Evidence-based strategies ranked by what the science actually supports – from the fundamentals to galactagogues.

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Before trying to increase supply, it helps to know whether your baby is showing signs of getting enough milk. Our guide on how to tell if your baby is getting enough milk walks through the signs that matter most, including diapers, weight gain, and swallowing.

If you’ve typed “how to increase milk supply” into a search bar at any point in your breastfeeding journey, you’ve probably encountered an overwhelming mix of lactation cookies, herbal teas, pumping schedules, and supplements – all promising results, most with minimal evidence behind them.

This article cuts through the noise. We’re going to walk you through what the research actually supports, ranked from the most to least evidence-backed, so you can make smart decisions with your time and energy.

The honest headline: the fundamentals are free, unsexy, and remarkably effective. Everything else is supplementary – sometimes literally.

Start Here: Make Sure It’s Actually a Supply Problem

Before putting energy into increasing supply, it’s worth confirming that supply is genuinely the issue. Many of the signs that feel like low supply – soft breasts, a fussy baby, low pump output, cluster feeding – are actually normal breastfeeding experiences.

If your baby has adequate wet diapers and is gaining weight appropriately, your supply is almost certainly fine. If those markers are off, read on.

See our article: “I Don’t Think I’m Making Enough Milk”

Tier 1: The Fundamentals (Highest Evidence)

These are the strategies with the strongest evidence base. They work because they directly engage the supply-and-demand mechanism that governs milk production. Start here. Always.

1. Feed or Pump More Frequently

Milk production is driven by one fundamental principle: the more milk that is removed, the more your body produces. An empty breast makes milk faster than a full one. This is not marketing – it is basic mammary physiology.

If supply is a concern, the first question to ask is: how often is milk being removed? Aim for 8–12 feeding or pumping sessions in 24 hours. Anything less than 8 is often insufficient stimulation, particularly in the early weeks when supply is still being established.

If your baby is not nursing effectively – due to latch issues, sleepiness, or tongue tie – pumping after or instead of feeds can help maintain the demand signal while you work on the underlying problem.

See our article: The Latch: Everything You Need to Know

See our article: Tongue Tie and Lip Tie: What Parents Need to Know

2. Ensure Complete Breast Emptying

Frequency matters, but so does completeness. A breast that is only partially emptied sends a weaker demand signal than one that is fully drained. Strategies to ensure more complete emptying include:

• Breast compression – gently compressing the breast during feeding or pumping to help move milk toward the nipple and keep the baby actively swallowing
• Switch nursing – alternating breasts multiple times per feeding when the baby begins to slow or become passive at the first breast
• Hands-on pumping – massaging the breast before and during pumping. Research shows this can increase expressed volume by up to 48% compared to pump alone
• Ensure correct pump flange size – an ill-fitting flange reduces suction effectiveness and milk removal significantly. Most women are fitted with the wrong size

3. Prioritize Night Feeds

Prolactin – the hormone that drives milk production – peaks at night. Night nursing and overnight pumping sessions are disproportionately valuable for maintaining and building supply. Skipping night feeds to get more sleep is understandable, but it often comes at a supply cost.

If sleep deprivation is genuinely affecting your capacity to function, consider alternating night feeds with a partner rather than eliminating them entirely. Even one or two night nursing sessions preserved can make a meaningful difference to morning supply.

A Note on Co-Sleeping and the Safe Sleep 7

Night feeds are valuable. They’re also exhausting, and many mothers find that bringing baby into bed makes them more sustainable – which in turn protects supply. If you make that choice, making it safely matters enormously.

How the Safe Sleep 7 Is Used

Developed by La Leche League International and published in their sleep guide Sweet Sleep, the Safe Sleep 7 is a set of seven criteria for safer bedsharing. It is designed specifically for breastfeeding families and is meant to reduce risk when all seven criteria are met.

The AAP Recommendation Is Still Room-Sharing Without Bed-Sharing

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) does not recommend bed-sharing regardless of precautions, and recommends room-sharing without bed-sharing as the safest arrangement. The Safe Sleep 7 is offered here as harm reduction information for families who choose to bedshare – because bedsharing happens, planned or not, and having accurate safety information is better than not having it.

4. Skin-to-Skin Contact

Skin-to-skin contact between mother and baby stimulates oxytocin release, which improves let-down, and promotes prolactin response. Research on skin-to-skin – particularly in the early postpartum period and with premature infants – consistently shows improved milk supply and breastfeeding duration outcomes.

Incorporating more skin-to-skin time – not just during feeding but during rest and carrying – is a zero-cost, evidence-supported supply support strategy.

5. Fix the Root Cause

Supply problems rarely exist in isolation. They are almost always downstream of something: a latch that isn’t transferring milk effectively, a tongue tie reducing suction, a feeding schedule that doesn’t match the baby’s demand, supplementation that replaced breast stimulation without pumping to compensate, or a medical condition affecting prolactin.

