Vitamin D Supplement to Breast Milk?

tiffyspiffy1012 · May 2011

Hi Ladies! I plan on breastfeeding exclusively after LO is born, and was surprised to learn from a pediatrician I interviewed last week, that the new guidance is that Vitamin D drops or supplements are now recommended to be added into breast milk?! Is this really true? Do any of you experienced breast feeders do this? Thanks so much in advance for your advice!

cwhitloc · May 2011

Yep. I add the supplements. it's at the drug store. Tri Vi Sol is what i use. Just add to a bottle of expressed milk or you can stick it in a bottle nipple and have the little one suck it down. It's hard to just inject it in the mouth 'cause they may spit it right back out. My LO gets a bottle daily, so I put it in with that.

saraboston · May 2011

cwhitloc:
Yep. I add the supplements. it's at the drug store. Tri Vi Sol is what i use. Just add to a bottle of expressed milk or you can stick it in a bottle nipple and have the little one suck it down. It's hard to just inject it in the mouth 'cause they may spit it right back out. My LO gets a bottle daily, so I put it in with that.

this.

teshy1 · May 2011

I use D Drops. One drop gives 400 IU Vitamin D3. I usually put it on my nipple at the start of a nursing session, or if I'm giving a bottle, I put it on the bottle nipple. One thing of D drops lasts 3 months (90 drops).

Kitty1225 · May 2011

From day 1 I have been putting VitD drops on my nipple before I nurse...just 1 drop at night. If he is outside and gets enough VitD then I dont use the drops

Yes, they need VitD...it is not passed through BM

mamabrof · May 2011

I give my baby the drops right from the bottle. No mixing.

ABizzity · May 2011

I have Carlson's Vit D drops. I either put a drop on my nipple before BF'ing or put a drop in one of his bottles for daycare. I dont do it everyday because I am forgetful but I do it as often as I remember.

superned · May 2011

I also use the Carlson's drops. I put one drop on my nipple right before our last BFing session of the night.

I am vitamin D deficient so I know it can happen pretty easily, especially if you live in a more northern climate and/or wear sunscreen all the time.

Jennifer Ruth · May 2011

You can get Vitamin D naturally from sunlight.

I only supplemented over the winter with drops (Like from Nov - March). Since then, we try to get out for at least 10 minutes every day. Walk around the block, sit out on the deck, walk to get the mail and play with the dog, etc.

My pedi was fine with this and actually encouraged as much outdoor time as possible.

tokenhoser · May 2011

I do the D Drops on my nipple.

I don't want him to be in the sun too much while he's this little. Outside, yes, in sun, no. And I do think vitamin D is important, so I do the supplement.

DizzyBlonde · May 2011

We do the D drops as well. While you can get it from sun exposure, there's increasing research that may not be enough, unless you're fair-skinned and live in warmer/close to the equator climates. For us, because of concerns because baby is darker-skinned, concerns that my levels were probably low, and during winter, we opted to do the D drops which just have the d and coconut oil (no other random additives).

There's a decent article here on some of the reasons to (or not) supplement with Vitamin https://www.bestforbabes.org/vitamin-d-and-breastmilk-whats-a-babe-to-do

There was also a lot of criticism of the author of the above post, so she posted a follow up on her blog here: https://dianaibclc.com/2011/04/12/my-thoughts-on-the-vitamin-d-controversy/

AggieBeth06 · May 2011

Kitty1225:
From day 1 I have been putting VitD drops on my nipple before I nurse...just 1 drop at night. If he is outside and gets enough VitD then I dont use the drops

Yes, they need VitD...it is not passed through BM

per kellymom, that last part is not true. I can't post the link off my phone. You don't provide much through bm, but it is highly bioavailable, so a little bit can do(depending on your circumstance).

We do not supplement, but we also live in Tx and DS gets plenty of sun, which the pedi encouraged. I do not mean baking in the sun, but he gets plenty while clothed and shaded outside.

Pamela05 · May 2011

AggieBeth06:
Kitty1225:
From day 1 I have been putting VitD drops on my nipple before I nurse...just 1 drop at night. If he is outside and gets enough VitD then I dont use the drops

Yes, they need VitD...it is not passed through BM

per kellymom, that last part is not true. I can't post the link off my phone. You don't provide much through bm, but it is highly bioavailable, so a little bit can do(depending on your circumstance).

We do not supplement, but we also live in Tx and DS gets plenty of sun, which the pedi encouraged. I do not mean baking in the sun, but he gets plenty while clothed and shaded outside.

This is us. They need 2 hrs a week of face only for a light skinned baby. We did an hour yesterday alone in a onesie in filtered light. I'm not deficient myself so I'm sure that helps too.

Motherlove PR · May 2011

Thought I'd share this link -- the author is one of the leading experts on the topic. It's a podcast. https://motherloveblog.com/2011/04/25/can-you-give-your-baby-enough-vitamin-d-by-taking-more-yourself-a-podcast-interview-with-carol-wagner-md/

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