How to increase breast milk supply

Image by NestleCSV via Flickr

Image by NestleCSV via Flickr

Every woman has some uncertainties about the questions concerning breast feeding the baby:

Does my baby get enough breast milk?

Is there a way to increase my breast milk supply naturally?

Which methods are safe for me and my baby for increasing breast milk supply?

Based on our experience in the past seven months, the rule of thumb is to feed whenever the baby wants, so basically, it's just feed...feed, and still feed...XD However, we have come to the following conclusion on how to increase the breast milk supply:

1. In the first week you always produce less "milk" (first milk is called Colostrum) but the first week is essential because there your body produces the Colostrum which is high in Anti-bodies for the babies immune system and a great help in preventing jaundice.
   
   
2. Try to rest and relax when your baby is sleeping (we both slept around 12-14 hours in the first six weeks), look for help from relatives or friends (house chores, shopping). You need to get enough sleep. From my personal experience, i have found that my breasts are engorged after sleeping. This was very obvious in the first few months.
   
   
3. Stress is the biggest enemy of breast milk production.
   
   
4. Feed more often (don't be scheduled on the 2 to 3 hours method which is published in many publications), as soon as the baby is crying (though look out if he/she is hungry or if he/she just needs a hug or a diaper change).
   
   
5. Sometimes the baby cries during nursing because it's not well attached at the breast, try to adjust the baby so that the most of areola and nipple is covered by the mouth.
   
   
6. Find the most comfortable position to nurse your baby. I have adopted craddle position in the first 2 months. However, Timmy suddenly did not like it and cried all the time whenever i nursed him in craddle position. Therefore, i tried the lying position to nurse him, it spent us a week of time to find out the reason why he did not want to be fed. After adopting lying position, the nursing is going very smoothly :-)
   
   
7. Make sure that your baby empties one breast of yours. So that you are sure he drinks the fatty milk, not only the foremilk. After the feeding of one breast, the baby is supposed to be full. If he is still not satisfied, then offer him another breast. After the feeding time, you can pump out the milk from another breast to boost your breastmilk production.
   
   
8. Buy a breast pump and pump after the feeding (wait around 10-15 minutes) this will activate the hormones which produce the breast milk and tell them they have to produce more breast milk because the demand is higher ;)

Happy breastfeeding!!!