What's in Breast Milk?
I Never Gave Much Thought to My Breast Milk Until I Had It Tested
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I had some deficiencies — vitamin B12, vitamin C, and iron, to name a few. But I learned that vitamin C helps with the absorption of iron, which could explain why, despite being such a meat eater, my iron was so low. I found this data fascinating and immediately ordered supplements.
"We live in an era of personalized medicine and data, and some women can feel at ease when they can learn and see objective data that their milk has just as many if not more calories than infant formula," Canale shared with me. "We try to stress to moms that we are not about looking for deficiencies, but about optimization. We have found that moms become more relaxed knowing that their bodies are providing everything that baby needs."
I already felt like I was giving my daughter everything she needed. Getting my breast milk tested only helped emphasize that, and it showed me the tiny changes I could make in my diet (like swallowing a B12 vitamin) to optimize my milk.