How to Boost Breast Milk Production Naturally? 

Breastfeeding or lactation is a crucial part of being a mother where a mother ensures her baby gets complete nutrition. Mother’s milk is advised by doctors for babies to be consumed up to 6 months for proper growth, development and nourishment of baby. Breast milk is enriched with calcium, protein, calories, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that helps baby to fight against several infections by strengthening their natural immunity. Unlike bottle feeding, when you breast feed your baby, you don’t know how much milk is being consumed by your baby? Is it sufficient or not? Are you producing enough milk or not? These are common concerns in new mothers who breastfeed their babies. If you’re frustrated and wondering how to boost breast milk supply naturally, relax, we got you covered. However, you can consult a pediatrician, lactation consultant for sure shot results but that wouldn’t be all natural. So, here are the ways to increase breast milk supply:

1. Reduce your stress levels

Stress is one of the crucial reasons of insufficient breast milk production. Stress and anxiety disturb body vitals and hormones that affects a lactating mother adversely. De-stressing after child birth is advised and recommended for every mother to stay healthy and produce enough milk for babies.

2. Get good sleep 

Even to de-stress, mothers need ample sleep. Moreover, new mothers, post delivery, find it very hard to fall asleep due to sleepless nights with their babies crying and waking up in the middle of the nights ton feed them which affects their lactating process. Lack of sleep causes sleep deprivation and can cause other health issues which is not recommended especially when you’re breastfeeding. Hence, try to get some sleep when your baby falls asleep.

3. Drink enough water

Staying hydrated during breastfeeding is very important because your body needs fluid to produce enough amount of milk. Up to 6 months, babies rely on mother’s milk for their complete nutrition which means it takes a whole ton of fluid for your body to produce milk which is another way to boost breast milk naturally.

4. Breastfeed more often

Breastfeeding your babies more often or making your baby latch on to suck, will help produce more milk especially when they are new born and relying completely on your milk. When you breast feed your baby, try to set a pattern. Feed your baby for 45 minutes in the morning when she wakes up, next feed her for mid-lunch around 11 a.m. before lunch. Then feed her for lunch and again in mid-afternoon. The process continues same for the evening and night which sets a pattern for your baby to be fed more often which helps you produce more milk.

5. Breastfeed from both breasts

Of course, when you breast feed your baby, you need to feed from both of your breasts or else you might feel clutching pain and heaviness in one of your breasts that is not properly emptied. Feeding from both breasts evens out the amount of breast milk consumption and production which helps in proper lactation.

6. Demand supply mechanism

Proper breast milk production is all about supply and demand. Try to feed your baby on demand to produce more milk, because, more the milk is expressed or extracted from your breast, more the production of breast milk you get. When baby is nursed on demand, your body automatically tries to meet the demand of supply hence increases the production of milk.

7. Manually pump breasts between feeds

To carry out the process of supply and demand, if you think your baby is full and cannot be fed and your breasts are not emptied properly, you can manually breast pump between the feeds to increase the production of milk. 

8. Massage your breasts

One of the most effective ways to boost breast milk naturally is giving your breasts nice warm and slow massage with traditional oil technique can help produce more milk. You can also apply warm compression over your breasts to reduce the tightness of breast and ease out the flow of breast milk which will help your breast to easily get expressed and to produce the next batch of milk rapidly.

9. Eat balanced diet food

Diet can be your best pal when you’re a lactating mother. Proper balanced diet loaded with super foods that are specially known for increase milk production in mothers can be helpful. Foods such as red lentils (masoor dal), calabash or bottle gourd, brown rice, oatmeal can be very beneficial for sufficient amount of milk production.

10. Take help

If you’re a housewife and a mother you need to focus on feeding your baby especially when she is a newborn. You must have some quick household errands to do but you can ask your husband or your mother for help in household chores to get yourself relaxed and some time to focus on your baby and your lactation. 

Natural production of breast milk primarily gets covered by foods that are consumed by mothers. There are certain types of food that are known for increasing breast milk supply. These are considered as remedies or hacks among elderly women, because for them lack of breast milk is not a matter of trouble. They easily help to produce enough milk in new mothers by making them consume some superfoods known as breast milk boosting foods. Here are they:

1. Tapioca Pearl (Sabudana) – Rich in starch, carbohydrate and calcium, tapioca pearls can be great for sufficient milk production. You can make kheer, porridge, upma or even khichdi out of tapioca pearl which is commonly known as “sabudana” in India.
2. Raw Papaya – Rich in calcium, fiber, magnesium, Vitamin C and folate, raw papaya is the best food for boosting breast milk production naturally in lactating mothers.
3. Calabash or bottle gourd – Low in calories, bottle gourd veggie is loaded with calcium, potassium, magnesium, zinc, folates, fiber and vitamins would be a great food choice for increasing a great amount of breast milk in women.
4. Red Lentils (Masoor Dal) – Rich in minerals, protein, dietary fiber masoor dal can be added to your diet for sufficient breast milk production.
5. Fenugreek and fennel seeds – Soaked overnight, one teaspoon of fennel and fenugreek seeds make a magical potion which helps in relieving acidity, constipation and poor lactation in new mothers. Drink the soaked in water in empty stomach for better results.
6. Almonds – Soaking up almonds overnight and eating them with lukewarm water every morning can help you get effective results for increased breast milk production.
7. Green veggies – Vegetables and fruits are always great when it comes to your health. Green veggies especially raw banana, gourd veggies, leafy greens can help in increasing milk production in new mothers.
8. Milk – Drinking milk not only restores your body calcium and vitamin D which gets consumed by your baby, but also helps in producing enough milk in your body to tackle poor lactation.
9. Rice – Especially brown rice are rich in carbohydrates and starch which makes it a magical superfood for boosting breast milk naturally in lactating mothers.
10. Oatmeal – Loaded with carbohydrates, calcium, iron, vitamin B, oats are popular among new mothers for better nursing and also alleviating anxiety and depression.

There are many reasons for insufficient production of breast milk in new mothers such as, lack of sleep, postpartum depression, stress, hormonal changes, certain types of medication. However, being a mother is a job with huge efforts and sacrifices. As breastfeeding is important for baby’s growth and development, a mother has to take care of her food habits, sleeping pattern and stress levels for proper lactation.