Elon senior public health studies major Catherine Palmer and Assistant Professor Aunchalee Palmquist presented their research in March at the 10th annual Breastfeeding and Feminism International Conference.
Elon senior public health studies major Catherine Palmer and Assistant Professor Aunchalee Palmquist presented their research at the 10th annual Breastfeeding and Feminism International Conference.
Palmer was the lead author on the poster “People, plants, and breastfeeding: the contemporary use of botanicals in management of low milk supply among health care providers and breastfeeding mothers.” They reported preliminary data on the use of plant-based supplements used to increase milk supply called galactagogues.
Plant medicines are among a variety of therapies used to support lactation. They are found cross-culturally throughout the word’s traditional medical systems. However, the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine discourages the use of plant-based galactagogues, citing unreliable quality of over-the-counter products and a lack of a strong evidence base for their efficacy and safety.
The prevalence of galactagogue use has not been examined recently in the United States. Moreover, few studies have conducted a survey of plant-based galactagogue use among health professionals who coordinate lactation care.
To understand the place of botanicals in the increasing medicalization of lactation, Palmer designed an online survey to gather information on the types of galactagogues breastfeeding mothers reported using and the types that health care providers reported recommending. They found that 71 percent of breastfeeding mothers reported using galactagogues while 62% reported experiencing low milk supply.
Only 47 percent of these mothers reported being diagnosed with low milk supply by a health care provider, but 65 percent indicated that using galactagogues made them feel more confident in their breast milk supply. Both breastfeeding mothers and health care providers had concerns about the safety and potential negative side effects of plant-based galactagogues. Although the study sample is relatively small, findings indicate that galactagogues are a common part of breastfeeding mothers’ everyday strategies to cope with perceived low milk supply.