Dear All,
I would like to comment on the concept of substituting solids for breastmilk if a mother is pregnant and has a drop in her supply while nursing an infant under a year of age. From my experience, the drop in supply can be quite sudden and substantial for some mothers, often becoming obvious to the mother that she does not have enough milk.
Solids typically don't have the essential fatty acids, protein, and calorie concentration that breastfeeding infants need, especially when they are under 7-8 months. By 9 months an infant can eat a good variety of solids that have fats, protein, and sufficient volume (3 meals a day +2 snacks) to provide for sufficient growth, depending on parents' nutritional knowledge, resources, and the infant's interest in solids. I have had many healthy older infants (9-12 mo) in my practice demonstrate fine growth despite refusing to nurse or drink much breastmilk from a cup, because they simply love to eat a high volume of solids that are rich in proteins and fats. Younger infants, especially those under 7-8 months, will likely need donor milk or formula for sufficient growth if the pregnancy has led to insufficient milk supply. Infant growth should be monitored closely when mom is pregnant and nursing.
My goal is writing this comment is to discourage assuming that solids in general can make up for insufficient milk for infants under a year of age. I still see primary care physicians recommending cereals and other solids as early as 4 months if the mother does not have enough milk, in order to support her preference to not supplement with formula.
Anne
Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM
Clinical Professor, Dept of Family and Community Medicine
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
Director, UW Lactation Services
Medical Director, Mothers Milk Bank of the Western Great Lakes
Founder and President of The Milk Mob, www.themilkmob.org
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There are 2 messages totaling 239 lines in this issue.
Topics of the day:
1. loss of milk during pregnancy
2. Methadone
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Date: Tue, 28 Aug 2018 10:18:34 -0400
From: Theresa Moutafis <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Re: loss of milk during pregnancy
Thank you Cindy. Those are great reminders and I will let her know.
Unfortunately I don't have the pleasure of working directly with her as I encountered her on a sort of chat-based "warm line". I do have her contact info to pass some of these tips along.
I very much appreciate this group!
On Sun, Aug 26, 2018 at 8:41 AM Cindy Garrison <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
> Thank you for the statistics, Anne. Theresa, for the mother with the
> question that you brought to the group, it will also be important to
> help her look at the larger picture - a) we don't really know where
> she will fall in these statistics, b) she is early in her pregnancy
> and should be encouraged to continue breastfeeding, c) any loss in
> volume is usually gradual, d) the decrease in supply may be matched by
> the baby's readiness for solids allowing any decrease in breastmilk to
> be covered by baby's increased intake of solids (dependent, of course,
> on baby's developmental signs of readiness for solids), and, d) if
> willing, she could begin a routine of pumping after feedings to help
> stimulate a greater supply now and to collect milk to be given baby later if needed.
>
> Cindy Garrison BS IBCLC
>
>
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