The baby does not have enough breast milk, what should I do? Advice from a lactation consultant: what to do if there is not enough milk. Do I need to follow a feeding schedule?

Breast milk is an ideal food for a baby; when breastfed, children are less susceptible to allergic reactions, regurgitation, and intestinal colic. But many mothers feel that their child is not getting enough nutrition. What to do if a baby does not have enough milk while breastfeeding, how to notice and solve the problem in time?

Considering that most infants tend to cry often (due to too much high temperature air at home, dry air, intestinal colic, overexcitation, etc.), just crying is not a sign of starvation. But the real sign is when there is not enough milk during breastfeeding, the baby gains little weight. Less than 125 grams per week. How to determine this increase? The simplest thing is to visit a pediatrician. Possibly unscheduled. He will weigh the child and set a day to come back for weighing. It will be clear how much the baby has recovered.

Just don’t look for signs that the baby doesn’t have enough milk in the amount that was expressed. With established lactation, and this is already 4-6 weeks after birth or even earlier, there is very little milk in the mammary glands. It is stored in the alveoli. And it enters the glands only during active stimulation of the nipple. During pumping, it is quite difficult to cause the release of oxytocin, the hormone that is responsible for the flow of milk into the glands. Oxytocin is a pleasure hormone. Well, pumping gives it to few women. And few people know how to pump properly.

How to understand that there is not enough milk during breastfeeding and the baby is not getting enough, what do doctors directly suggest? Many pediatricians assure that the cry of a hungry child cannot be confused with anything. An experienced mother who is not breastfeeding her first child will probably not be at a loss either. If milk does not flow well from the breast, you cannot hear the baby swallow, he actively sucks, but often interrupts and cries. In the first weeks after birth, the flow of milk during feeding is clearly noticeable. If a woman does not feel them, plus the previously mentioned signs are present, this does not speak in favor of sufficient lactation.

You can do a test to determine the amount of milk. For this purpose, the child is left without disposable diapers during the day and the number of urinations is counted. This method is informative if the child does not receive any other liquid besides milk. If the baby urinated 10 times or more, everything is fine.

How to increase lactation while breastfeeding

Specialists in breastfeeding It is recommended to use so-called natural methods for this purpose. It is not necessary to take any dietary supplements. It is important to find out the reasons why a nursing mother has little milk and the baby does not have enough milk, and depending on them, look for a solution. For example, if a child often sleeps a lot, wake him up for feeding. This situation is especially relevant for children in the first month of life. They should eat at least once every 3 hours. If after feeding the child sleeps for more than 2.5 hours, wake him up and feed him.

Another common reason why you may not have enough milk is swallowing large quantity air during feeding. This creates false feeling satiety, as a result the baby sucks out little milk. What to do? Need to feed the baby on the floor vertical position, at an inclination of approximately 45 degrees. Plus, make it a rule to feed your baby only when he is in a calm state, since screaming and crying swallows a lot of air.

The question is whether it is enough breast milk It is usually not worth it when the mother often offers the breast to the baby, gets plenty of rest, and knows little tricks to help the production of the hormone oxytocin while the baby is suckling. This is facilitated by skin-to-skin contact, a calm environment, and a good psychological attitude.

Future mothers look forward to the first meeting with their babies. And, of course, they think about how they will feed their babies. What to do if milk does not come after childbirth? Or suddenly there is less milk and the baby doesn’t have enough? What to do if there is no breast milk at all?
While some mothers are tormented by the above-mentioned questions, others decide in advance to abandon natural feeding in favor of formula, so as not to spoil the “beauty” of their breasts.

Natural breastfeeding is the key proper development and baby, because mother’s milk contains more than 400 natural ingredients necessary for a growing organism.
No matter how hard scientists try to deduce perfect formula, so far only about 40 components of artificial nutrition have been developed. In addition, breast milk contains stem cells, which cannot be replaced with anything yet.
During breastfeeding, an emotional connection is established and maintained between mother and baby, and this has a positive effect on the development and strengthening of the baby. Therefore, if there is at least a minimal opportunity to maintain breastfeeding, you should strive for this.

What to feed the baby in the first days?

Many young mothers are sure that milk appears immediately with the birth of a child. It becomes a discovery for them that for the first few days it may not be there at all. But even the amount of colostrum that is produced immediately after birth will be enough to feed the baby. It is not necessary to supplement the baby with formula, as some compassionate nurses in maternity hospitals advise. Nature intended it this way that the baby can wait 2-3 days before the arrival of mother’s milk, feeling full from a few drops of colostrum.
You need to put the baby to the breast as often as possible, provide correct grip nipple (ideally it is completely hidden in the baby’s mouth, along with the areola). This speeds up milk production in the mother’s body.

