Natural ways to increase breast milk supply

I have stated this before- I am a very avid breastfeeding supporter.  Breastfeeding hasn't necessarily always been easy for me, but when I think of all the benefits, it is definitely worth it.  There are many people that have struggles making and/or producing enough milk.  These are methods that can help your body do so more efficiently. 

Starting with the simple things, that we all know we need to do- just specifying.

• Water - Breastfeeding women need to drink 3.0 liters, or about 13 cups per day.  When you are low on milk supply, making sure you are drinking enough could help a lot.  The best thing to do is always have water nearby and drink it whenever you are thirsty.  Listening to our bodies cues can be the most beneficial.
• Calories - on average, a breastfeeding mom needs to consume about 1800-2200 calories per day (sometimes more).  Again- it is very important to listen to your bodies cues and eat whenever you feel hungry.
•  Fenugreek - seed capsules, tinctures and teas can be purchased in many health food stores and online. You can also buy empty gelatin capsules and buy bulk fenugreek seed powder to make your own capsules.  Fenugreek seeds contain hormone precursors that increase milk supply. 
• Blessed Thistle - can be consumed, powdered, in capsule form found at your local health foods store. The leaves, stems and flowers of blessed thistle can also be stewed in hot water to produce an aromatic tea that provides both extra fluids and the herb's lactation-enhancing properties.  
• Make sure you are not over working yourself and make sure you are getting enough sleep.  Both can be VITAL in the production of breast milk.
• Rescue Remedy - (I swear by this for numerous things.)  This is a homeopathic remedy that is useful for triggering the letdown reflex. You take four drops under the tongue up to five minutes before pumping or nursing. Rescue Remedy can have a slight sedative effect, so use with caution.  
• Mother’s Milk Tea -This tea is a very mild galactagogue containing fenugreek.  Some women find that drinking several cups a day is all that is needed of fenugreek to boost their supply.  An easy way to drink it is to brew a few cups very strong and cool it.  It can be drunk either iced straight or mixed half and half with apple juice. 

Nursing is so worth all the hard work and very beneficial for you and your children.  If you are wanting to nurse, stick with it and try everything you can before you give up.  Good luck!

Baby Acne

Most mothers and fathers out there have had to deal with their precious little ones getting baby acne at some point.  It's not fun and studies have shown that it can be painful, like adult acne can be.  Some information about baby acne...

•  The greatest thing believed to cause baby acne is hormones passed from the mother to baby during birth, but should go away by about 6 months.
• The next biggest cause is believed to be allergic reactions to food, laundry detergent and/or soap, fabric softener.  If acne persists past 6 months, these are more likely the causes.
• Babies can even be allergic to different than normal or rough fabrics they are not used to.  

 Both of my children had a mild case of baby acne at some point, but my daughters was definitely much worse.  I decided to change her bath wash and body lotion when it wouldn't go away, and that worked, so I didn't need to do anything else.  I have never used any of the methods below, but I have read and researched numerous things that say these natural methods work. 

• Change baby's body wash to a more natural, milder soap.  Whole Foods has some great natural body washes.  My favorites are 'Earth's Best' and 'Burts Bees'. 
• Change baby's lotion (if you're using one- you do not really need to be) to a more natural one.  Whole foods has great lotions, as well.  I like 'Earth's Best' and 'Weleda Baby'.
• Combine 1 tsp. honey and 1 tsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice and apply to skin for 20-40 minutes, then wash with warm water.  Repeat everyday, as needed.
• Wash baby's face after each breast or bottle feeding, with a clean warm wet cloth.
• Raw Garlic - cut open and rub on baby acne.  It can help clean and detoxify skin.

There isn't a lot of options with baby acne, as babies skin is so sensitive.  Good luck on helping your sweet angels.

Migraine Headaches

Being plagued with migraines has never been something I have had to deal with, and I am SO grateful for that.  I know a lot of people that haven't been so lucky.  Here are some well known facts/symptoms of migraines...

