The Potential Causes of Low Breast Milk Supply and the Tips to Deal With It

By Karlyn Riffel 

Breast milk naturally comes to new mothers immediately after giving birth. Usually, the amount of milk that a mother can produce depends on how much her child consumes, as the mother's body can easily determine how much her child regularly intakes.

However, issues like low breast milk supply is still one of the problems a new mother can face while still in the postpartum period. This can be quite a problem, as this kind of milk is still the primary food your child intake. Without an ample amount of breast milk, the baby becomes underfed, in turn making him at risk of lots of infections and illnesses and becoming malnourished.

To avoid this, you need to be able to produce as much needed milk as possible. As the baby needs to feed for up to twelve times a day during his first few months, you will have to be ready to deliver with this kind of demand.

However, in order to deal with this problem, you must first look at what are its possible causes. One common reason for this is when you start giving your child milk supplements. By bottle feeding your child, he will tend to consume less from you, which in turn, will tell your body to produce a lower amount of milk.

Aside from the artificial milk itself, feeding from bottle also causes nipple confusion. A bottle's nipple usually requires a different way of sucking, so when your child already needs to nurse, the tendency for him not to be able to latch properly is high. And without proper latching, he will not be able to breastfeed correctly.

Breast augmentation, in answer to most mothers' questions, luckily, doesn't necessarily mean lesser milk supply. In fact, experts say that normal breastfeeding is possible even after getting such surgeries. However, one must still be careful though, as puerperal mastitis, the condition where the breast tissues get sore and one rare complication that can be acquire from breast surgeries is a common cause of this problem in milk supply.

If you suspect that you are suffering from low breast milk supply, fret not, as there are ways how you can deal with the problem. Some examples of tips that can help you boost your milk production are the following:

1. Drinking more liquids or taking milk stimulating medications always helps.

2. Use a quality and effective pump when draining breast milk. Pumping allows you to express more milk from your system, thus training it to make more.

3. Avoid supplements. Milk supplements are way heavier than breast milk, so the baby will need to feed less with it. If your baby always feels full from this, he will demand less breast milk, making you produce less.

4. Nurse frequently with both breasts. Allowing your baby finish milk from both sides of your breasts will tell your body that you need to produce more milk.

5. Remember to have a healthier lifestyle. What you do to your body affects with your milk supply. So, if you want to make sure that you're baby is well fed, take good care of yourself first.

Make sure that you are always ready to be there to answer your child's needs. By following these simple tips, you can be sure that you can prevent low breast milk supply and that you can always nurse when your baby needs your milk.

Karlyn Riffel reviewed on how to prevent Low Breast Milk Supply. Please visit her Breastfeeding Engorgement website for more information.

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