Updated June 2nd 2024
If you’re reading this, chances are you have an abandoned online cart of lactation cookies and you’re trying to find out if the purchase is going to be worth it. Don’t worry, I’m going to let you know whether or not you should abandon that cart for good. But first, I want you to know I understand how you’re feeling right now. Like you’re not producing enough no matter what you do. I know you’re doing an amazing job for your baby!
Lactation cookies are literally cookies marketed as a way to help you increase your milk supply. They are usually made with an ingredient or two that are thought to have positive effects on milk production. Some of the ingredients might include brewer’s yeast, flax seeds, oatmeal and fenugreek. These cookies though, often have loads of added sugar because brewer’s yeast is quite bitter and fenugreek is quite savoury and they usually suggest eating a couple cookies per day. All that extra sugar for no guarantee that they even work!
The ads though would have you believing that yes, of course lactation cookies are worth it. Honestly though, they are not. I know that’s a bold statement to make right away. And as a Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC), it’s not that I’m against cookies. If you want a cookie, please, enjoy! They are delicious after all. Or if you have a recipe to make some yourself, go for it! But the cookies marketed as something that’s going to guarantee an increase in your milk supply are not the first thing you should be buying if you feel like your supply has dropped or your milk supply is low.
Does the science say they work?
A 2023 study on lactation cookies by Ana M Palacios et al. found that lactation cookies do not help to increase milk production and that “…recommendations to consume (lactation cookies) for increasing…milk supply may deliver false hope and unnecessary financial costs at a vulnerable time”. In short, they don’t actually help increase milk supply.
The moms they did work for, likely needed more calories in their diet and didn’t have many issues surrounding producing milk (read below for more explanation on this).
The message below was shared with me from a mom who bought lactation cookies because she was made to feel (by their marketing) that she needed them to increase her supply.
So why do moms buy them?!
The reason so many breastfeeding moms buy lactation cookies is because so many moms fees like they’re not making enough milk. Concerns about milk supply are always the number one reason moms say they stopped breastfeeding and it comes from a lack of education around our bodies and what is normal.
We are literally conditioned to believe our bodies are not enough. Whether it’s from formula marketing, the “fed is best” concept, social media, or undereducated hospital staff, most new moms worry they’re not producing enough.
I see this all the time in my private practice and it’s one of the most common questions I get asked on social media “how can I increase my milk supply?” Unfortunately, it’s not a quick fix if it is truly low. You have to address the why behind low supply before you can “fix” it.
But there’s money to be made in making a mom doubt her milk supply! If you make a mom doubt her milk supply, she’s likely to supplement with formula. If she supplements with formula, her baby likely won’t cue to nurse as often because formula milk has different protein ratios than human milk.
If her baby doesn’t nurse as often, her body is stimulated less. If her body is stimulated less, her milk production will slow down because this is how milk supply works. More milk needs to be removed in order to tell your body that more needs to be made.
If her milk production slows down, her supply will drop. If her supply drops, she’ll likely supplement with even more formula and then try things like lactation cookies and electrolyte drinks to increase her supply because she does really want to breastfeed.
If she supplements with even more formula, and has spent a ton of money on supplements and cookies, she’s likely to stop breastfeeding altogether because she’s exhausted and “nothing” is working when really, the underlying causes were never looked at.
- Is it that baby can’t remove milk well?
- It there an issue with the pump?
- Did she night wean too early because of sleep training?
- Is there a hormonal condition like hypothyroidism or PCOS?
- Is mom insulin resistant?
- Does she have enough glandular tissue to produce what baby needs?
- Did she start birth control or a new medication?
- Has her period returned or could she be pregnant?
These are just a few reasons your milk supply could be affected.
If she stops breastfeeding altogether, the formula company has been successful in acquiring another long term customer and it all started because she was made to doubt her milk supply.
Moms who want to breastfeed and end up stopping before they are ready often have grief around how their journey ended. The research shows us moms who want to breastfeed and are unable to have the support to make that happen are at a higher risk for postpartum depression.
Your body is not broken. You should be able to produce enough milk for your baby and if you can’t, you deserve support and to find out the root cause of what’s going on and help to create a plan for you moving forward
Insufficient Glandular Tissue: an underlying reason for low supply
There is a condition called Insufficient Glandular Tissue and the breast does not have enough milk making tissue to supply all of what baby needs a day but even then, there are options! Things can be tested and ruled out and if you are someone who only produces a few ounces a day, you still get to choose what you want to do. You can nurse your baby and use an SNS at breast to supplement with formula. You can bottle feed formula or donor milk and have your baby finish their feeding at breast. You get to choose what happens next.
So what should you do?
Don’t buy the cookies. Instead, consider putting that money towards working with a lactation consultant. Also, don’t fall for the marketing hype of “I pumped 10oz after taking [insert product name]. An average milk production is about 24-32oz in 24 hours. This is about an ounce an hour or a little more. Pumping 7+oz from both breasts is not the average. It’s an oversupply if it’s happening at every single pump session.
Having a huge freezer stash of milk is also not the average. The human body likes to be in balance. The way human lactation works is to make what baby needs and not too much more. Sure, you can tell it to make more to feed your freezer but the norm is not to be overproducing and filling up freezers.
If you have concerns about your milk supply, work with a knowledgeable IBCLC lactation consultant (you can book with me here).
I teach moms about how their body works so they can learn the skills that actually work to remove more milk. If you want to know what that looks like before working with me, you can sign up for my FREE MAKE MORE MILK video series. Click here.
References:
Palacios, A. M., Cardel, M. I., Parker, E., Dickinson, S., Houin, V. R., Young, B., & Allison, D. B. (2023). Effectiveness of lactation cookies on human milk production rates: a randomized controlled trial. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 117(5), 1035–1042. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajcnut.2023.03.010