Galactagogues and pumping strategies won’t sustain supply if the root cause isn’t addressed. Work with an IBCLC to identify what’s actually driving the problem before layering additional interventions on top of it.

Tier 2: Lifestyle Supports (Meaningful but Indirect)

These factors don’t directly drive supply the way milk removal does, but they create the hormonal and physical conditions your body needs to produce milk effectively. Chronic deficits in any of these areas can meaningfully undermine supply.

Hydration

Breast milk is approximately 87% water. Dehydration won’t cause sudden supply loss, but chronic inadequate fluid intake can affect milk volume over time. Breastfeeding increases your fluid needs meaningfully.

A practical target is roughly 2.5–3 liters of fluid daily, though individual needs vary. A good rule of thumb: drink to thirst, and always have water nearby during feeds. Pale yellow urine is your best hydration indicator.

Nutrition and Calories

Breastfeeding burns approximately 500 additional calories per day. Under-eating – whether from appetite suppression, skipping meals, or deliberate restriction – can affect milk supply and maternal energy levels.

You don’t need a special diet to breastfeed well. A balanced, varied diet with adequate protein, healthy fats, whole grains, and iron-rich foods supports both milk quality and your own wellbeing. Iron is worth particular attention – mild maternal anemia can negatively affect milk production, and many postpartum women are iron-depleted.

On the flip side: aggressive calorie restriction or rapid postpartum weight loss can directly undermine supply. Producing breast milk requires approximately 500 extra calories per day. Dropping intake too sharply sends a scarcity signal that the body responds to by reducing milk output. A modest, gradual approach to postpartum weight loss – if that is your goal – is both safer for supply and kinder to your body.

Stress and Cortisol

Chronic elevated cortisol – from stress, sleep deprivation, or anxiety – can interfere with oxytocin release and the let-down reflex, reducing effective milk transfer and, over time, supply. This is physiologically real, not a platitude.

It is also one of the hardest things to fix in the newborn period. But knowing the mechanism matters: a feeding environment that is calm, private, and low-pressure supports let-down in ways that a tense, distracted one does not. Skin-to-skin, relaxing music, warm compresses before feeding – these are not fluffy suggestions. They are oxytocin support.

See our article: Fed is Best. And Breast Milk is Extraordinary!

Sleep

Prolactin follows a circadian rhythm and rises during sleep. Chronic sleep deprivation doesn’t just leave you exhausted – it can blunt the prolactin response and indirectly reduce supply through increased cortisol. This creates a cruel irony: the more exhausted you are, the harder supply maintenance becomes.

There is no perfect solution to postpartum sleep deprivation. But prioritizing sleep where possible, accepting help, and understanding that rest is a supply strategy – not a luxury – matters.

Tier 3: Power Pumping (Targeted Intervention)

Power pumping is a deliberate strategy that mimics cluster feeding using a breast pump – creating an artificial surge of demand that signals the body to increase production. It is one of the most commonly recommended supply-boosting techniques, and the evidence for it is growing.

How It Works

By rapidly and repeatedly emptying the breasts over a concentrated period, power pumping sends the hormonal signal that demand has suddenly spiked. Your body responds by ramping up production. A 2024 pilot randomized controlled trial in mothers with low milk output found that expressed milk volume during power-pumping sessions was significantly higher than during routine pumping sessions.

The Standard Protocol

Set aside one uninterrupted hour, ideally in the morning when prolactin levels are naturally higher. Within that hour:

1: Pump for 20 minutes

2: Rest for 10 minutes

3: Pump for 10 minutes

4: Rest for 10 minutes

5: Pump for 10 minutes

Do this once daily for 3–5 consecutive days. Don’t worry about how much you express during the session – the goal is stimulation, not output. Most mothers see results within a week.

Important Caveats

• Power pumping is a short-term intervention, not a permanent daily routine
• It is most useful when supply has dipped, not as a starting strategy from day one
• If your pump isn’t removing milk effectively – wrong flange size, worn parts, insufficient suction – power pumping won’t help. Fix the equipment first
• It won’t compensate for a root cause that hasn’t been addressed

Tier 4: Galactagogues – An Honest Guide

A galactagogue is any food, herb, or medication believed to support or increase milk production. The market for lactation supplements is enormous – and the evidence behind most of them is considerably weaker than the marketing suggests.

Here is an honest, research-based breakdown of the most commonly used options.

Food-Based Galactagogues

Oats: Nutritious and commonly used, but not proven. Oats are a nutritious, affordable food that many breastfeeding mothers use as a traditional galactagogue, but there is not strong clinical evidence that oats directly increase milk supply. Their real value may be that they provide calories, carbohydrates, fiber, iron, and minerals – all of which can support a breastfeeding parent’s overall nutrition.

