Using Fenugreek to Increase Milk Supply

Fenugreek can definitely help. Here is a link to lots of information about it. I second the good quality pump suggestion. http://www.breastfeedingonline.com/fenugreek.shtml
W. Jones
Breastfeeding Educator
http://www.mosaicbaby.com

Good for you, pumping at work!! It can be a real pain. Just nurse all you can while you're home with the baby. I used to take my lunch break to go to daycare and nurse my son. Then I only had to pump a couple of times at work. Don't feel bad about supplementing part formula with the breast milk. At least she's getting as much of that liquid gold as possible. Also, a baby is more efficient at milk removal than even the best pump. I used the Medela Pump N Style, but some people did better with the hospital grade, and with my seecond child the Avent Isis hand pumped removed milk better than the electric. Go figure.

Hi B.,

It sounds like you are getting frustrated with pumping. How great that you are dedicated to continue nursing your baby after returning to work! Fenugreek is listed as a safe herbal supplement and has been reported as a successful aid in increasing milk supply. You're right; many mothers report their sweat and urine smelling like maple syrup (some also report more profuse sweating).

Factors could be psychological as well as physical. Some other information that might be helpful to you:

-Some women aren't able to express as much milk with a pump. You may look at a better quality pump also - some are better than others on the market.

-Allow enough time to pump so you don't feel rushed

- Pump in a familiar and comfortable setting, this will allow relaxation which enhances milk let-down

-Minimize distractions

-Applying heat to the breasts, use breathing exercises from childbirth and mental imagery

-Think about your baby, look at a picture of your baby or smell something of your baby's

These suggestions are paraphrased from the Breastfeeding Answer Book by the La Leche League International. If you are in the Portland area and are still having trouble you could call the Nursing Mothers Counsel Hotline at ###-###-#### or in Vancouver ###-###-#### and their website is: www.nursingmotherscounsel.org

I hope this helps!

I had the problem of losing my supply while pumping for my twins that were in the NICU (born 9 weeks early). Giving up was not an option as they were so tiny and NEEDED the breastmilk. Stanford Hospital's lactation consultant recomended a company called Herblore (they are online) who makes a nursing tea. It has all the milk promoting herbs in it, but they can alter it for you if you have concerns about certain things. I made iced tea out of it and drank a huge cup everytime I pumped, which was every 2 hours- 24/7. Like I said, two to feed and no babies around to stimulate. I was up to 7-12oz. per pumping session. Good luck, it can be done and you are a star for trying.

I just want to add that when you are pumping, it's helpful to think about your baby. Hold an item the baby has worn close to your nose. You may not detect a scent but your brain will. Looking at a photo of the baby can be helpful too. Don't stop pumping when the milk flow slows/stops. Go a full 20 minutes. I KNOW it's hard to find the time to interupt the work day but the rewards are lifelong. If you've been pumping while you're doing "work" tasks (phone calls, computer projects, etc.), you may notice a difference when the focus is changed to your baby. The stress of combining work and family responsibilities (even when you love your job) can affect suppy too. Good Luck!
B.

B.,
I just returned to work last week and am having the same problem, I've actually had to run home with what I have pumped during the day to get my baby through the afternoon, then we're even more short the next day. I called my Ob yesterday and she made a few recommendations. 1. Drink LOTS of water, drink until you can't drink another drop, and then drink a liter! 2. Eat well, sometimes when we are back to work we don't eat as well as at home. 3. Relax and take your time. This is the hardest for me, I sit in the restroom thinking of all the things that need to be done, it doesn't help that my employees come to the door to hollar questions at me. So today I told them to let me be, unless it is an emergency. Then I sat back and relaxed, cleared my mind and just focused on my baby. It really seemed to help. Yesterday I only pumped 10 ounces and today I got around 15. My ob doc told me that if none of the suggestions above worked to call her, she could prescribe an anti-nausea medication that would increase my milk supply. I hope my suggestions have helped. If you are still having problems call your ob doc, or your baby's doc, most nurses are also lactation consultants and are wonderfully helpful.

