AboutSally Wendkos Olds Expertise What do you want to know about breastfeeding? I can tell you what`s good
for the baby, what`s good for the mother -- and the father, how it`s
related to a woman`s sexuality, how working moms can nurse, how to
overcome obstacles, and lots more. As the author of THE COMPLETE BOOK OF
BREASTFEEDING and author or coauthor of 8 other books and more than 200
articles about child and adult development, I can offer sound, sensible
advice on breastfeeding, child care and family issues.
Experience I nursed my 3 daughters and am the grandmother of 5 breastfed children. My book THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING (written in consultation with pediatrician Marvin S. Eiger, M.D.) was first published in 1972, and in 1999 came out in an updated 3rd Edition by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books. It is now a classic, with over 2 million copies in print. I am now revising this book for a fourth edition, consulting with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D. This new edition will be published September 2009. I welcome any and all suggestions for the new edition.
I coauthored college textbooks A CHILD'S WORLD: INFANCY THROUGH ADOLESCENCE, and HUMAN DEVELOPMENT; both are leading texts in their fields and have been read by 2 million students. I am the coauthor of HELPING YOUR CHILD FIND VALUES TO LIVE BY and RAISING A HYPERACTIVE CHILD, and author of THE WORKING PARENTS' SURVIVAL GUIDE & THE ETERNAL GARDEN: SEASONS OF OUR SEXUALITY. My newest book, A BALCONY IN NEPAL: GLIMPSES OF A HIMALAYAN VILLAGE, published in 2002, tells the story of the way of life in a remote village in Nepal, where all the women breastfeed! My book, SUPER GRANNY: COOL PROJECTS, ACTIVITIES, AND OTHER GREAT STUFF TO DO WITH YOUR GRANDKIDS, will be published March 2009.
I speak often to professional, parent and general audiences and make many radio and TV appearances.
Credentials
I received my B.A. in English Literature from the University of Pennsylvania, where I minored in Psychology, was elected to Phi Beta Kappa and graduated summa cum laude.
Other points of interest
I have received national awards for my writing, and am a former president of the American Society of Journalists & Authors. I am listed in the World Who's Who of Women, International Authors & Writers Who's Who, and Contemporary Authors, and am a member of several professional and civic organizations. I believe: that all parents are working parents; that parents employed outside the home need special support; that mothers' well-being is crucial to their children's welfare; and that the family is the best institution in the world and the one for which we are least prepared. My thrills come when parents or kids tell me they were helped by my writing or speaking or just understanding.
To find out more about me, go to
Question Hi, my daughter 4 months and 1 week. I have breastfed her exclusively. I started her on 1 TBLSP of rice cereal last week however I work full time so I am a regular pumper. Yesterday my daughter would get red in the face and start crying every time I attempted to feed her. In an attempt to find out what could be the cause I pumped to see how my supply was. I got 1/2 an ounce on my right side and 1 ounce on my left. I usually pump at least 3 to 4 ounces each side. I pumped every hour for 10 minutes after she went to bed (I thawed some for her to eat) and got the same amounts each time. This morning she woke up and ate on my left side and then I pumped both sides again. I only got 3 ounces on my right side and usually my morning pump on my right side generates at least 4 1/2 ounces. I'm very scared I'm drying up for some reason and would like to know what I should do to prevent that. I had planned to breastfeed for a lot longer. Thank you in advance for any help you can provide me.
Answer Dear Angela,
First, congratulations on giving your daughter the best start in life by breastfeeding her -- especially given the demands of a work schedule.
You do know that the breast pump does not extract as much milk as your nursing baby does -- but in view of the fact that you're getting less pumped milk than you had been getting before, it seems as if you are experiencing lower milk production, at least temporarily. I am attaching an excerpt from my book (see below) with suggestions for building your milk supply. I hope that some of these ideas work for you.
Good luck!
Sally
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Sally Wendkos Olds
Author, THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BREASTFEEDING: Eiger & Olds, 3rd edition 1999, published by Workman Publishing & Bantam Books, and available in most public libraries, bookstores & La Leche League chapters. Now in revision for a fourth edition, with pediatrician Laura M. Marks, M.D.
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Ways to Build Up Your Milk Production
New mothers sometimes fear that they won’t have enough milk to feed their babies. They hear stories about other women who “didn’t have enough milk,” and they worry that they might be in this category. But when you look closely at the situations of these other women, the problem can almost always be ascribed to lack of information, lack of encouragement, or faulty nursing technique by either mother or baby. You need to tell yourself that millions of other women nurse their babies, and you can, too. Following one or more of the suggestions below should increase your milk supply within a few days.
• Nurse your baby more frequently for several days, using both breasts at each feeding. This is the single best way to enhance your flow of milk.
