How many of you wake your baby up and feed them because you think it has been a long time since they have last fed? How many of you think that breastfeeding is a choice? How many of you were told that ghee will increase your milk supply? How many of you were forced to discard your colostrum? How many of you think it is necessary to wean your baby off because they will get clingy? How many of you struggle while sitting and feeding your baby at nights?

If you have had any of the above doubts, you have reached the right place because here I have written all the myths that should be busted in order not to confuse new moms all over the world. Of course, there are several myths around breastfeeding, but here I have covered the ones I had come across and researched about with the help of gynaecologists, nutritionists and dieticians:

1. WAKE UP BABY TO FEED: Firstly never wake up a sleeping baby. You will only irritate them because you messed up their sleep. Feed on demand. Babies have their own eating pattern and will call out to you when they are hungry. You have to only be ready with your breast.
   
2. IT’S A CHOICE: Breastfeeding is not a choice, it is a necessity. In fact, it is very important for the baby’s health and other reasons listed here.
   
3. SMALL BREASTS PRODUCE LESS MILK: At least here, size does not matter. Production of milk depends completely on the baby and your functional tissues while your cup size is totally dependent on your fatty tissues. The mother’s stress level may also affect her lactation capabilities but not the size of her breasts. So, whether you are an A cup or D cup, your breasts will provide the milk your baby needs.
   
4. BABY NEEDS WATER: The baby does not require water as long as it is breastfeeding because the breast milk contains 88% water already.
   
5. THROW COLOSTRUM AWAY: No. Do not do that even in your dreams. You can feed your baby even before your umbilical cord is cut and colostrum is the power house of immunity and is said to help save your baby from repeated doctor visits throughout his/her life.
   
6. FOLLOW ANCESTRAL DIET: This is a huge no-no because general lactation diets found on social media or on the internet and generic diets given by elders may or may not hold good for every one because every mother has a different family history, different medical history and a different body. You cannot generalize and feed them whatever your grandmother ate after her delivery.
   
7. GHEE IS GOOD FOR LACTATION: Ghee and dry fruits do not help produce more milk but there are other foods that help in lactation. Ghee was given to mothers to strengthen their bones after delivery in order to get back to their daily strenuous routines. Have ghee to get strong but in limits.
   
8. SIDE LYING POSITION MAY CHOKE BABY: There are several positions in which you can feed your baby comfortably. I was aware of none because I was told that sitting and feeding was the only way. Yet I chose to lie down sideways and feed my baby especially at nights so our sleep wasn’t disturbed. You just need to be careful to not sleep ON your baby which is possible when there is enough space for you both to sleep comfortably.
   
9. FORCIBLY WEAN YOUR BABY: Many people believe that along with carrying the baby regularly, breastfeeding also makes the baby clingy and dependent and therefore they need to wean the baby off as soon as possible. This is not true. Yes, breastfeeding does help baby and mother bond well but clinginess may depend on how they are brought up after that. Weaning is not necessary unless you are unable to feed due to full time outside work (expressing your milk is an option here) or serious illnesses like HIV, Tuberculosis or Herpes near nipple area. Even if the mother becomes pregnant again, she can continue feeding her baby without any adverse effects on the present pregnancy. So breastfeed as long as you can.
   
10. IF YOU DON’T NURSE YOU’RE A BAD MOM: Although breastfeeding is important for your baby’s health, not being able to breastfeed does not make you an unfit mother. Bring up your child with love and care and it won’t matter whether they dined on breast milk, formula milk or a combination of both.

I was not aware of half the things mentioned above when I became a new mom though I was smarter the second time around. I barely had the chance to read articles that helped me during my first pregnancy and delivery, so, I find it a matter of pride to be able to help new moms today.

Though you are bound to come across more weird and funny myths around breastfeeding, be aware and listen to your heart instead. Listen to your baby and you will avoid a great deal of confusion and anger associated with post-partum depression too. All the best! Do share your comments in the space below.

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#LetsBlogwithPri is a Blog Train hosted by Prisha Lalwani, Author at Mummasaurus. It helps us produce articles more regularly than we could when not sitting in the blog train. I wholeheartedly thank Sweta Kachhap, Author at Cloud and Sunshine, for introducing me in her blog about fathers. Also, I would like to introduce Debidutta Mohanty, Author at Womb to Cradle and Beyond. Do read her latest blog post here.

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