• Migraines are most often seen in adults 25 to 55 years old.
• Migraine headaches affect up to 20 percent of all men, and 30 percent of all women in the United States.
• Headaches are the number one health complaint, and affect nearly everyone at some point in their lives.
•  Migraine headaches typically occur on one side of the face, affecting the temple and the eye and causing pain that can be quite severe and often throbbing.
•  Other symptoms of migraine include blurred vision, dizziness, fatigue, hot and cold spells, lightheadedness, nausea, numbness or tingling along the affected side of the body, extreme sensitivity to light and sound, and vomiting.
• Allergies, especially those caused by food, are a predominant cause of headaches, especially migraine. (According to research published in The Lancet, food allergies contribute to 93 percent of all migraine headaches.)

 My heart goes out to all that have to deal with migraines.  I remember as a child, my brothers migraines were absolutely horrible for him- and as I got older, my younger sister was plagued with them, too.  I hope that these methods can help some of you, so you don't have to live with these horrible headaches.  A lot of the natural remedies for tension headaches are the same for migraines, but there is a few extra things I have added, that have been proven to help with just migraines...

• Massage Therapy - is a wonderful way to relieve tension and stress.  It is something I would do on a weekly basis if time and money would allow.
• Healthy Diet - I have found that the healthier we eat, (more whole foods, fruits and veggies) the more it can help us all around with our issues.  A cleanse would be a great way to jump start your body.  Click here for my basic cleanse.
  
• Yoga & Meditation - stretches and calms the muscles that are causing pain. 
• Essential oils - chamomile, eucalyptus, lavender, marjoram, peppermint, and rosemary are the ones that seem to work best.  They should be applied to the head, face and neck, according to where the pain is coming from.
•  Raw Garlic - improve blood flow (I swear by garlic. It is such an easy and powerful natural curing option). Click here for the explanation of how garlic works.  
• Ginkgo Biloba - can be found at your local health foods store.  It is an extract of the ginkgo tree and  improves blood flow.
  
•  Ginger - raw (chop up and swallow whole) or in capsules, found at the local health foods store.  It helps stop the progression of headaches when taken at the first sign of symptoms.
• Cayenne Pepper - can be found in capsules at your local health foods store, or drink Lemon Cayenne Water- Click here for recipe.  One of its main uses is to help improve blood circulation or vasodilation, as it is medically known, by opening up blood vessels, namely the large arteries, veins and arterioles.  It also is a great pain reliever.
• Fresh Squeezed Juices - carrot and celery; carrot, beet, and cucumber; and carrot, celery, spinach, and parsley juices can all help alkalizing the body.
• Nutritional Supplements - used for treating and preventing most types of headaches include: B-complex vitamins, vitamin B3, vitamin C, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, and potassium, along with eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), evening primrose oil, and the amino acid DL-phenylalanine.  All found at your local health foods store.  

I have seen people get rid of migraines with these methods.  I have seen people not get migraines anymore with these methods.  They work.  You just have to find the right combination for you and your body.  Try a few for a couple weeks and if they don't help, move on.  Persistence will find you a cure. 

Lemon Cayenne Water

Some of you might be thinking I am a little crazy with this drink.  It may be gross, but it has an amazing health benefit and can help with numerous things- like, headaches, jump-starting metabolism, cleansing bowels, etc.

Here is the recipe...

• 8-12 oz glass of purified water.
• Juice of 1/2-1 lemon.
•  1/8 tsp.- 1 tsp. Cayenne Pepper (start with lower increments).
• 1 tsp. Maple Syrup (the maple syrup has to be real- you don't have to use the maple syrup if you don't want).  Maple syrup has a lot of great nutrients in it.

Give-A-Way!

The winner of the Vitamin C supplement and the Echinacea tincture is....

BRENDA!!!

I will contact you to get your address to send it out.  Thanks to all who entered!

I am doing my 1st blog Give-A-Way on Natural Cures Momma! I am excited to give away a couple of my favorite items...

My favorite Vitamin C supplement and my favorite Echinacea tincture.  These will make a great cold/flu stopper, with the season coming up on us quicker than we know.  So, here are the rules...

To Enter: you have to follow me on my blog and enter a comment below on the "Give-a-way" post.  I will give extra entry's for posting a link on your blog, liking me on facebook and/or following me on twitter.  Just leave an extra comment for each of those, below.  Please make sure you put your email address on the comments.  This give-a-way ends on Wednesday, the 17th of August, 2011.  Winner will be chosen on random.org.  Give-a-way is only good for residents of the United States.

