Organic Mother's Milk Tea - Safe or Not?

Updated on August 16, 2011
B.C. asks from Sparta, NJ
14 answers

Hello ladies.

I am trying to increase my milk supply a bit, and someone recommended that I drink Mother's Milk tea. I had a cup yesterday evening for the first time, but wanted to know if you think it is safe to use for the baby? I do have milk in my breast but at least once a day I have been supplementing because it seems like the baby is still hungry. And when I give her the formula, she'll drink down at least 2 ounces. Only once or twice a day though. However, I'd like to be only on breastmilk, hence I thought I'd try the tea. One thing I noticed was that my baby slept from 10 pm to 5 am last night (that never happened before, she normally wakes up at 3 am for a feeding) and I had to wake her up to feed because my breasts were engorged. She then slept again from 6 until 9:30 am (again, this was odd as after the initial 3 am feeding, she'd normally wake up around 6 am again, and then again around 8:30 or 9). Now, she's sleeping again, pretty soundly since 11 am (2 hrs already). Is Mother's Milk tea safe or am I causing harm? I'm not drugging her, am I?

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B.A.

answers from New York on

It is safe. It worked for me and I never drank crazy amounts. If you need something stronger straight Fenugreek may be more helpful.
Good luck!

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S.H.

answers from Hartford on

My personal input is that I have used it, but decided that the supplemental herbs are in such a diluted form that it is ineffective. I had better luck using straight Fenugreek - although I only found it helpful when I was initially trying to increase my milk supply - and boy did I smell like a pancake factory.

You mentioned the length of time that your baby sleeps - so I just wanted to throw this in there. When my son was pretty young, he could sleep 6+ hours a night. I discovered the hard way that when he slept over six hours, my milk supply would decrease significantly for about a week. When I figured this out (this is not the case for all women, but is the case for some) - I would get up in the night to pump - a few times I woke him up and that was just as effective.

Since you're trying to increase your supply - let me also throw this out there: when they are fussy and won't nurse in the evening it doesn't mean you don't have any milk (kellymom.com), if you have less milk in the afternoon/evening - that is totally normally (kellymom.com), babies are apt to drink more at one sitting from a bottle than they would nurse from you, the more frequently you nurse or pump (especially at night when prolactin levels are highest) the more milk you will have. Depending on the reason for the drop in my supply, it would take between 2 days and 1 week to increase.

I am still happily nursing my 25 month old and have since learned that the key to keeping my supply up is to night nurse.

2 moms found this helpful
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S.K.

answers from Chicago on

You don't say how old she is, but it sounds to me like she might be going through a growth spurt -- increased appetite followed by increased sleep. The only way for your milk production to keep up with her demands, and the increased demands in a growth spurt, is to nurse on demand and to not offer supplements. If you give formula your body will never know that she is asking for more and will therefore not increase production. Your supply will become less and less adequate as she gets older because your body will never start making more than it is right now without allowing your baby to cue it to do so. I believe the tea is perfectly safe and have never heard it being related to sleepiness in a baby, and it can be somewhat helpful in increasing milk. But it alone won't do it, you need to let your baby take the lead and nurse on demand. During growth spurts you may feel like you are back to nursing a newborn, every couple hours, but it only lasts a couple days. I wish you the best.

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H.P.

answers from Houston on

You might benefit from speaking with a lactation consultant, as they can explain the cycles and process by which milk is produced. It was very helpful to me to understand that babies respond to the milk flow, so your not producing enough milk isn't necessarily accurate. You're probably just not producing enough foremilk at that time to get her interested in sucking for the hindmilk. When it's time to feed her, that knowledge doesn't make much difference; but it sure feels good to understand that there's nothing wrong with you.

The more she eats, the more you produce; she drives that train. When I was feeling like my milk was not coming fast enough, I took a recommended dose of Fenugreek and was instructed to "wear the baby". I also make ginger tea from fresh ginger and drink that regularly. I do it for my digestion, but I've been told by my lactation consultant that it's good for milk production.

Good luck!

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M.F.

answers from Phoenix on

It's perfectly safe for her and for you. Mother's Milk tea contains herbs that boost your milk supply, nothing that can cause harm or sleepiness. Your daughter may be sleeping more than usual because she drank more milk than usual and is content with a full tummy. It could also be just that babies sleep habits change. No need to worry! Good luck!

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J.G.

answers from New York on

No, you're not drugging her. If it were that easy, we'd all have it in our babies' bottles! Just kidding!. What's happening is even though you might not feel like you're making more milk, your milk may be becoming richer, so it works a little better for your baby- a little bit more efficient. She may be sleeping more because she's a little more satisfied. Same thing happened to me! Try the tea iced- so deeelicious!

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K.A.

answers from Pittsburgh on

I started using it about a month ago. I called my OB first before using it and they said that it would be fine. You do have to drink a ridiculous amount for it to do anything. I did notice a slight increase in my milk supply, but mostly that the tea was staining my teeth, like any other tea would do when you are drinking 5 cups a day so I stopped and I'm looking into the straight fenugreek tablets.

J.H.

answers from San Antonio on

I've never heard of any mother having issues with their baby acting "drugged" after drinking Mother's Milk. She may be going through a growth spurt and need more sleep.

If you want, try not drinking the tea for two days. See if she goes baby to "normal" sleeping. Then drink it and see if she goes back to this new pattern. If she does go back to the new pattern one of two things can be deduced. Either she's getting enough to eat and doesn't need to wake at 3am for a feeding, or she's being "drugged." (Which, again, I've never heard of. I drank it and never had issues with my little ones.)

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L.C.

answers from Raleigh on

Fenugreek all the way, works much better!!!!!!!!!!

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J.T.

answers from New York on

Tea in general is a diuretic. So why not just drink anything other then something you question it's safety in the evening. If you want to increase your milk production drink more and pump.

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E.W.

answers from New York on

I just had my 2nd baby (9days ago) when i was in the hospital I asked my OB about the tea and if it worked, was safe- should I buy it or not. She said it is perfectly safe and has been shown to actually work. So I bought it and drank it until my milk came in. My milk supply is fine, so I haven't drank it since, but its definitely worth a shot for you.

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R.F.

answers from Dallas on

Yup! It probably has Fenugreek in it? Extra liquids are always beneficial for breasfeeding. I had a rough time with my milk supply and tried everything! Including tea. Good luck!

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S.C.

answers from New York on

Sorry for the late response... I've never used any supplements like mother's milk, but I do know that the process is all about supply & demand. The more your daughter nurses, the more your body will produce. If she skips a feeding or sleeps longer than usual, pump! This will increase your production AND it will be extra milk that you can give her in a bottle instead of formula! If you are able to, try pumping right after her first morning feeding. You tend to have more milk then. You might not get much at first, but at least you are telling your body to step it up! Also, make sure you are drinking enough water. I think breast feeding moms are supposed to have 2 quarts of fluids a day. Good luck!

E.S.

answers from Dayton on

I agree w/ Stacey H.-lots of straight Fenugreek was also the only thing that worked for me.
No harm in Mother's Milk tea, but I don't think it is strong enough...I have read that you would have to drink crazy amounts to have any effect on your supply.

4 Fenugreek, 3 times a day (or visa versa-it's not gonna hurt you either way) and you will probably see a increase.

And exactly what Sarah K. said... :)

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