Could Your Water Intake Be Hurting Your Milk Supply?

Written and edited exclusively by Simply the Breast, without the use of AI.

You had your baby and everything started off well with breastfeeding. Or so it seemed. The first week got off on to a good start--your milk came in and your breasts got noticeably more full.

But since breastfeeding was going well you have noticed that the baby hasn't been "gulping" as much or you haven't noticed that many swallows. You were concerned that maybe your supply has dipped. So you took inventory and noticed that your water intake was pretty low. Maybe you were only drinking a glass of water (if that!) a day!

"Oh no!" you thought, "what if I'm not drinking enough water and that is why my milk supply has dipped?!" So you started drinking a lot more water! A LOT more! Like drinking 2 of your large Stanley water bottles full (or any large water bottle for that matter)!

Now that you are drinking plenty of water, you swear you are drinking enough, but maybe, just maybe it still isn't enough?! You think maybe you still need to increase your water intake because it isn't helping your supply bounce back.

Surely You Don't Need to Drink MORE Water, Right?!

So let's just clear this part up, No, you do not need to drink more water! For sure, if you are already drinking two or more large water bottles a day, you do not need more water to increase your milk volume.

There are many issues at play when it comes to milk supply--many! This is why I always recommend seeing an IBCLC (lactation consultant) if you are having trouble with supply, whether the issues started awhile ago or whether they just started all of a sudden, an IBCLC can help identify the source of the issue. It can be baby related, mom related, or a management of breastfeeding issue.

Now back to the water part...

Could Your Intake Be Too Much?

This in fact is an issue for many moms. What you may not have been told is that you can actually drink too much water and hurt your milk supply! Yes, this is actually a thing. Counter-intuitive, I know. You would think that you need enough water to make milk.

The beautiful thing is that your body will actually take whatever it needs from your body in order to make milk. Just like pregnancy, your body will sacrifice what it needs for you, to give your baby what it needs and make milk for your growing little one.

In reality, what happens when we drink too much water is that water gets pushed out of our milk making cells in our breasts, and you actually pee-off the excess water. If you find yourself peeing a lot this is a good clue that you are drinking too much water. This can cause milk supply to actually drop! So, in truth, drinking your 2 bottles of water a day could have actually caused your supply to dip.*

The Right Amount of Water to Drink

How much water then is the right amount to drink?! Well, the best target is to drink to your thirst. What that means is you drink water only to satisfy your thirst, when you are no longer thirsty, you don't need to drink anymore.

If you are compelled to drink more because that was what you were used to before...maybe you were an athlete or you worked out a lot before becoming pregnant. In this case you can support your body's effective use of water by including balanced electrolytes in any extra cup or bottle of water you may want to drink. For every extra 8 ounces of water you should add one pack of electrolytes (or scoop). Keep in mind that a good electrolyte is going to include potassium, magnesium, sodium and have just a little or no sugar in it (stay away from the electrolytes with 20+ gms of sugar)!

If you are looking for a quality electrolyte, look no further than here! You can get strawberry-watermelon, delicious and reliable electrolytes.

Need Help?

Are you dealing with a low supply, or a supply that had a sudden drop? *There can be several different reasons for a supply that has been low from the beginning or one that dropped suddenly. This can be very complex and should be evaluated by an experienced IBCLC who can offer you the right support!

Contact Simply the Breast or schedule yourself today to get the lactation support that you need!