It seemed!? False signs

Breastfeeding mothers are prone to excessive worries for any reason. Including, if the baby behaves restlessly, cries, sleeps poorly, the mother decides that she does not have enough breast milk.
A similar thought may also come to her as a result of persistent recommendations and advice from loved ones, relatives, and pediatricians. It may seem to others that the mother does not have enough milk of her own to feed the baby due to small size breasts Or she is not at all capable of breastfeeding, since all the women of her family were unable to breastfeed their children.
How can you tell if your baby is not getting enough breast milk?

Signs of hypogalactia

You can understand that we are talking about insufficient breast milk production (hypogalactia) using the following criteria:

Restless baby
Minimum weight gain that does not meet the norms (per month less than 500g/700g)
Decrease in the amount of urine excreted by the baby per day (normally about 10-15 urinations)
The baby's stool is denser, drier, and less frequent than usual.

Having noticed all these signs in a baby (individually they may indicate other problems), you need to think about how to establish breastfeeding.
A common phenomenon of temporary lack of milk is called a lactation crisis. Growing up, the child demands everything more consumed milk. The mother’s body may experience short-term pauses, periods when the mammary gland is adjusted to produce the required volumes of nutrition. A lactation crisis can occur at the end of 1, 3, 5 months of a baby’s life.
Many mothers panic when they notice that in the evening there is little breast milk. There is no need to be afraid that your child will remain hungry at night. Night feedings compensate for the evening lack of milk.

Causes

Why is there less breast milk? There are several reasons for this:

Hormonal disorders that led to underdevelopment of the mammary glands, developmental abnormalities.
Severe toxicosis on later pregnancy.
Mommy's injuries during childbirth, bleeding, infections.
Microtraumas of the nipples (cracks), mastitis.
Infectious diseases of nursing mothers.
Errors in nutrition.
Violations of the daily routine.
Stress, difficult life situations.
Incorrect feeding regimen, including long breaks, leading to a decrease in the amount of milk produced.

How to restore lactation

Refuse “regular” feedings, feed the child at his first request. Routine feeding inhibits breast milk production.
Place the baby on the breast at least once every 1.5-2 hours.
Practice correct latching on the breast, avoiding injury to the nipple and the baby swallowing air.
Apply the baby alternately to the left and right breast. Alternation can occur during one feeding.
Express the remaining milk after feeding. The more milk the baby consumes at one feeding (or is expressed by the mother), the more milk will arrive the next time.
Massage mammary glands before pumping.
Take liquid as needed.
During feeding, mother and baby have the opportunity for skin-to-skin contact. This stimulates the production of the love hormone (oxytocin), which affects the appearance of milk.
Sleeping with your baby and night feedings have a beneficial effect on increasing your milk supply. At night, the hormone prolactin is produced, which controls the intensity of breast milk production.
Walk on fresh air together with your baby, eat right, eliminate stress that negatively affects milk production.
Get emotionally ready to resume breastfeeding.
On the advice of a lactation consultant or doctor, take medications and herbal teas to improve lactation.
Use

If the milk has disappeared, or due to illness of the mother or child, lactation was impossible, it is quite possible to restore feeding, with patience and following the rules listed above.

The process of restoring lactation takes time and patience. In addition, it is necessary to supplement the baby with formula or gradually introduce early complementary foods. It is better to put bottles, pacifiers, and pacifiers away. Let the baby satisfy its sucking needs through its mother's breast. To ensure that natural feeding remains a priority for the baby, supplement it with a spoon, a syringe without a needle, or use supplementary feeding systems at the breast.

Prevention

How to warn possible problems with breastfeeding?
Eliminate violations of the daily routine, maintain proper nutrition, practice frequent breastfeeding, co-sleeping and night feedings, drink about 2 liters of liquid per day, express the remaining milk, take folic acid/vitamins for nursing mothers.
And most importantly, worry less and not invent non-existent problems for yourself. True inability to breastfeed is very rare, in 2-3 cases out of 100. You can check your doubts about this by visiting a doctor.
To

Is the baby getting enough breast milk? This question often arises among young mothers. Mostly, such concern is unfounded, but it really happens that the baby does not eat enough. How to dispel doubts? Very simple. It is necessary to carefully monitor your breastfed baby. Having identified a number of signs, it will be possible to determine with confidence that there is indeed little milk.

Certain signs will help a mother understand that her baby is not getting enough breast milk. The surest sign of a lack of milk during breastfeeding is the baby's anxiety and lack of weight.

