take their breasts incorrectly. This leads to an even greater decrease in lactation and lactostasis in the mother.

6. The rapid growth of the child.   When he gains new skills, for example, learns to roll over. At these moments and in the future, he has jumps in growth and more and more nutrition is required. However, with regular feeding, the breast within a few days begins to produce more milk, in accordance with the requirements of the child. The so-called lactational crisis is a temporary phenomenon. Such growth spurts occur at the third, sixth week of a child’s life, at 3.6, 12 months. Of course, the timing is very indicative, may vary among different children. So, at 3 months the baby learns to roll over, begins to distinguish many colors, people's faces, etc. At 6-7 months, learns to crawl, sit, stand at the support. And closer to the year begins to walk.

There is another, quite controversial way to increase the milk of a nursing mother during lactation - this is by expressing milk. Mom feeds the baby with one breast, and after feeding expresses it literally to the last drop. And in the next feeding of milk comes a little more, exactly as much as it has pumped. Expressing breast milk to increase lactation is an outdated and rather harmful method, since mommy can provoke excess milk in her. The child will not be able to suck so much, and lactostasis is formed - stagnation of milk.

As you can see, there are a lot of nuances. For an experienced mom who is breastfeeding not the first child, everything can be very clear. And for the nulliparous, the same lactational crisis may become the reason for the transfer of the child to mixed or artificial feeding.

If you doubt the quality or quantity of your milk, go to the pediatrician's office and weigh the baby. If the weight gain is slightly less than the norm, it is enough to simply take measures to increase the amount of milk, start feeding the baby often, and very soon everything will work out.