How much milk should I be able to express?
When I express milk, I can only see one or two streams. Should there be more? I manually expressed one-and-one-half ounces in 15 minutes. Is that a normal amount?
Question:Debbi Donovan
Debbi Donovan is a Board Certified Lactation Consultant, as well as a retired La Leche League Leader. For more than a decade, Debbi... Read more
This is a very common question. Many women worry that they have an insufficient milk supply because they are only able to express a small amount of milk. Expressing even a very small amount of milk does not mean you have an inadequate milk supply!
The quantity of milk you obtain while expressing depends on quite a few variables:
- The type of pump you are using.
- Your level of experience expressing your milk.
- The length of time since you last nursed your baby or expressed your milk.
- The time of day.
- Your comfort level and your ability to relax.
The amount of milk expressed can vary significantly from woman to woman. One woman might regularly express eight or more ounces at a time, while another might only get an ounce or two. These women can both have babies that are absolutely thriving on their milk. The woman who expresses the larger amount of milk may find it easier to let-down when pumping, or she may be a large milk producer. The woman expressing smaller amounts may have a quite adequate or even abundant milk supply. Or she may just not be as comfortable expressing her milk. Perhaps her breasts produce less milk than the other woman (and her baby just nurses more frequently.) There are wide variations in what is considered to be normal.
You mentioned that you expressed one-and-one-half ounces in 15 minutes. When expressing to replace a feed, I would recommend that you hand-express or (single) pump for 20 to 30 minutes. When you express for a longer period of time, you might find that your milk will let-down again later in the session. This should also increase the amount of milk you are able to obtain.
Though you probably have quite a few nipple pores, you may only see milk streaming from a few of them at a time. How is your hand positioned when you express your milk? When hand-expressing, it is helpful to "walk" your thumb and fingers around your breast, using both hands on each breast to thoroughly milk other areas. You may find that this helps you to obtain more milk. Best wishes!
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