my lil boy is almost 5 months and ive been fighting pneumonia and im thinking the antibiotics that im on have been drying me up. well before i even thought of fenugreek(which i hear works great) i went and got a script for regalan, i hope it helps because i love nursing my baby!!

good luck hun!
R. b

B.,

What kind of pump are you using? Is it new or used? How long have you been using it? How often are you pumping? How long are your sessions? Are you double pumping? There are many, many factors that can effect your pumping output. I pumped at work for my son until he was 16 months old and I plan on doing the same for my newborn son (he's 2 weeks so it will be a few more weeks before I go back to work). It is very possible to maintain and even increase your milk supply but there is some "art" and some "science" involved. I'd highly recommend checking out www.kellymom.com and joining the yahoo group "PumpMoms" you will find all sorts of helpful info in those two spots. You can also email me directly. I'd be happy to try and help.

The basic idea is that you need to be emptying your breasts frequently and thoroughly enough. I started out last time as a low supply mom (pumping about 8 ounces a day) and was able to become a pretty high producer (around 25 ounces a day). So it is do-able. I went back to work when my son was 6 weeks old and that is really hard on your milk supply.

I haven't used fenugreek but it is very popular among the PumpMoms participants. The main thing to remember is that it is a member of the legume family so if you have allergies you want to be really careful. It can also mess with your blood sugar so if you are diabetic or hypoglycemic, you need to be really careful with it. It can also make babies fussy but your daughter isn't a newborn so I'd be less concerned about that. From what I've heard, if you don't smell like maple syrup, you aren't taking enough. There are lots of "mother's milk" supplements on the market and most of them contain fenugreek - which is also a spice used a lot in India cooking. Good luck in getting your supply up!

T.
mama to Cole 9-11-03 and Wyatt 11-14-06

traditional medicinals makes a tea called mother's milk (contains fenugreek). i was having low-milk-supply problems, drank 3 cups of it one evening before bed, and woke up with breasts twice their normal size, managed to pump 5 oz in about as many minutes. now i drink it anytime i need a little extra.

i'm sure fenugreek seed would work just as well or better- but the tea tastes good and i haven't noticed a maple-syrup effect. good luck!

I'm not sure about Fenugreek. But I know that pumping more frequently should increase your milk supply.

Fenugreek as a long list of possible side effects, and while most don't suffer any other than the maple smell, the possibility is real.

I was one that suffered just about every single one of the possibly side effects and actually ended up in the hospital over it. I literally had no clue it was as dangerous as it turned out to be, on my body anyway.

It's known side effects, aside from the maple smell, are triggering migraines if you are prone to them, drop in blood pressure, drop in blood sugar (I ended up in the ER when I passed out in the middle of the store with a bp of 60/40 and a blood sugar of 29) it can cause intestinal distress in you and baby.

After going through what I went through, I recommend lots of water, oatmeal, nursing as much as humanly possible when you are with baby and as the previous poster said... A REALLY GOOD pump.

This is recommended by lactation consultants I Know, but have not tried it personally.

Hi B.,

I've struggled with supply since my baby's birth 9 months ago, and I have issues with pumping - I don't seem to let down the same as when I'm nursing even if I'm actually holding my baby and smelling her actual head. It's worse if she's not in the room.

The one thing that really helped me was More Milk Plus - a supplement you can get at natural grocery stores. The fenugreek and fennel help a little, but for me the "magic" ingredient is blessed thistle. It really increases supply. So, whatever supplement you use, just be sure it has blessed thistle. Good luck!

T.

B.
WOW! You have gotten a lot of really great ideas. I too found my supply low when I returned to work at 7 weeks post-partum. I consulted my lactation nurse and did a few things.
I quit taking my birth control pill. It has been proven to lower supply. I drank mothers milk tea. I think I drank 10 cups a day the first week! I also took fenugreek. I would take 2 in the morning and 2 at night. I drank a lot of water and RELAXED. Worrying about it only made it worse.
I'm also using the pump in style at work 3-4 times a day. I nurse my son every chance I get, and pump after I feed him even if I only get half an once.
Will was eating every hour when my supply was down and I was so tired. But I can say the combination of these things really worked for me. I forget the tea a lot, I only take 2 fenugreek a day now and my supply is great. In fact it is almost too plentiful!
I hope this helps. Good luck and congrats on your baby girl!