Brewer’s Yeast: Rich in B vitamins, chromium, and protein. Widely used in lactation baked goods. Evidence is largely anecdotal and survey-based, though its nutritional profile is genuinely supportive of postpartum recovery and energy. Over 40% of mothers who use it report perceiving it as effective. Safe to use in food amounts.

Flaxseed: A source of plant-based omega-3s and phytoestrogens. Commonly added to lactation recipes. Evidence for direct supply impact is limited; nutritional value for the postpartum mother is real.

Almonds, sesame, and other nuts and seeds: Provide healthy fats, protein, and minerals including calcium and iron. Support overall nutritional status rather than directly increasing supply.

Herbal Galactagogues

Moringa (Malunggay): Currently the best-evidenced herbal galactagogue. Several studies, particularly from Asia, have shown meaningful increases in milk volume. Generally well-tolerated. If you’re going to try an herbal approach, moringa has the strongest current evidence. Available as powder or capsules.

Fenugreek: The most widely studied herbal galactagogue. Results are genuinely mixed – one meta-analysis found a mild galactogenic effect; another found no good evidence. The NIH’s LactMed database notes the effect “may be primarily psychological” in humans, though some studies suggest it works by increasing insulin, prolactin, and oxytocin. Approximately 43% of mothers who use it report perceived increase; 5% report a decrease. If you try it, note that fenugreek can cause a distinctive maple syrup odor in sweat and urine. Consult your provider before use.

Blessed thistle, fennel, nettle: Traditionally used for centuries. Evidence is largely traditional and anecdotal. Cochrane review of oral galactagogues found “uncertain evidence” that they improve milk volume. Not harmful in typical amounts, but not proven effective.

Lactation teas and combination supplements: A 2018 RCT of Mother’s Milk herbal tea versus placebo found no significant differences in supply, infant growth, or maternal outcomes. Many commercial products combine multiple ingredients with individually weak evidence and market them with strong claims. Approach with appropriate skepticism.

If you’d like to try a herbal lactation tea, look for one that is USDA certified organic and formulated without unnecessary additives. Our current favorite is Earth Mama Organic Milkmaid Tea – 100% organic, caffeine-free, formulated by a nurse herbalist, and one of the most trusted names in the breastfeeding supplement space. Enjoy it hot or iced.

The Bottom Line on Galactagogues

No herbal galactagogue has strong, replicated RCT evidence for consistently increasing supply in all mothers. The best current evidence sits with moringa, followed by fenugreek for short-term use.

Food-based galactagogues like oats and brewer’s yeast have genuine nutritional value for a postpartum mother who may be depleted – even if direct supply impact isn’t proven. That nutritional support is real and worth having.

Galactagogues work differently for every mother. The most consistent gains happen when they’re combined with frequent nursing and effective milk removal – not used instead of them.

Galactagogues Support the Basics – They Don’t Replace Them

The real problem with lactation supplements is when they become a substitute for the fundamentals. A lactation cookie cannot replace an extra nursing session. An herbal capsule cannot fix a latch that isn’t transferring milk. If the foundations are in place, galactagogues can be a reasonable addition. If they’re not, galactagogues are unlikely to compensate.

Things That Can Hurt Supply (And Are Often Overlooked)

Sometimes the question isn’t how to build supply, but what’s quietly draining it. Common supply reducers include:

• Pseudoephedrine – found in many common cold and sinus medications. Known to reduce milk supply. Check labels carefully
• Combined hormonal contraception – estrogen-containing birth control can significantly reduce supply. Progestin-only options are generally considered safer for lactation. Discuss with your provider before starting any contraception postpartum
• Scheduled feeding – feeding on a clock rather than on demand reduces the natural signaling that drives supply
• Supplementing without pumping – every bottle that replaces a breast feed without a corresponding pump session reduces the demand signal
• Pacifier overuse in early weeks – before feeding is well established, excess pacifier use can reduce time at the breast and therefore reduce supply stimulation
• Thyroid disorders, PCOS, retained placenta – underlying medical conditions that affect supply and are often missed. If supply isn’t responding to increased feeding and other strategies, ask your provider to check for these

See our article: “I Don’t Think I’m Making Enough Milk”

The Bottom Line

If you want to increase your milk supply, the roadmap is clear:

1. Remove milk more often and more completely – this is the engine. Everything else is fuel.

2. Support your body – hydrate, eat enough, sleep where you can, and reduce stress where possible.

3. Use power pumping strategically – especially when you need a targeted boost.

4. Consider galactagogues as a supplement – not a solution. Moringa has the best evidence; oats and brewer’s yeast provide real nutritional value; most others are modest at best.

5. Fix the root cause – with an IBCLC if nothing is working. Supply problems rarely exist on their own.

Your body was built for this. Give it the right signals and the right support, and it will usually respond.

We’re here. Keep going.