Dehydration and Breastmilk

Breastfeeding mothers have it tough. You’re giving so much of yourself to nurse and nurture you baby when you breast feed and there are road bumps you can definitely run into. When you commit to breastfeeding make sure you’re ready for all that it can throw at you.

Dehydration While Breastfeeding

Source: HEALTH AND WELLNESS BLOG INDIA

You know that breastfeeding is a great way to “burn” calories, so to speak. When you’re breastfeeding your body is using the calories given it and previously stored to produce breast milk. But what you might not know is that while breastfeeding uses so many, many calories it’s actually comprised of more than 90% water. That’s right, simple water is what your baby is feasting and thriving upon.

Because breast milk is mostly water your baby milk supply is dependent on not just calories consumed but water drank on a daily basis. Lack of water in the mothers’ body, maternal dehydration, can have serious consequences on the baby.

But how much water should you drink every day to produce ample breast milk? Let’s see….

A breastfed baby will consume 2-3 ounces for every pound she weight at about 3 months. For the first few weeks after he’s born a breastfed baby increases the amount of milk he can consume. As he baby grow so does the stomach and it’s capacity for hold more milk. The first week of life the baby goes from consuming 1 ounce per day (for the first day of life) to 16-18 ounces of milk (at a week old). At 6 months you breastfed baby is consuming between 19-30 ounces of milk a day.

At 6 months the baby can begin to eat solid foods so the need for a breast milk only diet decreases slightly. Instead of increasing the need for breastmilk in the growing months, your 6 month old baby will level off the need for more breast milk and get more and more calories from solid food.

Breastfeeding means paying attention to how much water you are consuming. If breast milk is hydration for the baby too than the mother needs to be drinking and adequate amount of water to hydrate herself and her baby. Considering consuming an additional 2-3 cups of water to the 8 glasses you already drink every day. This additional water will help your body produce breast milk for the baby all day long. If you’re exercising too, than consume water while you exercise to stay hydrated. It’s a balancing act to keep yourself and your baby well fed.

Signs of Dehydration From Breastfeeding

There’s no reason why you can’t workout, breastfeed and take care of your family too. If your multitasking includes water, great healthy foods and plenty of rest than you’re setting a great example for the rest of the family.

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