Moms Order Starbucks ‘pink Drink’ to Increase Their Breast Milk Supply. Does It Work?
“This is how it happened and it NEVER happens,” wrote Laura Galvin of the breastfeeding support group Milky Mamas on Facebook. A mother of two from Lillington, North Carolina posted a photo of her T-shirt soaked in leaked breast milk. She recently expressed so much milk that she fears that she will soon run out of the freezer – just this week she hid 48 4-ounce bags.
“I’m trying to find a place to donate,” she tells me.
Why does Galvin think she has excess breast milk? She drank Pink Drink at Starbucks.
A blend of coconut milk and Strawberry Acai Refreshers from Starbucks, the pink drink was originally a secret but is now on the coffee giant’s year-round menu. Convinced that this is helping their supply, some breastfeeding moms are reaching out to social media groups to praise the icy drink that tastes like strawberry starburst in liquid form. One mom claims she pumped twice as much as she usually did at work. Another woman said that she produced 10 times more than usual. Stephanie Lester, who lives in Hilliard, Ohio, told me that on her second day of drinking Pink Drink, her three-month-old daughter “suffocated” while feeding her.
“My milk literally splashed for almost a minute and it has never happened before,” she says.
Women are posting their own homemade rose drink recipes and discussing what a magical milk ingredient could be. (The majority of votes were for coconut milk, which contains electrolytes.)
It is important to note that these stories are purely anecdotal – the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine cautions against using galactagogues or nutritional supplements as the primary solution to increasing breast milk supply. These include, but are not limited to, fenugreek, goat rue, milk thistle, oats, dandelion, millet, seaweed, anise, basil, blissful thistle, fennel seeds, marshmallows, lactation biscuits, brewer’s yeast, flax, mother’s milk tea, ovaltin. , blue (yes, that’s blue) Gatorade and prescription drugs. Some women have tried Pink Drink and got nothing but an empty wallet and possibly some brainstorming.
According to La Leche League, some of the things that can help increase your breast milk production include:
- Frequent breastfeeding and as long as your baby is there and eating
- Offering both breasts at every feed
- Make sure the baby is in the grip and correctly positioned at the breast
- Make sure you are resting, getting the right nutrition, and getting enough fluids.
- Pumping more efficiently
- Breastfeeding counseling
If you want to add a pink drink to it, it doesn’t hurt, especially on days when you can use a moisturizing treat. “It’s really delicious, so why not drink what you love and have a lot of benefits?” says Lester. “I understand it doesn’t work for everyone, but some people do see results. I am one of them and I will continue to drink this drink while I am breastfeeding. ”