Cooper County WIC

06/02/2026

🍼 HOW MUCH MILK DOES A BABY ACTUALLY NEED?

One of the most common questions parents ask is, “How many ounces should my baby be drinking?”

The answer is a little different than most people expect.

Babies are not born needing large volumes of milk. Their intake gradually increases over the first couple of weeks as their stomach capacity grows, milk production increases, and feeding skills mature.

In the early days, colostrum is produced in small amounts because small amounts are exactly what newborns need.

📌 Easy Reference Guide

• Day 1: 2-10 mL per feeding (about ½-2 teaspoons)
• Day 2: 5-15 mL per feeding
• Day 3: 15-30 mL per feeding (½-1 ounce)
• Day 4: 30-60 mL per feeding (1-2 ounces)
• Day 5-7: 45-75 mL per feeding (1½-2½ ounces)
• Week 2: Most babies are taking approximately 2-3 ounces per feeding

After the first couple of weeks, a helpful estimate is:

✨ 2.5 ounces per pound of body weight per 24 hours ✨

For example:

• 6 lb baby = about 15 oz/day
• 8 lb baby = about 20 oz/day
• 10 lb baby = about 25 oz/day
• 12 lb baby = about 30 oz/day

Once babies reach approximately 12 pounds, something interesting happens.

Unlike formula-fed babies, breastfed babies do not continue increasing milk intake month after month. Human milk changes in composition over time, becoming more calorie-dense and developmentally appropriate for the growing baby.

As a result, most exclusively breastfed babies will continue taking approximately:

🥛 25-30 ounces in 24 hours

from about 1 month of age until around their first birthday.

Read that again.

A 2-month-old and an 8-month-old often consume very similar total milk volumes over 24 hours.

This is one reason why parents who pump are often surprised when daycare asks for larger and larger bottles. Bigger babies do not necessarily need dramatically more breast milk.

Instead of increasing total daily intake, babies usually become more efficient feeders, may consume larger volumes per feeding, and eventually begin getting calories from complementary foods.

Around 6 months, solid foods are introduced, but breast milk remains the primary source of nutrition. As solids gradually increase throughout the second half of the first year, milk intake slowly begins to decrease.

A typical pattern looks like this:

• Birth to 6 months: Milk is essentially 100% of nutrition
• 6-9 months: Solids are for learning and exploration, with milk still doing most of the nutritional heavy lifting
• 9-12 months: Solids begin contributing more calories, and milk intake may slowly decrease
• After 12 months: Milk intake often continues to decline as table foods become the primary source of nutrition

Of course, babies are not robots. Some days they snack. Some days they binge. Growth spurts, illness, teething, developmental leaps, and activity levels can all affect intake.

The most important things to watch are growth, diaper output, developmental progress, and overall feeding satisfaction rather than focusing on a single bottle volume.

Your baby doesn’t read feeding charts. They simply eat the amount their body needs ❤️

06/02/2026

Did you know that breast milk is not the same milk from day one to day 300? Your milk is constantly changing to meet your baby’s needs 💛

In the first few days after birth, your body makes colostrum. Colostrum is often called “liquid gold” because it is packed with immune factors, antibodies, white blood cells, and concentrated nutrition in a small volume. It is especially high in protein, which supports growth and development while helping protect your baby from infections. Although the volume is small, it is perfectly matched to a newborn’s tiny stomach.

Around days 3 to 5, colostrum begins transitioning into transitional milk. During this stage, milk volume increases significantly as your body responds to your baby’s growing appetite. Protein levels gradually decrease while fat and lactose levels increase. This shift provides more calories and energy to support rapid growth during the first few weeks of life. Many parents notice their breasts feeling fuller during this period as milk production ramps up.

By about 4 to 6 weeks postpartum, mature milk becomes established. Mature milk contains less protein than colostrum but more fat and carbohydrates, providing the energy babies need for brain development, growth, and activity. While the overall composition becomes more stable, breast milk continues to adapt. It changes throughout the day, during a feeding, and even over the months and years of breastfeeding to meet your baby’s evolving needs.

