Breast Milk 101

Some things you might not know about breastmilk:

1. Before your milk comes in your body creates this "liquid gold" substance called Colostrum which is the very best thing on earth for your baby (other than your love of course!) which you can read all about at these two links:
Le Leche League Definition:

Definition on wikipedia:

Do not worry that your body isn't making this substance or that the baby is hungry and not getting enough. I never "saw" this with my first son, and only when my milk came in did I see that it was a golden color instead of white (the colostrum was still mixing with the new milk). Your baby does not come out hungry and has a very, very small stomach. See chart below to get a better idea.

2. Your body makes three different kinds of breastmilk. During the first few days after birth the first milk the body makes is the yellow golden liquid called Colostrum. Once that passes and your milk comes in your body makes two milks during each feeding The first is called the "foremilk" and its what the baby gets when he/she first starts to nurse. This milk is more watery, clear and firsts functions to hydrate baby. After your baby drains the breast of this foremilk, he/she might have to nurse for up to 7 minutes before the "hind milk" comes in. This milk is thicker, creamy, and opaque and serves as the heavy food to make your baby feel full. This is why it's so important to nurse for at least 10-15 minutes. You want your baby to drain your breast in order to ensure they are getting enough. As your baby gets a little older sometimes your baby is just thirsty and needs to be hydrated and will only nurse long enough to receive this foremilk. If baby is still hungry they can continue nurisng to receive this more fatty milk that follows. This is one of the reasons breastfed babies tend to not become overweight. When a formula fed baby is just thirsty, they are offered the same milk that contains all the heavy fats and nutrients as the milk they get when they are hungry and need to be fed. (keep in mind when pumping that just because you "run dry" after 4 minutes doesn't mean in another few you won't have another let down of the hindmilk).

3. Your body knows what it's doing, so if you are nursing or pumping often, your body will make more milk. If you start supplementing with formula and go longer stretches between breastfeeding / pumping your body will make less milk, or to be more precise it will only make as much as you demand.

4. Through your breastmilk you handoff your antibodies to disease. About 80 percent of the cells in breastmilk are "macrophages," cells that are so powerful, they kill bacteria, fungi and viruses. Other cells have been shown to kill carcinogens invading cells, preventing those cells from becoming cancerous (16 STWTF!)

5. Breastmilk fights a lot of bad stuff: "Breastmilk has a protein called "human alpha-lactalbumin" that is lethal to tumors. This protein induces "apoptosis." That's a good thing: it keeps cancer cells from replicating, and eventually they take the hint and leave...Say goodbye to pneumonia, botulism, bronchitis, staphylococcal infections, influenza, and German measles. And breastmilk dramatically lowers the risk for: eczema, ulcerative colitis, Hodgkin's diease, leukemia, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, and urinary tract infections"(16 STWTF!).

6. Breastmilk also "contains natural pain relievers for baby. What a godsend to have liquid endorphins at the ready, and a breast to comfort a crying baby! We're talking instant soothing"(17 STWTF!).

7. The breast doesn't have an expiration date on it, so breastmilk is always freash, and from a clean source. It's also always the perfect temperature, and will never be recalled (the way formula is often times recalled for a multitude of reasons, some of them would scare you enough to breastfeed!)

8. Did you know that your breastmilk is constantly changing to meet the needs of your baby? If your baby is born premature your body knows this and makes a special premie milk just for him/her. The milk your body makes for your 1 month old is different then the milk made at 3 months and 6 months and so on. The ratios between fats, proteins and carbs changes as your baby's needs change. Whenever mom is exposed to some germ or virus in her environment her body will automatically start sending off immunities through her milk to baby. And all the variety of foods you eat on a daily basis add different nutrients to your milk and pass along new flavors to baby as well!

9. Breast milk is usually a creamish white, but sometimes based on your diet it can vary from shades of orange, green, brown and even blue. I'm not talking as blue as a blueberry, but it might look like it's glowing a bit on the green or blue side...this is normal and doesn't mean your milk's gone bad. The taste is typically sweet but if you eat spicey foods or are on your menstral cycle it can get a little bitter b/c of the hormones.

10. Stick to a bland diet the first week or two (turkey, chicken, rice, noodles, bread, etc)and slowly add foods like dairy, nuts, berries, spicey foods, red meats, etc to see if they have any impact on baby. Your breastmilk will pass along any medications you take as well so check with your doctor to be safe. I know that Benedril can dry up your milk and most medications are not safe for baby. Some women are able to pump milk in advance for baby, enjoy an alcoholic beverage, pump and dump, and then use alcohol test strips to be sure their milk is healthy again for baby.

11. Breast milk is a living tissue, but if you freeze or heat it you lose some of those nutrients.

12. Know that STD's are also present in breastmilk, specifically HIV. Keep this in mind not only when considering nursing your own baby, but in case you ever consider the idea of someone else nursing your baby. ALL breastmilk donated to breast banks have been screened before being accepted and even heated to remove any bacteria. I've just passed this knowledge onto my many breastfeeding friends in case they ever are tempted to leave their baby with a nursing friend and think, "Hey worse case, if I don't get back in time you can always feed my baby" - not such a good idea!