Opt for protein-rich foods, such as lean meat, eggs, dairy, beans, lentils and seafood low in mercury. Choose a variety of whole grains as well as fruits and vegetables. Eating a variety of foods while breastfeeding will change the flavor of your breast milk.
Breastmilk is always changing
Breastmilk at the beginning of a feed is more watery, and helps to satisfy thirst. As the feeding goes on your breastmilk changes, gradually becoming thicker. Breastmilk towards the end of a feeding is higher in fat which helps them to feel full.
Usually blueish or clear, watery breast milk is indicative of “foremilk.” Foremilk is the first milk that flows at the start of a pumping (or nursing) session and is thinner and lower in fat than the creamier, whiter milk you see at the end of a session.
Is watery breast milk good for your baby? In a word, yes. Both fatty milk and watery/less fatty milk are good for your baby, and it's important that your baby gets both. (Think about when you're eating a meal – most of the time, you want both substance to fill you up and a drink to stay hydrated.
The longer the time between feeds, the more diluted the leftover milk becomes. This 'watery' milk has a higher lactose content and less fat than the milk stored in the milk-making cells higher up in your breast. You can't tell how much fat your baby has received from the length of a feed.
The amount of fat in human milk changes dramatically during each feeding and throughout the day, since fat content depends on the degree of emptyness of the breast (empty breast = high fat, full breast = low fat).
You make more watery or thirst quenching milk in the morning, and less volume but fattier milk in the evening. This is why your baby may want to cluster feed or fuss feed in the evenings. Your milk producing hormone prolactin is highest in the middle of the night.
Increase pumping frequency
Generally, moms should be pumping every 3 hours. Pumping more often can help stimulate breasts to produce more milk. Moms can try pumping both breasts for 15 minutes every two hours for 48-72 hours. Then moms can return to their normal pumping routine.
Yoghurt aids in the production of breast milk and is rich in protein and calcium. Yoghurt is also beneficial for the growth of healthy bacteria in a baby's intestine.
Despite views to the contrary, breasts are never truly empty. Milk is actually produced nonstop—before, during, and after feedings—so there's no need to wait between feedings for your breasts to refill.
Increasing milk supply
By offering the other breast when the first is finished, and repeating breast compressions if needed, your baby will get the correct balance of foremilk and hindmilk automatically. Using both breasts when needed (and sometimes three or four!) will drive up and maintain your supply.
Breast milk is typically white with a yellowish or bluish tint, depending on how long you've been breastfeeding. But the hue can change based on many different factors, and most of the time, a new color of breast milk is harmless.
The overall amount of fat in breast milk is highest in the evening and at night, compared with milk produced during the day. However, multiple factors contribute to the amount of fat in breast milk, especially the frequency of feeding.
To collect hindmilk for your premature baby, you should use a breast pump and separate the foremilk from the hindmilk as you pump. When you begin pumping your breast milk, it will be thin and watery. Pump for about 2 minutes, then remove the collection container from the pump.
If you see bright green and frothy poop in your baby's diaper that almost looks like algae, they're probably getting too much foremilk – the low-calorie milk that comes first in a feeding – and not enough hindmilk, the higher-fat, super-nutritious stuff that comes near the end.
Some moms notice the morning milk has more volume and lower fat content, while the evening milk may have more fat but be lower in volume. By pooling your breast milk, you ensure baby receives nourishment that is more uniform and consistent.
The Haakaa breast pump helps you collect both foremilk and rich hindmilk. Because it's only a piece of silicone, there's no electricity nor any cords required, making it so easy to integrate into your daily routine!
Foods like beans, broccoli, cauliflower, or some dairy products can cause fussiness, gassiness, or colicky behavior in some babies. Foods like cow's milk, soy, wheat, corn, oats, eggs, nuts and peanuts, and fish or shellfish are common allergy-causing foods.
Your healthcare provider would likely recommend that you continue to pump until your baby is able to breastfeed effectively and once you have a sufficient milk supply. Once this has happened, they will likely advise you to stop pumping and just breastfeed - and, of course, get plenty of rest in between.