Breastfeeding is a topic that I am very passionate about and
I plan to blog about it about once a week.
I have breastfed all four of my own children and had different
experiences with each one due to differences in their feeding styles and my
work schedule. I was and continue to be
committed to doing everything possible to avoid using formula. There are lots of topics for later posts on
breastfeeding.
But, today I am
going to talk about galactagogues and
link up with the breastfeeding blog hop.
First, what is a galactagogue? It is a long word meaning “a substance that
increases milk supply”. Both kellymom
and breastfeeding-problems.com have extensive webpages dedicated to the
subject. The two medications that are
prescribed as galactagogues in the United States, Canada, and Europe are Reglan
(metoclopramide) and Nauzelin (domperidone).
However, domperidone is not available in the United States. Reglan has the possibility of increasing
anxiety and depression which can make some hesitant to prescribe it (source).
Approximately 15% of breastfeeding women use herbs when they feel
they need to increase their milk production.
. However, with the exception of
Fenugreek, most of these herbal galactagogues have not
been studied much to see if they do increase milk supply. And while beer or alcohol is a traditional
folk remedy for low milk supply, current studies indicate alcohol consumption
is more likely to decrease infant consumption of milk than increase it (source).
So what about me? I have
had a different milk supply with each baby.
I had the least milk with my younger daughter. Ironically, I stayed home with her until she
was 4 months old and then only worked part time. But she had seizures in the newborn period,
which decreased the how often she nursed and how well she emptied my breast
when she did nurse. I was able to make
enough milk for her to gain appropriate weight when I was home full time.
When I went back to work, I worked for a very busy pediatrician’s
office. They were very supportive of
breastfeeding and my pumping, but I only had time to pump once a day at
lunch. I worked Monday, Wednesday, and
Friday for 8-10 hours a day depending on how many sick kids there were each
day. My daughter was taking 12-16oz of bottles breast milk a day while I was gone. I noticed that on Monday I could pump 16oz at
lunch in about 15 minutes. But, by
Friday I often had trouble getting more than 8oz. On the recommendation of my pediatrician, I
used Mother’s Milk Tea which had both Fenugreek and Blessed Thistle in it. I usually only had one or two cups of the tea
a day, and I definitely noticed an increase in my milk production. By using the tea I was able to continue
working without giving my daughter any formula supplements. So I would say it worked for me!
I'm so glad that you were able to keep your milk supply up for your daughter! I love that the tea helped you, too. Teas are my favorite. :) Thank you for linking up with the Breastfeeding Blog Hop!
ReplyDelete~Jeniffer
I'm thrilled you were able to keep your milk supply up with the tea. Thanks for linking up this week; I look forward to reading more of your posts.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jeniffer and Charis for your encouragement. See you at the next BF bloghop!
ReplyDelete