hi,

My baby is 29 days old and from the 5th day am giving him both formula and breast feeding. actually my milk supply is low and he was really cranky and hence we started giving formula. i thought of expressing milk using breast pump, but my MIL protested and said that it will affect my breast. but now, i think my milk supply got lower and lower and i dont know how to increase that. also, since we r giving him supplemental milk, his weight is also increasing. do suggest some thing for me regarding this. thanks in advance

love,
Jichi sona replied. hi,
i am sorry for the late reply.... please have oats cooked for 3 to 5 min in milk. this will increase ur milk supply. keep feeding the baby and ur milk supply will increase. new_mom replied. Hi Jichi,

I have a 4 month old son and I had to express milk since he was born till he was about 7 weeks old and I used the Medella breast pump which worked great for me.
About milk supply, drink plenty of milk, water etc. You can try some Indian home remedies if you would like. Like eating Methi(fenugreek), Dudhi.

Good luck! Pooja replied. Jichi,
I underdstand your MIL's concern regarding using pump but evreybody has suggested the use of breastpump useful to have milk coming in. I too had (am still having a little)problem of milk supply.Initially the milk came in too much that I suffered from engorgement and then it reduced. The concept of milk production depends on demand and supply. The amount of milk baby takes in, almost an equal amount is produced back by the body. Sometimes expressing milk by breast pump or by hand triggers the milk production. I am not sure sure of the affects of pump on breasts but have not heard any major setbacks of pumps. Here in US also ( am not sure where you live) .. nurses also said that its fine to go for pump. I hope you are taking in plenty of fluids like milk, water, juices - this also plays a major role in milk production. I would be glad if any of my suggestion works for you - I can very well understand how cranky the baby gets when switching from breast to bottle. I have a 18 day old and am still struggling to cope up with breatfeeding !! Keshi replied. Hi Jichi, I really don't think you should worry. Your baby has you and is feeding well, and at the end of the day it's whatever YOU feel comfortable with that matters. Expressing milk doesn't effect your breasts, and if you think this would be easier for you then remember that if you are heppy then your baby will be happier than if you are not. Good luck! Keshi x x x (Mother of two year old twins and three week old newborn Shalini replied. Hi Jichi,
I don't think expressing milk with the pump affects your breasts. I have been breastfeeding my 8 months old, and I express milk often. If you are not breastfeeding your baby frequently then your milk supply gets decreased. I use Avent's manual Breast Pump, it works wonderfully. Hope this helps. One more thing, stay hydrated. Drink lot of water and milk.