Top tips to boost your breast milk supply

Many women worry about their breastmilk supply… How much milk is baby actually getting? Is it enough? It is understandable why these questions cross mothers minds, as unlike bottle feeding, you can’t measure out a set amount each time. Unfortunately concern about inadequate supply is a common reason mothers stop breastfeeding. 

It can be difficult to objectively assess supply, and the best way of knowing that you’re making enough milk for your baby is that they are growing along their centile line (gaining weight) and have plenty of heavy, wet wee nappies and regular poo nappies. 

If you need to increase your breastmilk supply the following can be helpful:

⁃ Feed your baby frequently to cue - don’t worry if it hasn’t been long since your last feed; newborns need to feed up to 12 times in 24 hours and they are good at doing what they need to to increase your supply. That includes cluster feeding in the evening, which likely has an important role to boost and maintain supply. 

⁃ Ensure that there’s a good latch and position so that your baby can effectively drain the breasts - this is key to increasing supply 

⁃ Rest when you can and accept offers for help that allow this

⁃ Keep hydrated and eat regularly. Some foods are reported to be galactagogues (a food or medication that promotes breast milk production or flow) and lactation biscuits are pretty tasty! 

⁃ Breast massage before and after feeds can help to stimulate supply 

⁃ Having “skin to skin” time with your baby will also help through oxytocin release. Having your baby in a carrier for this might help free up your hands

⁃ Expressing milk is sometimes recommended to increase and maintain supply, especially if your baby is still learning to effectively drain the breast. This is hard work and so is usually only practical and possible in the short term. If you have been advised to give your baby “top ups” after feeds to help with weight gain, it’s great if as much of this as possible can be expressed breastmilk 

⁃ There are medications that can be prescribed to increase supply, such as Domperidone. Discuss this with your lactation specialist or GP to see if it’s safe and appropriate. It’s important not to stop this medication abruptly as that would make your supply rapidly drop - it needs to be weaned slowly over several days or weeks.