Your milk isn’t becoming “less nutritious” as time goes on. It is becoming exactly what your growing baby needs. From protein-rich colostrum to calorie-rich mature milk, breast milk is a dynamic, living fluid designed to nourish and protect your baby every step of the way 🥛✨

05/31/2026

One of the biggest misconceptions about milk supply is that it should look the same throughout your entire breastfeeding journey.

It doesn’t.

In the beginning, your body makes tiny amounts of colostrum because that’s exactly what your newborn needs. As your baby grows, milk production gradually increases over the first few weeks.

During this early stage, milk production is heavily driven by hormones. Your body is essentially building a milk-making factory and often produces a little extra as a safety net. This is why many parents experience fullness, engorgement, leaking, and rapid changes in supply during the first weeks postpartum.

Then something important happens.

Around the months 2-3, milk production begins to regulate. The body shifts from relying primarily on hormones to relying more on milk removal. Instead of making milk “just in case,” it starts making milk based on how much milk your baby is actually removing.

As this transition occurs, many parents notice:
• Breasts feel softer
• Engorgement decreases
• Leaking slows down or stops
• Pumping output may look different
• The constant feeling of fullness fades

This often causes unnecessary panic.

Soft breasts do not mean low supply.
No longer leaking does not mean your milk is drying up.
Feeling less full does not mean your body stopped making enough milk.

In many cases, these changes are signs that your body is becoming more efficient.

Milk production is designed to change over time. The early postpartum period is not the goal, it’s the bridge that helps your body establish the long-term supply your baby needs.

These pictures are a visual of my own leaking journey over time. I leaked a lot for the first few months. The leaking eventually stopped but I continued breastfeeding until my little turned 2 years.

05/31/2026

“Lazy baby” is a phrase that gets thrown around far too often when a baby struggles to feed.

Babies are not lazy.

If a baby is feeding inefficiently, they are lacking a skill, not motivation.

Breastfeeding is one of the most complex things a newborn does. It requires coordination of dozens of muscles, multiple cranial nerves, breathing, swallowing, posture, sensory processing, body tension, reflexes, and state regulation. All while maintaining a seal and generating suction.

A bottle is generally a more forgiving feeding system. Milk is easier to access, flow can be more consistent, and less coordination is required to remove milk.

When a baby struggles at the breast, there is usually a reason:
• Prematurity
• Birth interventions
• Oral restrictions
• Low muscle tone
• Tension or body asymmetries
• Neurological immaturity
• Weakness
• Poor positioning
• Difficulty regulating their state
• Limited feeding experience

Just like we wouldn’t call a child lazy for struggling to walk before they’ve developed the necessary strength and coordination, we shouldn’t call a baby lazy for struggling to feed.

Feeding is a learned skill.

When babies can’t feed well, our job is not to judge them. Our job is to figure out what skill, support, or intervention they need to be successful.

05/29/2026

05/27/2026

05/27/2026

One day you wake up and your breasts suddenly feel… soft 😳

No more rock hard fullness
No more leaking through 3 shirts a day
No more feeling “engorged” between feeds

And many moms immediately panic:
“My milk is drying up”

Usually?
Nope ❤️

This is commonly the transition into the next stage of lactation, often around 3-4 months postpartum, though for some it happens earlier or later.

In the early weeks, a lot of the fullness you feel is not just milk. It’s also:
• Increased blood flow
• Extra lymphatic fluid
• Swelling from hormonal changes
• This internal pressure helps push milk toward a still-learning baby

Your body is basically in “milk factory startup mode” 🏭

But over time:
✨ Hormones shift
✨ Supply regulates
✨ Baby becomes more efficient
✨ Your body learns approximately how much milk baby actually needs

Around this stage, many babies have reached their full milk volume needs, so your body no longer has to constantly overproduce “just in case.”

That dramatic fullness often fades
Leaking may decrease or stop
Your breasts may feel softer and less heavy

Soft breasts do NOT mean empty breasts 👏

Mature lactation is often quieter, softer, and less dramatic than the early weeks.

Many moms actually make milk more efficiently during this phase because production becomes increasingly driven by milk removal instead of massive hormonal surges.

So if diapers, feeding, and growth are still going well…
Your body probably isn’t failing

It’s adapting ❤️

If You have ANY concerns about your baby getting enough milk or your milk supply, I am available for private consultations. Virtual consultations available worldwide. I work with most major insurance providers in the US!

