How to determine the fat content of breast milk

When the baby behaves restlessly, is capricious and constantly whimpers, compassionate grandmothers with confidence say: "The child does not eat enough!". Then the mother creeps in doubt, and suddenly the baby really cries because it does not eat enough? Maybe my milk is not enough fat and nutritious, says a woman? But after all, a child has a lot of other reasons because of which he may experience discomfort and cry - cold, warm, colic, or just boredom. At such moments, it is very important to know whether the woman has fat milk, or if the child is fed up. With a small child, you don’t really run around the laboratories, so we will determine the fat content of breast milk at home.

Is it possible to determine the fat content of milk in appearance

Many people think that the fat content of breast milk can be determined by its appearance.Many women are convinced that fatty milk is thicker and yellower. However, it is not. Milk has various shades of white not on the degree of fat content, but on the physiology of the woman. The hue of the milk may also vary depending on the nutrition of the nursing mother. If a woman eats one raw carrot, the color of the milk will change slightly.

What milk to take for analysis

As you know, there is milk front and back. The front milk is less fat, it is designed to quench the baby's thirst. And back fatter and nutritious. It is designed to satisfy hunger. That is why it is very important to give the baby in one feeding one breast. After all, the back milk is sucked harder, and the child begins to be lazy. And then the mother, considering that there is no milk left in the breast, offers the second breast to the baby. And the child, thus, does not receive nutritious back milk. This leads to weight gain and anxiety of the child. For the analysis, we need back milk.

How to determine the fat content of milk

1. For the procedure for determining the fat content of milk, we need a glass and a ruler.
2. Catch some milk with your hands or with a breast pump.Pour the milk into a glass and put it in the fridge.
3. Cover milk should not be. It can not be shaken and touched for several hours. It is best to leave the milk overnight.
4. In the morning, measure the width of the cream that settled overnight. One millimeter corresponds to one percent fat.

According to the World Health Organization, the average fat content of human breast milk is four percent. With a slight deviation from this norm you should not worry, because your milk is intended for your baby.

In the villages, the fat content and milk saturation were checked as follows. Some milk dripped onto a clean white cloth. When the material dried out, it was necessary to see if there was a trace. Fat milk usually leaves a fatty or yellowish stain. And there is no trace of liquid milk.

How to increase the fat content of breast milk

If your milk's fat content is less than two percent, if the child is often worried, hangs on the breast for more than half an hour during feeding, does not want to let go of the breast, most likely, he does not eat enough.Then you need to try to increase the fat content and the amount of breast milk. This can be done with the following tips.

1. Eat more nutritious foods - honey (if the baby is not allergic to it), walnuts, dried fruits.
2. Eat dairy products - cow's milk, kefir, cheese.
3. To provide the child with enough milk, it is necessary to eat foods containing calcium - fish, greens, cottage cheese, beans, spinach, raisins, cabbage.
4. Drink more fluid, which is so necessary for the production of breast milk. The liquid must be warm. Very good to drink tea with milk.
5. Feed your baby more often from three to eight in the morning. It is at this time that the production of the hormone prolactin, which is responsible for breast milk, increases. By feeding a baby at this time, you provoke the production of an additional amount of milk.
6. Do not refuse the baby and do not feed him on the clock. On-demand feeding stimulates milk production.

If milk, on the contrary, is fat, this is also not very good. With high fat content, the child begins to suffer from constipation. In this case, the woman needs to drink more fluid and reduce the calorie content of the products, eat skimmed food.

Sometimes a child may hang for a long time on his chest, not because he does not eat enough.Quite often, the reason for this behavior is psychological. After all, kids are very sensitive to the emotional state of the mother. If the child feels that her mother is tense and restless, the baby feels in danger and tries not to depart from her mother, as from an island of stability and security in this world. Do not focus on problems, and your baby will be calm and balanced. And then you do not have to think about the fat content of milk.

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