Low Milk Production at Night

I read (in a book called 'Let's Have Healthy Children by Adelle Davis) that the reason dark beer increases milk supply is because it contains brewers yeast. You can find this at most nutrition centers.

Its common for babies to cluster feed at night, and my boys were both fussier at the breast at night, but they were also cluster feeding to pump up for bedtime.

I don't think your milk is low or a problem.... no pump will pump as much milk as your baby can nurse out. If she is fussy then let her nurse, she will be able to cluster feed, and it will 'stack' the milk into baby's tummy, it will help her be satisfied and sleep longer at night.

All babies have fussy times, and its usually at night. Its very normal, and if she's being fussy at the breast, then try swaddling her, or giving her a pacifier, putting her in a sling.

But your milk is fine.... at night it will be less of course, but it will be more concentrated and thicker.

As for milk with each child... your milk actually INCREASES with each child you have. I don't remember if the number was 15% or 30%, but regardless, your milk is fine, will be fine, and your daughter is also probably in or going to be in a growth spurt, so her excessive nursing will help boost your supply, and satisfy her. A growth spurtwill last anywhere from a day or two to a week or more.

So my advice is, keep nursing her on demand, only nurse on one breast during her cluster feeds, and then offer the other breast at bedtime. If she's fussy... try swaddling, a pacifier, sling... and remember that babies have fussy times, they have growth spurts and eed ot nurse more, and that your milk is just fine. :)

Hi K.,

You won't be able to get as much milk from pumping, as your baby does, so your test isn't an accurate estimate of how much milk you have.

Some suggestions though that might help increase your supply. Make sure you are getting plenty of rest still. You are in the postpartum phase still and are still healing. Make sure you are drinking lots of water and eating well. Take a few days and evenings doing nothing else, but just nursing your baby. She is probably going through a growth spurt right now, and is trying to nurse more to increase your supply. Any bottles given right now will decrease your supply.

Good luck!

I too am a breastfeeding mom. My son, Alex, will be 3 months old this weekend. I occasionally have a day when I feel that my milk supply is low. The things that I have learned about breastfeeding say; the key to having enough milk is to keep nursing. Even the best pump in the world doesn't stimulate milk production the same way your infants suckling does. Also, I've read, in many different places, that nursing during the night also helps regulate how much milk you make. My son sleeps in a co-sleeper right next to my side of the bed and now neither of us has to wake up all the way to feed. I just pull him into bed with me and help him latch on. Almost instantly I feel a let-down of milk on the opposite side.
Another thing I've learned is to monitor my diet closely. I have to make sure I get enough protein rich foods or my milk tends to be a little "thin". Another thing, I know "they" say to nurse 10-15min on one side and switch. I've learned that if I let my son nurse on one breast until it's just about empty he gets more of the fattier hind-milk and he stays satisfied longer. That's the milk that really helps babies build muscle. Most importantly, keep the baby nursing at your breast, burp baby often and follow her cues as to when she needs a little break in her feeding. Actual nursing tells your body that it needs to make MORE milk :)
Hope that was helpful!

dont be discouraged, as its common to pump little to no milk, especially under stress or worry over supply. i always pumped only little amounts of milk, the time that i pumped the most was when my son was near me crying. :(

drink more water, eat lots of fruits and veggies, and try to get your older child into something distracting when feeding baby. it is possible that after the day you are stressed out and just cant let down the milk.

fantastic job for trying! no matter what you choose in the end, remember that you are doing whts best for your family, no matter what that choice means. but i highly support breastfeeding!

find your local la leche league group. im sure there are other mothers in your area who went through something like this! and good luck!

I was never able to get as much from the pump as I was when just nursing. I wouldn't necessarily go by how much milk you're making when you pump, it probably isn't a good indicator.
Put the pump away and keep feeding on demand at night. At six weeks you are still stabilizing your supply, so let her nurse as much as she wants to, this will really help your milk production.
I also found that just drinking a lot of water made a HUGE difference for me. (I worked ten hour days and pumped twice a day at work for about 6 months). There are things you can take to increase milk supply, but since your daughter is so young I would definitely feed on demand as much as possible -- that will help the most.
Good luck!

your body does naturally produce less milk in the evening hours. But your baby is probably just going through her 6 week growth spurt. I can relate..... my baby is almost 9 weeks and anything she nurses more than usual, or seems fussier, especially in the evenings I think "Oh no I'm not making enough milk!"
Hang in there in a day or 2 things will get better. If you are really concerned e-mail a LLL teamleader in your area.

My son was very fussy at the breast during feedings due to low milk supply and infrequent letdown reflex. I met with a lactation consultant (which I highly recommend doing). What worked was taking fenugreek capsules, pumping 3-4 times a day AFTER feedings for 10-15 minutes, This increased my supply and conditioned my letdown reflex to occur more frequently. It's important to continue feeding on demand since you milk supply is still being established. Make sure your eating and drinking enough as well. There's a great breastfeeding website called Kellymom.com where you can get more information.

Brewer's Yeast and Fenugreek supplements work.

I had a very fussy baby with my 6th and I didn't know what was going on! My very natural friend told me to take fennel capsules and red raspberry leaf capsuls (which I bought on puritanspride.com great bogo deals!) and that would increase my milk and calm a fussy baby.

It was AMAZING!

