fasting and breastfeeding-will it affect my supply?

[mama2leah]

im fasting for sunrise to sunset, no water or food..will this affect my supply?

I would imagine it would but have no personal experience.

I'm assuming you are muslim? I thought that you were exempt from the fasting as a breast feeding mum.

Are you muslim? Do you have to observe Ramadam if you are breastfeeding?

I'm no expert, but I would have thought yes, but then it depends how often your dc is feeding I guess.

Sorry, Ramadan

I don't know for certain.

How old is your baby and how often do you feed?
It may not affect your supply, but depending on how much you feed you may become dehydrated.

Is it for religious reasons? Don't answer that if you don't want to.

For Yom Kippur? I don't think it is a good idea if you have a young baby and are still feeding frequently. Doesn't breast feeding exempt you?

Milk supply is not dependant on food, although eventually would have an impact.

and how old is the baby? and feeding how often?

the baby will be fine but you may find you are exhausted

and yes both Ramadan and Yom Kippur have explicit exclusions for bfing mothers

What about water, mears? Surely a woman would be at risk of dehydration if she is feeding and not drinking?

I thought every religion made a defininite exemption for bf mothers, for the health of mother and child?

www.babycenter.com.ph/baby/breastfeeding/breastfeed-during-ramadan-fast/ About bf and ramadan (if that is why you are fasting) Basically says you are exempt!

This from KellyMom should help.

If it's for Yom Kippur, I'd say one day wouldn't do too much harm to your milk supply, but if it's for Ramadan then it might be different. I'd think the lack of fluid would have more impact.

There is some research on this -

Pediatr Int. 2006 Jun;48(3):278-83.
The effect of Ramadan on maternal nutrition and composition of breast milk.

??..Ramadan fasting had no significant effect on the macronutrient composition of the breast milk and consequently the growth of the infants. There were significant differences in some of the micronutrients such as zinc, magnesium and potassium. The nutritional status of lactating women was affected by Ramadan fasting. All of the nutrient intakes (except vitamins A, E and C) decreased during Ramadan. For these reasons, it would seem prudent to excuse lactating women from fasting during Ramadan.?

So - not a great idea, but hardly long term significant to the health of the baby.

information that may help you decide

Isn't breastmilk seen much like a blood product, so reliant upon water in the body?

thanx guys

im muslim, just want to do the last few days, personal choice.
bubs is 6 weeks old, demand feeding.

so should i not fast? only 4 days.
i drunk 6 glasses of water lastnight....
islaam has said i dont have to, but i would really like too.

I wouldn't, not with a baby that small

feeding notwithstanding, your body is still recovering from the birth

Next year, eh?

Could you do a water only fast?

i wouldn't personally.

lol i said that last yr, and got pregnant again...

so the general advice is no?
anybody know how to increase milk supply, my friends isnt making enough- another thread maybe.

My supply was definitely still dodgy at 6 weeks. I would say it was a bad idea.

It's only 1 year

I think not fasting for one year is probably the best thing to do... you can do it next year.

As for increasing supply for your friend... demand feeding, feeding at night, drinking plenty are all recommendations. Other things include taking fenugreek supplements (available from healthfood stores), eating oatmeal (like porridge) and possibly expressing for a few weeks to up supply.

maybe you could not fast this time, but when the baby's not demand-feeding as much, do a short fast then?
then you would feel like you were doing your duty without worrying about the breast milk.

My friend fasts, but drinks water.
But she would not do a full fast with a child that small.
Can you make an exclusion to your diet so that you (or other people ) can show that you would be fasting if it were possible?

I wrote a long answer but its disapeared so the quick version is:

No it didnt affect my supply in any way

I wouldnt have considered fasting at six weeks as i still had post partum bleeding etc. and my body wasnt recovered

I did excl bf and fast but babies were older about 4 and 5 months iirc

I used to do one day fasting one day off as i could fast the whole month, i also broke the odd fast i listened to my body

This year i am fasting and it is so much easier, i had been worried about long days after 4 years 'off (pg/bfing/pg/bfing so i do understand the dilemia) but my body coped a million times better and i wasnt hungry like when bfing

In your situation i would recommend trying to get involved in the other aspects of Ramadhan and planning for baby's first Eid