The Pantry Staple To Increase Your Milk Supply

Breastfeeding is beautiful experience, but it can also be very finicky experience. One day you're gushing waterfalls of milk, the next you can barely squeeze out a trickle. For reasons known and unknown, nursing women sometimes find themselves struggling with milk supply. It's an incredibly common issue among mothers. It's also very stressful and, at times, painful. Thankfully there are some easy things you can do to get your supply up, and you don't even have to leave the house. The one food in your pantry that could increase milk supply is a common household item, that many people have already stocked.

If you have oatmeal hanging out in the kitchen somewhere, you're golden. Oatmeal is packed with magic milk supply boosters called galactagogues. Galactagogues are food items and herbs that naturally encourage the production of milk in your body. According to Kelly Mom, the oats in oatmeal are considered galactagogues and they can possibly help you increase your supply. You can use your oats to make oatmeal, oatmeal cookies, homemade granola, etc.

A quick note about oatmeal and its galactagogue properties — it's not scientifically proven to work, but the evidence and anecdotes from mothers online is pretty convincing. According to Belly Belly, their lactation cookie recipe (that includes rolled oats) worked for 90 percent of their fan base. Whether or not science backs galactogogues up, it's sure to be a yummy experiment either way.

Nursing women are already supposed to be eating a diet full of fruits, vegetables, and fiber, according to Web MD. Incorporating galactagogues into a well-rounded diet certainly can't hurt your cause and many women find it's worth a shot if they're struggling with milk supply.

Additionally, if you find that your supply is dwindling and diet alone won't fix it, there may be some other things you need to try in tandem. La Leche League International (LLLI) suggested increasing the number of feedings or pump sessions you do to jump start supply. The most important thing you can do is to simply relax as much as possible while nursing or pumping. You're not failing if you're having trouble with supply. You're doing the best you can and that's all that matters.