Give-a-way is CLOSED!  Thanks again to all who entered.

Please pass along to all of your friends!  Good luck!

Natural Remedies When Trying To Get Pregnant

Trying to become pregnant is such a wonderful and joyous time in your life.  Welcoming new precious souls to this earth is such an amazing blessing.  There is a lot of preparing that goes into planning a new child, like; insurance planning, financial planning, home planning, emotional planning, etc.  One important degree of planning that sometimes gets overlooked, is preparing our bodies for such a big change.  Here are some natural methods that are proven to cleanse, awaken and prepare the body for pregnancy and childbirth...

• Pre-Pregnancy Cleanse - helps cleanse toxins out of your body so it can nurture a baby more efficiently.  Click here for my basic cleanse.
  
• Daily Green Smoothies  - are important for all of pregnancy and beyond.  Click here for my Green Smoothie recipe.
• Chasteberry - an herb found at your local health foods store.  It is AKA Vitex agnus-castus, and is a menstrual regulator that can help increase fertility.  
•  Red Raspberry Leaf - an herb found at your local health foods store.  It is highly regarded for its ability to tone the uterus and muscles of the pelvic region.
• Nettle Leaf - a supplement found at your local health foods store that contains a wide spectrum of vitamins and minerals that are critical to good reproductive health, including Vitamins A, C, D, K, Potassium, Phosphorous, Iron, and Sulfur.  Nettle Leaf also contains Calcium – a mineral that affects a woman’s ability to conceive and maintain pregnancy.
• L-Carnitine - found at your local health foods store.  Low sperm counts have been linked to low carnitine levels in men.  Several studies suggest that L-carnitine supplementation may increase sperm count and mobility (get this for your partner, it can't hurt).
• Multi-Vitamin/Pre-Natal Vitamin - I would make sure you and your partner are taking a mulit-vitamin.
• Yoga - is a very good way to prepare your body for pregnancy and childbirth.  Yoga can also release harmful toxins from your body.  

I used a lot of these things when I was preparing to become pregnant with my last child.  I believe they all helped a lot.  There is also an herb combination that has been known to help with infertility.  If you have problems with infertility and would like to find out more info, click here.  If you are already dealing with a doctor, I would check with them and make sure it will not affect anything you are already taking/doing.  Good luck on this blessed time in your life!

Basic Cleanse

Here are the guidelines for the Basic Cleanse that I use.  It is used to cleanse your body of harmful toxins.  I try to do some sort of a cleanse (besides when I am pregnant or breastfeeding; before you get pregnant is fine) a few times a year.  

• Eat a huge green salad the night before the cleanse.  Make sure all that is on your salad is vegetables (no cheese, croutons, etc.).  For dressing use only lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, sea salt and seasoning; to taste.
• A couple hours after dinner, drink cranberry fiber drink.  Click here for recipe.
• First thing in the morning drink a full glass of purified water with the juice of a 1/2 of a lemon.  If you are really daring, add an 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper (cayenne pepper is a great bowel cleanser).
• For breakfast eat only fresh fruit.  No bananas, though.
• Mid-Morning drink at least 4 glasses of purified water.  If you are hungry have an apple and/or some freshly squeezed vegetable juice.
• For lunch eat a huge green salad topped with any vegetables.  For dressing only use lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, sea salt and seasoning; to taste.
• Drink at least 4 glasses of water through out the afternoon.  If you are hungry have an apple and/or fresh squeezed vegetable juice.
• For dinner have a large portion of freshly steamed vegetables and/or a bowl of homemade vegetable soup.  You can also have another green salad.  Again, use only fresh lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, sea salt, and seasoning; to taste.
• If you are hungry in the evening, eat another apple (or two).
• First thing the next morning drink a full glass of purified water with 1/2 lemon (with the 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, if you wish).
• For breakfast enjoy a Green Smoothie.  Click here for the recipe.

You made it!  If you would like to continue on for longer, you can put some rice protein powder in with the nightly Cranberry Fiber Drink, or the Green Smoothie (found at your local health foods store).  If you do not like (or refuse to eat) the dressing for the salad, use a vinaigrette with preferably, no refined sugar in it.  Be positive when you are cleansing and don't give up!