Although lactation snacks are a delicious and nutritious way to get extra galactagogues – or, milk-boosting ingredients – into your diet, one of the most important factors of milk supply is your level of hydration. Although you may be used to the idea of 6-8 glasses of water a day as an adult, breastfeeding changes that! Your body now needs much more – upwards of 16 glasses or 128 oz – of water in order to provide adequate function to your healing body. And the fact remains – water intake is crucial to keeping up with your milk supply, as breastmilk is more than 80% water! Don’t worry – you’ll most likely be very thirsty all the time, too.
It may seem intimidating to fit in so much water, but we have some suggestions to help you make sure you’re keeping up.
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Mix it up! Water should make up the bulk of your daily intake, but you can also add in milks (cow or otherwise), juices, some teas, electrolyte drinks, or flavorings.
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Spice it up! Try adding some natural ingredients to flavor your water. For example, try combinations like cucumber and mint, lemon and lime, or lemon and basil.
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PUMP it up! #emotionalsupportwaterbottle anyone? Get a big, reliable water bottle, particularly for pumping moms, to easily cart around with you. Decorate it with fun stickers and make it your own.
Some other quick hints are drinking a large glass of water during every feeding, plus one with each meal and snack, challenging yourself to chug water 10x a day (a straw helps!) and setting reminders on your phone, or using an app, to check your daily progress.
As always, you should consult with your doctor about any questions or concerns that you have, but we hope that this guide helps you to understand the importance of staying hydrated while you are breastfeeding your perfect new baby/ies.
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