It is quite possible that herbal remedies help increase milk supply. There are several drugs that obviously do increase milk supply, and of course it is reasonable to assume that some plants and herbs might contain similar pharmacological agents. Almost every culture has some sort of herb or plant or potion to increase milk supply. Some may work as placebos, which is fine; some may not work at all; some may have one or more active ingredients. Some will have active ingredients that will not increase the milk supply but have other effects, not necessarily desirable. Note that even herbs can have side effects, even serious ones. Natural source drugs are still drugs, and there is no such thing as a 100% safe drug. Luckily, as with most drugs, the baby will get only a tiny percentage of the mother's dose. The baby is thus extremely unlikely to have any side effects at all from the herbs.

Two herbal treatments that seem to increase the milk supply are fenugreek and blessed thistle, in the following dosages:

Fenugreek: 3 capsules 3 times a day
Blessed thistle: 3 capsules 3 times a day, or 20 drops of the tincture 3 times a day

The tincture container states that blessed thistle should not be taken by nursing mothers, presumably because of the tiny amount of alcohol the mother would get. There are some preparations of both herbs that are labelled "not for use by nursing mothers." Don't worry about this; these herbs are safe for the mother to take because so little gets into the milk. *Teas also seem to work, but to take enough to make a difference, you will be drinking tea all day and night, since the amount of the herbs you get is much less. (See the Oasis Lactation Tea difference)

• Fenugreek and blessed thistle seem to work better if you take both, not just one or the other.
• Fenugreek and blessed thistle work quickly. If they do work, you will usually notice a difference within 3 to 4 days of starting taking them. If not, they probably won't work.
• Fenugreek is often sold as a combination with thyme. Do not buy this combination, but try to get the capsules with fenugreek alone.
• Herbal remedies are not standardized, so though the bottle of fenugreek, for example, may say that it contains 405, 505, 605 or 705 mg/capsule, we do not really know how much of the active ingredient you are taking. Fenugreek has a distinct smell. If you cannot smell it on your skin, you are not taking enough, even if you are taking three capsules three times a day.
• Fenugreek and blessed thistle seem also to work better in the first few weeks than later. In fact they tend to work best in the first week. Domperidone works better after the first few weeks. (See Handout #19: Domperidone for more information.)
• You can take fenugreek and blessed thistle together with domperidone.htm">domperidone if you feel they are helping. If you take the herbs and domperidone, take domperidone at the same time, 3 tablets three times a day.
  If you are ready to stop fenugreek and blessed thistle, you can probably stop suddenly, or wean off over a week or so.
• Fenugreek does not cause low blood sugar. Where this rumour came from is unknown.
  

Other herbal treatments that have been used to increase milk supply are: raspberry leaf, fennel, goat's rue, brewer's yeast, alfalfa and many others. The effectiveness of none of these treatments, including blessed thistle and fenugreek, has been proved. Remember! Herbal treatments are only part of the solution to "not enough milk" (see protocol to increase breastmilk intake by the baby).

Lecithin
Lecithin is a food supplement that seems to help some mothers prevent blocked ducts. It may do this by decreasing the viscosity (stickiness) of the milk, by increasing the percentage of polyunsaturated fatty acids in the milk. It is safe, inexpensive, and seems to work in some cases. The dose is 1200 mg four times a day. There is more to preventing blocked ducts than taking lecithin. See Handout #22: Blocked Ducts and Mastitis.

Handout #24. Miscellaneous Treatments. January 2003
Written by Dr_Jack_Newman.htm">Jack Newman, MD, FRCPC. © 2003

*Great article - now find out how why we think our teas can help. Oasia Pro-Lactation Tea

Contact a local La Leche League Leader for information and support. The section of our(La Leche League) Web site entitled "Finding a Local LLL Group" at http://www.lalecheleague.org/leaderinfo.html will help you do this.

Ladies just know, you don't have to be alone on this. You've accomplish many things the last 9 months and you can still do many more astonishing things as well. But lets give our spouses a chance to do something too. So either print this article for them or read it together. Read it again many times as needed.

Fathers, your job is to help your wife with the rest of the work. You probably think that your wife is just amazing having gone through the 9 months of pregnancy and then again you see her in action during the birth, and your absolutely right and more. Wow! I'm sure glad that wasn't me! -- You might of thought.

To make it up to her these are the things you need to do, and don't worry we still kept you in mind:

1. Now that the baby is home the mother is going to busy feeding the little one. That means she won't have time to do anything else, like clean the house, go grocery shopping, cook the meals, and among other things as well. So be selfless, that is, don't just think about what you're needs but rather think about what you can do to help out.

• Help clean the house - by either picking up after yourself or actually doing some cleaning. Don't you wish you agreed to have the in-laws over. (Great time to have either parents over, but make sure that they can help with the process rather than add to the problems. Talk to your spouse and agree on something. Most women ask their mothers for help during this time, so be supportive, you might just get some good home-made meals out of it).
• Help cook - be the chef. Remember the time when you would woe her by cooking your signature meals and feeding her like a queen... no!, that's right you ordered take out, don't worry it's all the same. Bring home her favorite meals, especially the ones she couldn't eat when she was pregnant because the smell would bother her. Beats cooking and cleaning the kitchen.
• Be the supporter - After she breast feeds, this is the best time to win brownie points by taking the baby from her. Now that the child is filled up it might just want to cuddle and fall asleep, just like mommy, whose has been up most of the time feeding. This is great time to bond with your child. See if you can find out what will make the baby fall into sleep by trying these methods:
  • Sing her to sleep.
  • Can't sing, play some classic music. (Studies show that children who are exposed to classical music make better students, in the areas of math, science, and music).
  • Massage the baby. Babies need to be touched and massaged. It can also help mommy as well, during the times when the baby is asleep. No better time than to serve your spouse and give her some time for relaxation and comfort.
  • Rocking her to sleep. Take the baby in your arms gently and cradle the little one to sleep and enjoy this special bonding time. I bet your wife is smiling at you as well.

2. If possible take some time from work and spend a day with your family. Find out if your company provides benefits that will allow father's to take off work and still get some kind of compensation. If that's not possible make sure you take every advantage of the times when there is some peace and quiet. Comfort and encourage each other.

3. Shower your spouse with love. Bringing home flowers and reminding your wife how beautiful and wonderful she is, can wash away hours of stress. This can help with #5.

4. Since both of you are going to be sleep deprived, exhausted, stressed, and emotionally and physically drained, there might be some times where tempers and attitudes will occur. Expect them and prepare for them. But most of all be the better person and make it work. It helps by keeping quiet and offer signs of affection. Give her hug and a kiss and tell her you love her and the baby.

5. Lastly, but not the least, as men you have needs to be met. Don't expect your wife to come racing after you and meeting your every sexual need, it's not going to happen. Trying not to get into much detail and complexity, the only way you can get what you want is by doing the listed items above, and working extra hard to romance her, just like you did when you were first dating out. Impress her.

If that doesn't help, pick a good time to speak to your spouse and voice your concerns and desires but don't come out like a dictating, well deserved lottery winner, but rather be patient and understanding. Tell her that you'll wait for her to get "in the mood". Just remember do as much as you can with love, patience, and consistancy. Don't forget to complement her all the time. She needs to know that you still find her sexy.

*All content in this site have been organized for your convenience. These resources is used solely as an informational guide and does not have the authority to replace or negate advice from your medical practioner or the like. Although these resources have been extracted for your benefit from leading and respectable sources, IncreaseBreastMilk.com is not responsible for its inaccuracies or misdiagnosis. Always seek the advice of a professional medical practioner before performing or using any products or information stated in this site.