Stimulating lactation is a process that is worth starting when there is not enough milk for 2 or 3 days. You do not have to immediately resort to feeding your baby with modified milk. Unfortunately, such action can lead to the inhibition of lactation, which means that breastfeeding will end prematurely.
Many mums are quickly discouraged from natural feeding, yet exclusive breastfeeding has a huge positive effect on the baby until the end of 6 months of life. Unfortunately, only 8-9% of infants are exclusively breastfed because many parents choose to give a substitute from time to time. Compared to Scandinavia or the USA, this is a relatively small number. As the reason for this state of affairs in Poland, mothers mention mainly too little food. Fortunately, this problem can be remedied.
In most cases, this is a temporary crisis
Most often, the problem is not a shortage of food, but a temporary state of affairs – so it is not worth panicking right away and giving modified milk, so as not to inhibit lactation. It is better to follow a few tips to stimulate lactation in a few days. It is also wrong to judge the softness of the breasts as a sign of a lack of nourishment, because they are only hard at the very beginning when there is an overproduction of milk.
- Eat more and what is healthy. Good nutrition is important when breastfeeding. However, it is not about indulging yourself too much and eating fatty and hard to digest dishes, but you should not deny yourself a tasty meal that you feel like – then stress increases, and this certainly will not work well for lactation. Your menu should be as diverse as possible, and the menu should primarily include: fruit and vegetables, fish, lean meat, dairy products, groats. You can afford a chocolate from time to time, it’s not a sin, and it will have a positive effect on your psyche.
- Put the baby to the breast. Sucking a baby causes the prolactin reflex, i.e. the process of milk production, so the more the baby sucks, the more milk is produced. It is best to put the baby to the breast every hour or an hour and a half during the day, and every 3rd night at night. Night feeding stimulates lactation the most, because the concentration of prolactin is then very high. Do not give your baby modified milk, especially through a bottle with a pacifier, because the baby becomes lazy, sucks less on the breast, which may inhibit lactation.
- Think positive. Stress can hurt, and the way you think has a huge impact on whether you actually succeed. Enjoy the fact that you have your little one, relax – watch a movie, eat something good, drink chamomile and lemon balm teas. Partner support is also important.
- Drink a lot of water. In order to produce food, the body needs adequate amounts of food and fluids. Reach for non-carbonated mineral water, herbal and fruit teas, juices as often as possible. However, drink only as much as you need – drinking 4 liters of fluids a day will certainly not do you any good.