Choose the one best answer for each question.

1. A breastfed baby needs to eat every 3-4 hours; this gives the mother’s breasts time to fill up.

True              False

2. Advantages of breastfeeding include less crying, fewer ear infections, vaccinations “take” better, decreased chance of heart disease for mom.

True              False

3. Low milk supply tends to run in families, so if your mom or sister didn’t have enough milk, neither will you.

True              False

4. Sore nipples are a normal part of breastfeeding.

True              False

5. Breastfeeding is great for babies – but it ruins your breasts.

True              False

6. Imported beer improves your milk supply.

True              False

7. If you take medications on a regular basis, you cannot breastfeed.

True              False

8. Breastfeeding moms should not eat onions, broccoli, beans, chocolate. It will make their babies fussy.

True              False

9. You need to drink milk, to make milk.

True              False

10. Dads feel left out when moms breastfeed.

True              False

Answers

  1. False. In the first few weeks, breastfed babies need to eat 10-12 times a day. They can’t tell time yet (duh!) so it won’t be by the clock, but babies need to eat often at first. Waiting too long between feeds actually tells the breasts to down-regulate the supply because the body thinks it’s got too much milk in inventory! To make more milk, drain breasts well.
  2. True. Although – since breastfeeding is the biologically normal way to feed a baby, we shouldn’t call them advantages. We should just say “Babies and mamas are made to be happy and healthy together”!
  3. False. We’ve learned a lot about milk supply over the years – and if your mom says she didn’t have enough milk, the first avenue we would explore would be how soon she got to nurse her babies in the hospital, and whether she was told to wait 3-4 hours between feeds! On the other hand, some hormonal challenges do run in families. If you have concerns or questions about whether you’ll have enough milk, why not take our Breastfeeding Basics class here at BMH (class calendar available here) Talk to your doctor or midwife, or make an appointment to see me at The Birthing Center even before your baby comes.
  4. False. There seems to be a certain amount of stretching that nipples do. But help with latch and positioning can help – and the biggest cause of sore nipples is a baby who is latching onto just the nipple instead of getting a big healthy mouthful. Again – we can help! Give us a call at 257-8226 for an appointment. Here’s a great article about sore nipples.
  5. False. When moms say this, they usually didn’t look to see what pregnancy was doing to their breasts. By the way, we jokingly call this “Cooper’s Droop” – the extra weight of pregnancy (or just plain overweight) causes the ligaments that give the breasts their perkiness to stretch.
  6. False. Boo hiss!! Back when you were born, your mom might’ve been told this or even served beer. The theory was that the brewer’s yeast in imported beer was rich in B vitamins, which would improve your supply because of their stress-reducing goodness. Of course today we could give you a nice local brew – but although it might help you relax and have a good let-down (milk ejection reflex), the yeast probably won’t do much for your supply. (Naturally you don’t want to serve your baby an alcoholic beverage – for information about how long to wait to nurse after that beer, click here.)
  7. It depends. I know – that’s not fair! But there’s a thought that we need to be pure to breastfeed. There are medications that will go through your milk to the baby – but for most medications, the baby will get about 1/100 of what you get. There are a few medications that aren’t good for moms to take when breastfeeding. If you have questions there’s a great website and mobile app – take a look at MommyMeds.  You can also call us at The Birthing Center with questions – we can look it up in Dr. Thomas Hale’s great book Medications and Mother’s Milk. If you need a prescribed medication, make sure your doctor knows you are breastfeeding, and if they aren’t sure about the medications, have them give us a call or look it up at LactMed (and yes, there’s an app for that!).
  8. False. Even though it seems to be common wisdom that “gassy foods” will make your baby gassy and fussy, the parts of these foods that make mom gassy (the sugars, the starches and the fiber that doesn’t dissolve) don’t have a way to get into your milk. The bottom line is that we are really pretty unaware of how unsettled babies can be in the first weeks. In fact, the “crying arc” for newborns is surprising: most babies begin crying around two weeks, crying peaks in the second month, and usually gets lots better within 3-5 months. Because we just are not around babies that much, we may thinking the crying is not normal, and blame our diets. And ourselves. For a very thorough look at what is called “purple crying”click here.  Oh, and the chocolate? One study has been done. They said babies start being affected by the chocolate when you eat a pound a day!! Meanwhile you might enjoy reading about how babies cry in different languages!
  9. False. Another very common myth! In cultures around the world, there are adults who don’t drink milk – and they are able to make breastmilk just fine. So if you enjoy cow’s milk, by all means enjoy it. Otherwise, be sure you’re getting plenty of fluids (for example, if you have chapped lips you need to drink more. Or use the nurse’s trick of looking at your urine – if it’s darker, drink more). Be sure you’re getting calcium in some way too.
  10. True – sometimes. It’s hard to figure out what it means to be a dad, and a good partner to a woman who has become a mother. One of the best pieces of advice I got? “When your partner picks up the baby, pretend you have duct tape over your mouth.” We all stumble and bumble as we’re learning this parenting gig…Make sure he knows that you don’t know what every cry means. Make sure he knows that the oxytocin you’re making during breastfeeding makes you look sleepy. Also the fact that you are not getting enough sleep! Make sure dad has a baby carrier that fits, so he can enjoy holding the baby while he’s getting something done. By the way – I know that families come in many configurations. If your partner is also a mom, she may also feel helpless and ignorant, just like you do. Being female does not impart automatic wisdom about babies.

Believe it or not – this is part one! Our next blogpost will explore some more fascinating facts about breastfeeding.