With the ever-increasing social media presence, women are starting to become more concerned about the amount of fat in their breast milk. Online mom groups show women pumping their breast milk and placing it in the fridge to later find these large, beautiful fat plugs from the milk separation.
This leaves new moms without this fattier milk wondering if they’re doing something wrong. Or they begin searching for how to make breast milk fattier. In this post, we’re going to go over actual evidence-based ways to increase breast milk fat and bust some of the myths you may hear.
Why is Breast Milk Fat Important for Babies?
Breast milk fat makes up about 3-5% of your breast milk. However, the amount of fat in your breast milk also accounts for half of the calories and is half of the source of energy for your baby.
The fat in breast milk is important for your baby’s growth and development. It is partially responsible for baby’s weight gain as well as brain development. Breast milk fat also aids in the development of your baby’s vision and nervous system.
There are also many different types of fats found in breast milk, which all play a beneficial role in your baby’s development.
Foremilk Versus Hindmilk
There are many misconceptions when it comes to foremilk and hindmilk. They are not different kinds of milk created by your breast. Rather, foremilk is the milk that flows when your baby first starts feeding and hindmilk is the milk that flows at the end of the feeding.
There is the misconception that foremilk doesn’t contain any or is low in breast milk fat. When in fact, what really matters is the length of time between feeding sessions.
Milk fat sticks to the milk ducts and mixes with the watery part of the milk as it moves down the ducts. The longer you go between a feeding session, the more full your breasts will become. And the more watery milk collects in those ducts, the more it dilutes the amount of breast milk fat that comes out with the start of the feeding.
You cannot technically tell how much fat is in breast milk just by looking at it. Some women do have large fat plugs or creamier appearing milk which does indicate high-fat content. However, even watery appearing breast milk can contain the appropriate amount of fat for your baby!
Unless your baby’s pediatrician is concerned with their growth, you do not need to be concerned about the amount of fat in your breast milk.
Always consult with your baby’s pediatrician or a lactation consultant if you have any concerns. If your baby is starting to drop a little on their growth curve and their health care provider is recommending you find ways to increase the fat in your breast milk, let’s go over a few evidence-based ways to increase breast milk fat.
How to Increase Breast Milk Fat
1. Fully Empty the Breast
Allowing your baby to feed completely off of one breast before switching sides will ensure as much breast milk fat is removed as possible.
When your baby nurses and fully empties the breast, they will have removed the foremilk and the hindmilk. Whereas if you were to put a limit on the amount of time your baby nurses per side, you will be limiting the amount of fatty hindmilk they consume.
2. Nurse or Pump More Frequently
The fuller your breasts, the more water content will be within your breast milk. If you go longer between feedings, your breasts will fill, which dilutes the amount of fat within your breast milk.
The shorter the amount of time you go between feedings, the higher the fat content will be within the breast milk. Your baby naturally knows to cluster feed when they are experiencing a growth spurt or have a need for fattier milk.
You may see less volume when pumped, but fattier appearing breast milk.
3. Hand Express or Pump After a Feeding
Similarly to allowing your baby to completely empty the breast when nursing, hand expressing or pumping after a feeding will also increase breast milk fat. Removing the milk at the end of a feeding will help remove all breast milk fat.
4. Breast Compressions
Breast compression helps stimulate oxytocin to help letdown breast milk as well as release fat globules from the milk ducts.
You can use your hands to massage your breasts, or a device like the LaVie Lactation Massager. This can be done before you feed your baby or start a pumping session.
5. Hands-On Pumping/Nursing
Hands-on pumping or nursing means using your hands to massage your breasts in a downward motion towards your nipples while breastfeeding. This not only helps with milk flow and stimulating letdowns, but it also helps release the milk fat from the milk ducts.
I found this method to be extremely helpful when pumping, especially when away from my baby. Use a hands-free pumping bra to do this method.
6. Sunflower Lecithin
Sunflower lecithin is most known for helping with clogged milk ducts. This is because it is a natural fat emulsifier that can help reduce the stickiness of breast milk fat and release it from the milk duct.
Sunflower lecithin may not necessarily increase the amount of fat in your breast milk ducts, but it will allow it to flow out easier.
7. Separating Your Milk
The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia discusses separating your milk if you have an oversupply. If you are pumping more milk than your baby needs each day, you can attempt to separate your milk (foremilk from hindmilk) to increase the fat in your milk to help your baby grow.
Always consult with your baby’s pediatrician or a lactation consultant before changing their feedings.
Common Misconception – Eat Healthy Fats to Increase Breast Milk Fat
You may see different sources telling you that if you eat lots of healthy fats you will see an increase in your breast milk fat. However, this is not the case.
Eating a diet high in healthy fats will not increase the quantity of fat in your breast milk, but it will increase the quality of your breast milk fat.
Eating a diet high in healthy fats has many benefits for you and your baby! Some healthy fats you should add to your diet include:
- Olive oil
- Avocado
- Coconut
- Eggs
- Nuts/Seeds
The mother’s milk will change depending on the types of fats she eats. So the better quality and type of fat you eat, the better quality your baby will receive.
Frequently Asked Questions
How can I know how much fat is in my breast milk?
One way to truly know how much fat is in your breast milk is by a creamatocrit test. This is ordered through your doctor if your baby is having problems to know how much fat and calories are in your breast milk for your baby.
Often times when a baby is experiencing weight gain issues, it is not related to the mother’s breast milk fat content. Your baby’s pediatrician or a lactation consultant will rule out other problems first.
What does fatty breast milk look like?
Breast milk that contains more fat will look more creamy. Typically the milk at the end of a breastfeeding session, the hindmilk, will yield more fat.
When placed in the refrigerator to cool, you will notice the separation between fat and milk. The breast milk fat will rise to the top and the more watery milk will stay at the bottom. Some women may have a very small layer of fat while others may have a very large amount of fat.
Does breast milk fat separation indicate how much fat is in my breast milk?
It’s not a definitive way to know how much fat is in your breast milk. The fatty hindmilk is assumed to hold all of the breast milk fat, but there is still fat in the foremilk as well!
So while you may see a separation between fat and milk, there is still fat in the watery milk below.
Does breast milk get fattier as baby grows?
Your breast milk composition will change as your baby grows. Depending upon your baby’s growth, you may have more fat in your breast milk at certain times than others. Your breast milk fat can even change depending on the time of day.
Does my baby need to eat more often if I have low fat content in my breast milk?
There’s no real way to know the fat content of your breast milk, or if you have “low-fat content” unless it is tested. Just because you may have a smaller separation between the fat and your milk when refrigerating, doesn’t mean you have low-fat content.
Unless your baby is having problems with weight gain or other issues, your breast milk is most likely just fine for them! Always follow up with your baby’s pediatrician if you have any concerns and they will guide you on what steps to take if you truly do have low-fat content in your breast milk.
I hope after reading this post you learned some ways for how to make fattier breast milk. And that you don’t have to worry about your breast milk fat unless your baby’s pediatrician tells you otherwise. Your milk is perfectly made for your baby!
Other Posts You May Like:
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- How to Stockpile Breast Milk: Build a Stash
- The 2 Shirt Method for Breastfeeding in Public
- How Much Water Should I Drink While Breastfeeding?
