Wondering if you're producing enough breast milk?
Breastfeeding can be stressful for new moms, especially if you’re worried about producing enough breast milk to keep baby happy and healthy.
Unlike bottle-feeding, where you can tell exactly how much your baby is drinking, breastfeeding is “blind”; your breasts aren't see-through, so you can't know how much milk you have and how much your baby is taking.
That may lead some new moms to wonder: Am I making enough breast milk?
Is my newborn getting enough to eat, or could I have a low milk supply?
It’s not always clear what causes low milk supply.
While breast milk production is influenced by the cycle of supply and demand, researchers still have a long way to go in understanding all the factors that may influence or hinder breast milk production.
- Infrequent feedings. Stretching out the time between meals (to four hours, for instance) may be easier on a new mom, but it can mean your breasts won't be stimulated often enough to produce an adequate amount of milk. If your baby is a good sleeper, for example, it’s good for getting enough shut-eye, but not so good for keeping your supply up.
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Short feedings. If you cut nursing sessions short (five minutes on each breast, for example), this not only won't help your baby get nutritious milk but your breasts won't be sufficiently drained.
And without sufficient emptying, they won't be stimulated to produce more.
The clearest indicator of a problem of not getting enough milk is lack of weight gain but other than that
- Your baby's pooping. If you're changing at least three to four diapers filled with large, mustard-colored poops daily by the time he’s 5 to 7 days old, your baby's getting enough milk. Somewhere around 2 to 3 months old, expect that rate to drop to one poop a day, or even one every other day — that still means he's getting enough milk.
- Your baby's peeing. If your baby's diaper is wet each time you change it (at least six times a day in the early months), then you've got plenty of milk.
- Your baby's pee is colorless. He's well-hydrated (and you've got a good milk supply) if his pee is light yellow or colorless.
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Article is credited to sources on google.