B.,
I agree with the ones telling you to have a nursing marathon, also something that worked for me, was that after I nursed my baby I pumped too. Because I already had let down from baby eating my body just thought I was demanding more food, and it made it. It worked great, a few days to a week of doing this really helped me out. I went back to work when My baby was 4 months and this system kept us nursing welll into the nine month range..(when my daughter decided she was all done and only wanted sippy cups, stinker, I loved to nurse too)
OH and also make sure you are taking a good vitamin, prenatals are what my doctor recomended, plus good sleep and lots of fluids...

H.

This works, so long as you take it like directed! It was the only thing the kept me producing enough milk to pump when I went back to work-no matter how often I pumped. Go to whole foods and get the Nature's Way brand (I am pretty sure that's it) It's a white bottle with a green lid. Good luck!

I had the same problem. When my baby was around 4 months old my milk supply was cut in half. I admit I wasn't pumping when I was suppose to every time when she was taking the bottle. So, that probably caused my decrease. I tried fenugreek (and took it as directed) and it didn't do a thing!!!! Yes, you smell like maple syrup, and it isn't that bad, but it does eventually get old. Anyway, I started pumping more and nursing more along with formula supplements since I wasn't making enough. I went 4 months nursing part time and formula the other half and then my milk just was not enough. So I had to stop at 8 months. Try pumping more often if possible (I had a medela pump and it works great but it still didn't seem to increase my milk supply), and then if that doesn't work you may just have to stop nursing. You have gone 8 months so far and that is excellent, so don't be worried if you have to stop. It was a little hard emotionally for me for a few days, but you will be fine and she will get her nutrients from her solids more so now, so breasfeeding is ok to stop at this time. Good luck

I have not heard of Fenugreek so I dont know how it works but I used Mothers Milk tea and that worked wonderful. You can get it at Fredmeyer in the natural section.

I used this while I was nursing and it did help. And yes, I did smell like maple syrup.

Hi B.,

The only way I am able to pump enough milk out to make it worthwhile is to pump on one side first thing in the morning while nursing my son on the other side. During our early-morning night nursings I try to make sure to only nurse on one side, so the other side is nice and full when it comes time for pumping!

Good luck!
A.

Fenugreek didn't work for me, but absolutely nothing works for me. A lot of women swear by it to increase supply. The maple syrup smell really isn't bad, but it made me want pancakes. ;) If you haven't tried any other galactagogues yet, you might want to start with something else, like eating oatmeal for breakfast. Another thing to keep in mind is that your supply might not be the problem. You could just have issues responding to the pump, which happens to quite a few women, myself included. I barely squeeze out drops when I pump, but my actual supply is just fine. Fennel supplements, I believe, are supposed to help with letdown, which would help with pumping output. Here's a link with some more information: http://www.kellymom.com/herbal/milksupply/fenugreek.html
Good luck!

I successfully pumped for about 18 mos. I rented a hospital grade bump which was (14 years ago) so much better than store bought. Make sure you have a good pump.

S.

I would suggest a 24hr nursing marathon to increase that supply again. Drink lots of water & go to bed with baby. Nurse every 2 hrs. at least & within 24hrs. you should notice a huge difference.
Are you getting enough to drink while at work?

B.-
I too was having this problem about a month ago. I called my lactation concultant and this is the advice she gave me:
1. Drink LOTS and LOTS of water.
2. Make sure I am eating enough calories. Good ones not just wasteful calories. More specifically make sure you are getting enough protien.
and
3. Take Fenugreek. Day 1: 15 pills then 3 pills twice a day after that until you have enough milk. Then you can stop taking them.

I did exactly what she said and in just a couple days I was back to narmal and then some. So for me, the Fenugreek worked great.