• Wake your baby, if necessary, to feed him more often.
* Pump or express milk between feedings. But don’t get discouraged if your pumping yields as little as half an ounce of breast milk. Your baby is almost certainly getting more than this. Even the best pump is less effective than a vigorously nursing baby. (More about pumping in Chapters 16 and 17.)
• See a lactation specialist if your baby is not suckling well or nurses only a few minutes at a time.
• Cut back on your schedule. Do less. Rest more. Nap at least once a day, more often if you can manage it. Ask someone else to help with marketing, cooking simple meals (or getting take-out food), and doing basic laundry. Most people like to help a new mother, so take advantage of this willingness now. You can always reciprocate later on.
* Even though everyone wants to see the new baby, ask visitors not to come for several days -- or even weeks -- unless they’re people who will wait on you, not expect you to entertain them. Let your answering machine take phone calls – which you can return later when you’re not so tired. Well-meaning family and friends can wear out the new mom.
• If you can, take an occasional day or two off from work or from other obligations (by, for example, having someone come in to care for your other children) so that you can focus only on nursing your baby.
• Check your diet. Are you eating enough? Are you eating the right foods? Are you drinking enough fluids? Some women find that eating or drinking more seems to produce more milk. Keeping a glass of water or juice near the spot where you nurse is a good idea. You don’t need to drink any more than you need to meet your thirst, but some nursing moms find that they are thirstier than usual.
• Make a special effort to relax, as suggested in the box on page tk. Of course, this is hard when you’re concerned that your baby isn’t getting enough milk—but the more you can relax, the more milk your baby is likely to receive.
• Develop a few affirmations that you can repeat to yourself, such as: “I am a bounteous supplier of milk for my baby”; “I am doing the best thing I can as a mother”; “My baby is growing fit and healthy from my milk”; “My milk is my baby’s perfect food.”
* Visualize your baby at a little older age, looking well fed and happy.
* Galactogogues: Virtually every culture in the world has recommended certain foods or substances to nursing mothers, in the belief that they help to make milk. In China, nursing mothers have been urged to eat “a mixture of pork fat and red gram (a type of bean), cuttlefish soup, shrimps’ heads in wine, and a special sweet wine made from glutinous rice, given together with the larvae of the blow-fly.” In India, it’s garlic, tamarind, and cottonseed; in France, powdered fennel; and in Nepal, chicken soup, buffalo milk, butter, and rice. In the U.S. vitamin B complex, brewer’s yeast, and the herbs fenugreek (also called fenugeek) and blessed thistle are sometimes recommended, as is the controversial prescription drug domperidone, which has not been approved for any use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (See Chapter 10 and the Websites Appendix for more about drugs and lactation.)
Cheston M. Berlin, Jr., M.D., a professor of pediatrics and pharmacology who has an interest in drugs and lactation, has concluded that the effects of such potions may be largely psychological. The mother thinks that a certain substance will increase her milk supply, so she relaxes and has a good let-down reflex, thus “proving” its value.
As we have stated, though, the best way to build up your milk supply isn’t what you eat. It’s what—and how much—and how often—your baby eats. The cutting edge research of Dr. Peter E. Hartmann’s Australian team (discussed in Chapter 3) has confirmed what many breastfeeding experts have known for years: that emptying the breast is the best stimulus to milk production. The more often you nurse your baby and the more vigorously she nurses, the more milk you’re likely to have.
• Believe in yourself and trust your body.
Note: Do not offer your baby formula while you’re building up your milk supply. A few ounces soon turn into a full bottle, which soon turns into several bottles, until you find that you’re producing even less milk. If your baby is drinking formula, he is not stimulating your breasts and thus not doing the most effective thing that will increase your supply of milk. In most cases, a breastfed baby should not be offered a bottle until nursing is well established—by at least six weeks of age.
The only exception to this is if your baby’s doctor (not your friends or relatives!) feels that he absolutely needs a supplement. Your doctor may be worried if your baby is sick, dehydrated, so small that his health is endangered, or if he is not gaining enough weight. Any one of these conditions may leave him without enough energy to nurse vigorously and thereby stimulate your milk production.
If you decide to supplement with formula, you might try offering a couple of ounces of formula in the bottle first before nursing him. This practice, which reverses previous guidelines for supplementation in the order of breast-followed-by-supplement, has become more widely recommended in recent years. This reversal of the usual feeding order satisfies the baby’s immediate hunger and gives him the nourishment he needs, but provides that he will get his final sense of satiety from breast milk, and associate this good feeling with his mother.
Some babies do better getting their supplement like this, while others thrive more on the traditional practice, of nursing first and supplementing afterwards. It’s not always clear which way will work best, so this is something you should discuss with your lactation consultant.
