Nursing Your Kids

I’m from India, and we use fenugreek as a standard ingredient in our diet. I’ve seen a lot of questions and some strange opinions and information about fenugreek supplements on this board, so I thought I’d write a post about what I know.

FYI, I had a pretty low supply of breast milk (my SS did not latch on AT ALL for 2 weeks, which pretty much killed my initial supply), but I have managed to correct by taking fenugreek seeds.

Fenugreek is very easily available in ethnic food stores that sell Indian or Pakistani foods. The native name for fenugreek is “METHI” (pronounced MAY-thi), so that may be what it says on the pack of seeds or box of dried leaves. It costs about $3 for more than a month’s supply of seeds in upstate NY.

I soak one tsp of fenugreek seeds in abut 2 tbsps of water for a few hours, and then swallow the whole thing with a full glass of water (it’s important to swallow the water the seeds have been soaking in also). I do this three times a day. Every time I swallow one batch of seeds, I soak the next batch to be swallowed later.

Fenugreek leaves are also pretty good, but not as effective as the seeds. Both fresh and dried leaves have produced similar results for me, I don’t think there is a difference. Fresh leaves don’t need to be cooked (though it’s fine if you do cook them), but the dried ones definitely do. Fenugreek leaves are a great flavoring agent - very aromatic, a “good” sort of bitter taste - and can be added to pretty much anything. Use about one tablespoon of dried leaves or three tablespoons of minced fresh leaves per serving, or you can use more for a stronger flavor. Add it to salads, pasta, rice, ground beef, veggies… it’s very versatile.

There is no way to take an overdose of fenugreek, unless you truly gorge on it, I suppose, eating 3-4 cups of seeds in a day, or perhaps eating 2-3 quarts of fresh leaves in a day. I cannot stress this enough: THERE IS NO WAY YOU CAN TAKE AN OVERDOSE. I’ve seen my milk supply increase when I take 4 or 5 teaspoons a day instead of 3. I would not advise you to take TOO much, because constant engorgement might cause mastitis, and that’s more trouble than the extra milk is worth. But if you weren’t nursing, there would be no danger in eating lots of fenugreek, a lot more than what’s in your typical supplement.

Side effects vary depending on people. In India, swallowing a teaspoon of the unsoaked seeds with a glass of buttermilk is a traditional remedy for diarrhoea… most people are careful not to eat more than 1-2 cups of fenugreek seeds in a day (we use it in curries) because it causes constipation. But I’ve seen fenugreek supplement bottles warn that the supplements may CAUSE diarrhoea. I myself seem to be pretty immune to both diarrhoea and constipation, so I don’t have any ill effects at all from the fenugreek. I guess how you react to fenugreek depends on your individual body chemistry and the rest of your diet.

Fenugreek is immensely beneficial to your body and for your baby, too. It’s a “cooling” food, so if you’ve noticed yours or your LO’s head or body always feeling warm (not like a fever, but generally radiating heat even while perspiring etc) your body will be “cooled down” by the fenugreek. It’s summer now, and almost all of us are susceptable to getting overheated, so believe me, fenugreek can help!

In fact, if it’s a particularly hot day and you’ve spent too much time out in the sun, try applying about a cup of soaked, ground fenugreek seeds to your head. It’s incredibly cooling, you’ll notice it immediately. Simply rinse it off with water after 3-4 hours, or when it dries, whichever is later. Fenugreek is a great hair conditioner, too, you’ll notice your hair feeling very soft after this treatment. WARNING: DO NOT DO THIS FOR YOUR LO. Babies get *so* cooled down by the fenugreek-on-the-head treatment that they get nasal congestion and colds from it. If you must, use only a tablespoon instead of a whole cup, and wash it off after an hour instead of waiting for it to dry.