Congratulations and good for you for nursing! It is a lifetime of advantages, good health and so much more.
Do not measure your milk supply by pumping. NOTHING can draw milk from you like your baby. I have nursed for 7 years solid and still can't pump to save my life. Count diapers and watch your baby grow.
Drink lots of water, eat well, hook up with your local La Leche League. They can help you with whatever your nursing goals are. If you delivered at a hospital that has a lactation consultant, meet with them. They can be very helpful.
Most of all, when in doubt, offer the breast! It is a wonderful parenting resource on so many levels.
The more you nurse, the more you make, the more you supplement (if you do at all), you tell your body to make less, so keep the baby close and offer the breast whenever possible.

Good luck and enjoy your baby!
J.

I bf both my kids for 1 year. It's just a fact that you produce more milk in the morning and less and less throughout the day. Maybe you could just supplement one bottle of formula at night and see how that goes. But then keep pumping to try and get your body to produce more.

I have a 4 yr old that I nursed for 22 months and will be a mother of twins next Friday (or sooner). I was just talking with a close friend that has 5 yr old twins and asking about BF, etc. She said whenever she needed to up her production, she increased her calories and water consumption and tried to get a 2 hour nap during the afternoons (sleep when baby sleeps since the other child goes to daycare :)
Good Luck!

Everyone had such great advice!!! I just wanted to add that you should wake her up every 3 hours during the day for her to eat. Then at night when your supply tends to naturally be lower she will not need to eat as often. An added bonus you'll get more sleep...which will also help boost the supply!!

I boosted my low milk supply by using an herbal tea healthy nursing tea by secrets of tea. This is an organic and caffeine-free tea.

I'm sure this may cause some scoffs, but I've been told by many nurses and even a lactation consultant that a small amount (no more than one) of beer, particularly dark beer, increases your milk supply. I know quite a few people who swear by it. And there is such a small amount of alcohol, there is no threat to your baby. Just one more idea...

My milk production is lower at night too. I pump more during the day and at night I pump one side (my baby is 4 mos and I mix rice cereal with it that's why), and only get like 2oz from that one side and nurse with the other unpumped side (I nurse and bottlefeed breastmilk before his bedtime). When I pump the one side, it seems to take FOREVER for my letdown and the milk to come through and even worry if I should bother sometimes. Don't worry, your baby is getting enough to eat. I was getting worried too and was tempted to go the formula route, but I just stuck with it. If you want to produce more, I found a Lactation Cookie Recipe online at < http://www.recipezaar.com/Oatmeal-Chocolate-Chip-Lactatio... > . These are the healthiest cookies you can ever eat. It takes like 2-3 days to notice a difference. Baby's sucking is more efficient - gets more milk out too. Can't measure exactly by the pumping. There could be other reasons for fussiness, too warm, doesn't like to be woken up, etc. I know it feels like you have to go through a checklist each time for the fussiness. Good luck!

I also struggled with lower milk supply at night and remember reading and being told by my pediatrician that it was normal. I was told that your body has been working all day and your body can't keep up with all the tasks that you demand of it and produce as much milk as you can after periods of rest. And, that explains why you have much more milk between 3 and 5 a.m. and usually coincides with a nursing session.

I hope that makes sense and helps. If possible, take it easy for a few hours before the evening nursing sessions. I know it is easier said than done, but you could use a break anyway, eh? :)

Good luck and don't stress about it...it'll only make it worse. And, as someone else mentioned, the baby can extract much more milk than the pump can (and I'm assuming when you tried you waited for your milk to let down).

Hi! Don't go just off of what you pump to determine your supply--I had a nurse tell me that if you are not a regular pumper your body doesn't respond as well to pumping as it does to your baby, and that it isn't a very accurate way to tell what your milk production is--I was having the same issue! I recently came across this blog: http://blacktating.blogspot.com/2009/02/review-breastfeed...

She reviewed a book specifically about Milk Supply that she says is wonderful! I would like to read it sometime! Here's the link to the book on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Breastfeeding-Mothers-Guide-Making-...

Maybe this will help!

*hugs and good wishes!*

You are doing great. Keep up the breastfeeding and don't try formula. I have nursed 6 kids (now 11 down to 4 months) each one for about 20 months and when I pump I also get about nothing. Something about that magic sucking that lets your milk down. You need to drink a lot of water. Not pop or any caffenine but a huge glass of H2O everytime you sit down to nurse. Stress is a factor but I think the water is a bigger one. I have heard of a tea called Mother's Milk that is Organic. My friend used it and she said she filled up with milk. Has anyone else heard of it? Three of mine were cluster feeders eating every 45 minutes to an hour at 6, 7, 8 and 9 and then sleeping cuz their tummies were so happy. Just feed often and drink water. Good luck and keep up the great work. I always think that at about 3 months it gets so much easier and they get so much faster at eating! :)

The best thing you can do is keep putting baby to breast. You baby is best at increasing you milk supply because her continued sucking will tell your body to make more. Pumps have a different sucking action so they are not as effective. Also part of the milk letting down is emotional. You have loving, caring emotion for you baby and I assume not for your pump. Stress can also play a part and decrease your supply.

Try showering in the evenings. The warm water will help relax and help milk flow.

While the baby suckels one nipple, try stimulating the other - this might be a good job for your hubby :). My daughter will play with anything available while nursing - often it is the other breast. I have noticed faster let down when she does this. I think she notices it too which is why she searches for it.

Good Luck.