The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk: Foreword by Martha Sears, RN [Paperback]

Diana West (Author), Lisa Marasco (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 28, 2008

Concerned about making enough milk for your baby? Wondering how to make more? Two lactation experts are here to help.

Separate fact from fiction with help from this comprehensive book about improving low milk supply. Written by two leading experts who have been there themselves and officially recommended by La Leche League International, The Breastfeeding Mother's Guide to Making More Milk incorporates the latest research and discoveries about causes of low milk supply, the way your body makes milk, and how babies contribute to your milk production. Best of all, you'll find valuable suggestions for both time-honored and innovative ways to make more milk.

Learn the facts about:

• Determining if baby is really getting enough milk
• Supplementing without decreasing your supply
• Maximizing the amount of milk you can make
• Identifying the causes of your low supply
• Increasing your supply with the most effective methods, including pumping, herbs, medications, foods, and alternative therapies
• Making more milk when you return to work, exclusively pump, have a premie or multiples, relactate, or induce lactation

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Diana West, IBCLC, is a board certified lactation consultant in private practice and author of Defining Your Own Success: Breastfeeding After Breast Reduction Surgery.

Lisa Marasco, M.A., IBCLC, is a board certified lactation consultant both in private practice and for WIC and contributing author to the Core Curriculum for Lactation Consultant Practice.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (October 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 007159857X
• ISBN-13: 978-0071598576
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.9 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (100 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,962 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #42 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Reference
  • #80 in Books > Parenting & Relationships > Family Relationships > Motherhood

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended to me by my lactation consultant, a very smart girl! December 5, 2012

By Tina Ratliff

Format:Paperback

My lactation consultant recommended this book to me because of the issues that I was having with producing milk. I found this book very helpful and easy to read. It provides a thorough explanation of the milk making process and the various things that can adversely affect supply. I think its a really good idea to read this book while you are pregnant rather than waiting to read it until you are already having problems, like I did. It gives a lot of advice on a wide variety of topics.

The best chapter I thought was the chapter on all the different kinds of supplements you can take. This actually is what motivated me to do more of my own research and after talking it over with my lactation consultant and M.D. I started taking mothers milk tea w/ blessed thistle -Organic Mother's Milk Tea + FREE Nature's Way Blessed Thistle (100 Capsules). Since then I've been pumping more milk than I can use and haven't had any issues since. I would totally recommend these herbs for helping with milk production.

During my pregnancy, I really did not educate myself very well on the subject of breastfeeding. I regret this now and if I could go back in time I would have definitely added this book to my must read list. The more you know about yourself and the way your body produces milk, the more you can help yourself and your baby. And just as its never too early to start learning, it's never too later either so please, if you are pregnant or are already breast-feeding, do yourself and your baby a favor and pick up this book.

11 of 15 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Ok, but...what can you really do if the problem is you? April 21, 2012

By Low SupplyMama

Format:Paperback

This book is good in terms of laying out potential causes of low supply, but unlike other reviewers, I find it short on answers if the problem lies with the mother. At the end of the day, if your low supply issues have to do with you, there is very little you can do besides take domperidone (which is effective, but doesn't get everyone there 100%). Fenugreek, blessed thistle, etc., could be effective for some people, I suppose, but probably don't do much to get you there if you have a tough case.

I do find it reassuring that the book actually acknowledges that there are women out there with chronic low supply, which is nice because most lactation consultants basically just rattle off some statistic that only 2-5% (where does this statistic come from anyway) of women "can't breastfeed" and basically just tell you to pump more.

This is a frustrating problem, but at the end of the day there are few very effective interventions when the problem has to do with the mother.

34 of 49 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Must Have for Mothers with Low Supply and Lactation Experts December 20, 2008

By Justthinkn

Format:Paperback

The book has sections that would be wonderful for any expecting mother to read: understanding the biology of milk making, normal breastfeeding behaviors, best steps to get your supply off to a good start, and how to know if you should really be concerned about low supply - many mothers go through at least a moment or two of doubt! But for those of us currently in the trenches dealing with low supply or wondering how we can be more successful for the next baby, this book is just packed with information!

"While it's true that most mothers can make enough milk [to feed their babies], we are now learning that there are definitely mothers who really aren't making enough milk." For those of us who have been there and done that, this affirmation by experts in the field of lactation of the painful reality we have struggled with almost makes the book worth it all on its own. But of course, the authors offer much, much more in reassuring and informative discussions that fully explain what they call "The Milk Supply Equation" - the factors, from adequate breast tissue to effective and frequent milk removal, that work together to ensure a good milk supply.

I'm well-read, worked closely with a lactation consultant for months, and still learned one or two really helpful (and generally SIMPLIFYING, stress-reducing) things in each chapter. For instance, it explains how to supplement without damaging the supply you have, and perhaps even in such a way that it helps to increase it... But perhaps most importantly, the book will help you think through the underlying causes behind your supply issues and how to address them. Because without knowing the root of the problem, it's hard to direct interventions effectively...

As a concluding personal note, that's why I sound so gung-ho about this book... I would have given it a great review anyway, but I had a HUGE ah-ha moment reading through Ch. 8. I have insufficent glandular tissue, and had only ever heard about it in relation to hormonal causes. Yet I always felt like "hormonal imbalance" was a diagnosis that didn't fit me. Reading through Ch. 8 I learned that injuries to the breast during childhood and adolescence can also halt or impair breast development - and that fits me to a tee! So now I have confirmation that I need to focus on interventions to grow tissue, but really don't need to concern myself with the hormonal imbalance piece. I hope this book is just as helpful for many other women out there.