If the baby is nervous while latching on to the breast, or is capricious immediately after feeding, you need to suspect that maybe the baby is not getting enough breast milk.

Signs of low breast milk:

Chronic underweight. It is possible to determine the exact weight gain at a control weighing.
Baby's nervousness at the breast and after feeding.
Wet diaper test. You can understand that a breastfed child is malnourished by counting the number of urinations. It is worth consulting with your doctor, who will determine their suitability for the baby’s age.
Pale skin, lethargy. These are all signs of dehydration. When it comes to breastfeeding, this may indicate that the mother's milk supply is low. However, if you notice these signs, you should urgently consult a doctor, because dehydration is a rather dangerous condition, and it may well be a symptom of other health problems.

False symptoms

If natural feeding is carried out in an “on demand” mode, then some signs may be falsely interpreted by the young mother.

This does not mean that there is no milk in the breast if:

Milk production has stopped during or between feedings.
The feeling of fullness in the chest disappeared.
Mom stopped feeling hot flashes.
I can't express milk between feedings.

If, despite all these signs, the baby behaves calmly at the breast, continues to suck, gains weight normally, and is not capricious, this is not a reason to be upset; on the contrary, everything is just fine. All these symptoms indicate mature lactation. Milk is produced in the required quantity during sucking.

The child is capricious at the breast and after feeding. The cause of this is often colic, constipation, or air entering the stomach during feeding.
There is no need to draw premature conclusions. You need to hold the baby in an upright position, let him burp and offer the breast a little later.
These signs will not help a mother determine with one hundred percent certainty that the baby is not getting enough breast milk.
How to be
When a young mother independently suspects a problem of lack of milk, she may have a question about supplementing her baby with formula.
Most often, there is no need to rush to the pharmacy. Of course, we are not talking about cases where the child is weakened or has chronic underweight. For such children, the doctor is obliged to select an appropriate diet and strictly monitor weight gain and the condition of the baby as a whole.
You can eliminate the problem of milk shortage and reach the required volume by following a number of recommendations:
You should not give a breastfed baby a pacifier. Until lactation is established, it is better not to give the baby a pacifier. There is no special need for it when “feeding on demand”. On the contrary, constant sucking of a pacifier by a newborn can affect the reduction in the amount of breast milk in the mother.
If the mother's milk supply is low, it is worth increasing the number of times the baby attaches to the breast. Feeding the baby “on demand”, as a rule, best prevention lack of milk and the right way eliminate this problem.
Skin to skin contact. The feeling of maternal warmth has a beneficial effect on nervous system baby. In addition, this principle of feeding promotes the production of oxytocin (the “breastfeeding” hormone) in the mother.
Do not supplement your baby with formula, much less cow's (goat's) milk, unless prescribed by the doctor.
Do not skip night and early morning feedings. It is this time of day that is the peak of oxytocin production and “lays the program” for lactation for the next day.

What mom needs to know
During breastfeeding, so-called lactation crises occur from time to time. This is due to the fact that the baby’s needs increase due to growth spurts. At the same time, mother’s breasts do not always have time to react in a timely manner and adjust to new volumes. Typically, lactation crises last a maximum of a week, after which everything is restored by itself and, accordingly, signs of lack of milk disappear.
The production of oxytocin is promoted by frequent latching of the baby to the breast. The key to successfully overcoming a lactation crisis is compliance with the above recommendations.
Successful breastfeeding requires, first of all, the desire of mother and child, as well as perseverance and strong confidence. Then everything should work out!

How to avoid making a mistake
The doubts and fears of a young mother can be understood, especially if grandmothers constantly remark affirmatively that she has little milk, it is not nutritious enough, and the like. However, this is not a basis for switching to mixed and especially artificial feeding. There is nothing more beneficial for a child than mother's milk. With some effort, it is quite possible to restore and normalize lactation. If in doubt, you should consult a competent specialist. An experienced pediatrician can easily help a young mother find out if her baby has enough milk. It is very good if the mother and the doctor are for one thing - for natural feeding.

Not enough breast milk. What to do? Almost every mother has at least once had to worry that there seems to be less milk... What to do if the words “problems with lactation” have become relevant for you too? The vast majority of women can provide their children with adequate breastfeeding. There are less than 5% of women in the world who actually do not have enough milk. This phenomenon is called hypolactia and is usually caused by

If the baby latch onto the breast correctly, is attached to the breast 12 or more times a day, does not receive additional water or formula, but pees less than 8-10 times a day and gains less than 80 grams for several weeks in a row, then most likely your milk supply is not enough.

If you suspect you have hypolactia, seek confirmation of the diagnosis and recommendations from an endocrinologist or mammologist.