05/26/2026

If you feel sudden rage, agitation, panic, or the overwhelming urge to crawl out of your own skin while breastfeeding… you are not the only one experiencing this ❤️

And importantly: not all breastfeeding-related agitation is the same thing.

Here are three experiences that can look similar on the surface but have different causes:

✨ DMER (Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex)
DMER is a sudden emotional drop that happens RIGHT before or during letdown. It is believed to be related to a rapid dopamine shift when milk releases.

Mothers often describe:
• dread
• sadness
• panic
• hopelessness
• irritability or rage
• a “pit in the stomach” feeling

The key clue?
It is very brief and closely tied to milk letdown. Many mothers notice it lasts 30 seconds to a couple minutes and then disappears completely once milk is flowing.

It can happen while feeling emotionally well otherwise.

✨ BAA/BAR (Breastfeeding Aversion and Agitation Response)
BAA/BAR is more commonly described as intense agitation, anger, skin-crawling, resentment, or the urge to stop feeding immediately.

Unlike DMER, it is NOT necessarily tied to letdown itself.

It often happens:
• during long feeds
• comfort nursing
• frequent night waking
• pregnancy nursing
• tandem feeding
• feeling “touched out” or depleted

Parents often say:
“I want to throw something”
“I feel trapped”
“I cannot tolerate being touched anymore”

The feelings may continue the entire feed rather than disappearing after letdown.

✨ Sensory Aversion During Breastfeeding
Sometimes the issue is primarily sensory nervous system overload rather than a milk-ejection response.

This may feel like:
• intense irritation from the physical sensation of sucking
• distress with wetness, rubbing, breathing sounds, or repetitive touch
• overwhelm from being climbed on, touched, or needed all day
• worsening symptoms with stress, sleep deprivation, ADHD, autism, anxiety, or sensory sensitivity

Unlike DMER, this is usually not tightly linked to letdown timing.
Unlike classic BAA/BAR, the reaction may happen in many non-feeding touch situations too.

And honestly? Sometimes these overlap.

A mother can experience:
• DMER PLUS sensory overload
• BAA/BAR during pregnancy
• neurodivergent sensory sensitivity that becomes magnified by constant nursing

None of these experiences mean you are a bad parent or that you do not love your baby.

Sometimes the nervous system is simply saying:
“I am overloaded.”

05/22/2026

Hydration during lactation does matter… but it doesn’t have to mean forcing gallons of plain water or living off sugary “milk boosting” drinks.

Your body is incredibly intelligent. Most parents do best when they simply drink to thirst consistently throughout the day and focus on hydration from multiple sources.

Hydration can look like:
• mineral water or electrolyte water
• coconut water
• herbal teas
• broths and soups
• smoothies
• milk
• fruits like watermelon, oranges, berries, and cucumber
• hydrating foods like yogurt, oatmeal, and soups

And while an occasional sugary drink is completely fine, constantly relying on sweet coffees, juices, sodas, or lactation drinks loaded with sugar can sometimes leave parents feeling more depleted, shaky, or thirsty long term.

Lactation is already metabolically demanding. Stable nourishment, minerals, protein, healthy fats, and consistent hydration tend to support the body far more than chasing the next trendy drink.

Sometimes the best hydration strategy is the least glamorous one:
eat enough, drink consistently, and keep water within reach during the long days of feeding babies.

05/22/2026

One of the biggest misconceptions about tongue ties is that the “class” tells you how severe the tie is.

It doesn’t.

The class simply describes where the frenulum attaches on the tongue.

That’s it.

A “mild looking” posterior tie can create profound feeding, swallowing, reflux, tension, or oral function challenges… while a more visible anterior tie may have relatively minimal functional impact.

Severity is not determined by appearance alone.
Severity is determined by function.

Can the tongue lift?
Extend?
Cup?
Lateralize?
Maintain suction?
Coordinate swallowing and breathing?
Move without compensations or strain?

Because a tongue tie is not just tissue.
It is the way that tissue restricts movement.

This is why two babies with the exact same “class” of tie can present completely differently. One may feed comfortably while another struggles with milk transfer, maternal pain, clicking, reflux symptoms, body tension, or poor weight gain.

Function matters more than the label.

Always.