Often young mothers find signs of lack of milk, which are not always indicative. Let's try to figure out when there are reasons for concern and when woman's health and the baby is safe.

When there is no reason to worry

If you don't feel your breasts filling up like they did before, there's no need to worry. The fact that there is no feeling of filling only means that lactation is established, and milk comes in exactly as much as the baby needs.

You tried to express milk, but now you’re worried - you couldn’t express more than 30 grams. What does the baby eat? There is no reason to worry - after all, sucking movements are much more effective than any pumping. Your baby is getting a lot more milk than you were able to express..

If the baby asks for the breast often, this does not mean that he is hungry. Breastfeeding is not only nutrition, but also bonding time between mother and baby. The baby may simply lack physical contact..

Why it may seem like your milk is running out

Usually, a temporary lack of milk is a removable phenomenon. The feeling that there is not enough milk may be due to the following factors:

Bad mood

If mom is irritated, feels uncomfortable , angry - the production of oxytocin, the hormone that is responsible for the release of milk from the breast, decreases. This factor is also associated with the myth that milk may disappear due to stress.

Just calm down and hold your baby in your arms more often, and the hormonal levels will return to normal. Recovery will take no more than a few days.

Feeding by the hour

The body is designed wisely - the more often the baby is put to the breast, the more milk is produced. Moreover, it is the frequency of attachments that is more important, and not the time that the baby spends at the breast. Therefore, it is more beneficial for lactation if the baby suckles for five minutes, but every half hour, than half an hour of breastfeeding at three-hour intervals.

Supplementary feeding/supplementation

A baby up to six months does not need any food or liquid other than mother's milk. Even if a child just wants to drink, it is better to give him breastfeeding; milk perfectly quenches thirst. Supplemental feeding or additional feeding increases the interval between feedings, and lactation begins to decline.

Suppose that your baby is often put to the breast, you are completely calm, breast milk is the baby’s only nutrition, but you still get the feeling that there is not enough milk... What is this? This can be explained by several reasons.

Lactation crisis

Most mothers of 1-2 month old babies experience lactation crises. This is a temporary condition associated with the hormonal background of the mother. What to do? The main thing is not to be nervous, and after 1-2 weeks your body will adjust and everything will return to normal.

Measures to help cope with temporary milk shortages:

- Put your baby to the breast more often. The more stimulation the breasts receive, the more milk is produced.

Full-fledged rest will help You must remain calm and positive.

Drink warm liquid. Just be sure to eat the one that seems delicious to you. This helps expand the ducts of the mammary gland and makes it much easier for the baby to suck, which means he will get full faster.

- Night feeding(from 3 am to 7 am) - lactate-forming. Simply put, it helps with milk production. The most convenient thing is if the baby is sleeping in your bed , but you can just take him in your arms and cuddle him. Skin contact stimulates milk production.

How can carry your baby in your arms more . The proximity of the baby stimulates milk production in the mother. The smell of a baby, the feeling of him being so warm in your arms, his hooting and even crying - all this causes a hormonal reaction of oxytocin in the mother's body.

And most importantly, remember that everything can be fixed if you take the necessary measures in time to maintain breastfeeding!

How to tell if babies are getting enough breast milk

Does the baby have enough colostrum or breast milk? Perhaps he needs to be supplemented with formula? These questions concern mothers, starting from the maternity hospital. Many children are restless from birth. They may have a stomach ache. But usually everything is attributed to a lack of mother's milk. When should you be concerned?

Signs of lack of breast milk and measures to restore lactation

We immediately note that certain features of the child’s behavior are not a reason to immediately introduce supplemental feeding with formula, just pay more attention to breastfeeding, perhaps reconsider the baby’s attachment to the breast, remove the feeding schedule, if one exists, feed at night, etc.

1. When a nursing mother has little milk, the baby often sucks at the breast for a long time. This feature is especially often observed in children in the first three months of life. Older children usually suck more actively and get satiated faster, and besides sucking at the breast, other interests appear.
Solution: leave everything as it is, let the baby suckle as much as he wants. If you see that the baby has dozed off while sucking, but he was not actively sucking before and did not swallow enough (that is, did not suck enough milk) - do not rush to put him in the crib. If the baby has a rapid phase of sleep, and it is characterized by rapid movement of the eyes under the eyelids, trembling, awakening due to the slightest rustle, you can try to lightly pat him on the cheek, or move the nipple along the lips, he will wake up and start sucking the breast again. By the way, this technique is especially effective for use at night, when the baby sucks little by little, but very often. It’s better to suckle 1-2 times a night, even for 40 minutes and a little more than waking up every hour.

Please note that your baby may ask for the breast more often during teething. During these difficult days for parents and the baby, he eats complementary foods less often, replacing them with breasts. Breastfed babies will have enough milk even after the introduction of complementary foods, so you don’t have to worry about how to increase lactation.

2. Insufficient weight gain. There is a certain framework within which a child must fit. Thus, the minimum monthly weight gain ranges from 500-600 grams in the first months of the baby’s life. If he gained less than 500 grams, this is a reason to take a closer look at the next point.

3. Restless behavior of the child, poor sleep, frequent need for the breast. This is how it behaves infant if he does not have enough mother's milk. However, this behavior may be due to other reasons. For example, teething, illness, overwork, disruption of the daily routine.

3. A small number of urinations and their pungent odor, rare stools. A unique study involves counting wet diapers. For one day, parents refuse to use disposable diapers, use reusable gauze diapers, and count the number of wet ones. Normal child infancy urinates 10 times a day. But this is the case if he eats only mother’s milk, does not receive supplementary food and does not drink water.
If there are 8 or fewer wet diapers, you need to decide something about nutrition. The pungent odor of urine is a sign of the presence of acetone in it. And it appears when the body is dehydrated. If a mother has been trying to increase the amount of breast milk for more than one day, but there is still no result, it may make sense to introduce supplementary feeding. But it should be given only after breastfeeding. It’s better to purchase or make your own supplementary feeding system, using which the baby will suckle at the breast at the same time as receiving the formula. You can find diagrams and photos of these simple devices on the Internet. If you decide to buy, it is produced by Medela. Long-term bottle feeding will sooner or later lead to a complete transition to artificial feeding.

It is impossible to say for sure whether a baby is getting enough breast milk based on the frequency of stool. But sometimes, if the baby is underfed, stool becomes rarer. This sign does not make sense to take into account when the child feeds only on mother’s milk, since the absence of stool may be a manifestation of the body’s complete absorption of nutrition.

Important! It is impossible to find out whether there is enough or not enough milk during breastfeeding by the type of mammary glands, their size, consistency, and sensations during feeding. With established lactation, and this happens already a few weeks after birth, a woman’s mammary glands are soft and painless outside of feeding, some even think they are empty. But that's not true. Milk is stored outside of feeding in special bags - alveoli. When the nipples are stimulated, the hormone oxytocin begins to be released, and milk from the sacs enters the mammary glands. This is called milk let-down. Only these “tides” may become less noticeable over time. But it is not The best way How to tell if babies have enough breast milk. Many long-term (more than 2 years) women report that they have not felt hot flashes at all for many months, yet they continue to feed their children, and quite often.

Also, incorrect data is given by a test for determining the amount of milk by expressing it and analyzing the amount. As we already wrote above, milk is released directly during the baby’s sucking, stimulation of the nipple, but pumping causes pain in most women. Thus, the pleasure hormone oxytocin is not released, and milk from the alveoli does not enter the glands. They remain "empty".

Another similar test used by pediatricians is called control feeding. Before feeding, mother and baby come to the clinic and the baby is weighed. Next, the mother feeds the baby, after which he is weighed again. Look at the difference. This difference is the amount of milk that the baby sucked. This test is often not informative, since when feeding on demand, children can suck out different amounts of milk. It seems that the baby hangs on the chest for 40 minutes, but he practically does not suck on it. Dozing.

When a baby may not have enough breast milk

1. If a woman does not feed her baby at night. During night feedings, the hormone prolactin is released, which makes it possible to produce breast milk. If your child wakes up at least once at night, do not give him a pacifier or pump him up to calm him down; it is better to breastfeed him.

2. With long intervals between feedings. If they last more than 2 hours in the first months of a child’s life, milk will begin to decrease over time.

3. With abundantly introduced complementary foods. If the baby begins to eat about 800-1 kg of complementary foods per day, which is essentially 4-5 full feedings for a 9-12 month old child, then he no longer needs milk as nutrition. At least he doesn't feel hungry. However, WHO says that every child should receive breast milk or formula until at least 1 year of age. If you don’t want to lose milk, feed your baby at night, early in the morning, try to supplement your baby’s breastfeeding after feedings, especially if the baby ate a little less than usual.

4. During lactation crises. What to do if a baby does not have enough milk at 1, 3, 6, 9 months? Just breastfeed more, do not give pacifiers or formula. The amount of milk produced directly depends on the stimulation of the nipples, the number and frequency of feedings. Breastfed babies will have enough milk until they reach one year of age. This is very convenient, but requires some effort and correct actions from the mother during critical periods.