For first-time moms it can take three to four days for the milk to begin transitioning to mature milk. With second or later births, it might take two to three days. For me, with this third birth, the transitional milk started coming in exactly 2.5 days after the birth.

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Colostrum. Colostrum is the nutrient-rich early milk that the baby receives for the first few days after birth. The yellowish “liquid gold” colostrum is low in quantity but high in quality. Colostrum contains beneficial immunities that help protect the baby from illness while the baby’s own immune system is still developing. It acts as a laxative to help the baby pass the first dark stools (called meconium) which in turn helps prevent jaundice.

Mature milk. Three or four days after the birth, the mother’s milk starts to come in. Milk production increases and the colostrum transitions into mature milk over the next two weeks. Amazingly, the mature milk changes composition throughout each nursing session.

Foremilk. At the beginning of the feeding, the baby receives foremilk. The copious foremilk is low in calories and fat. Think of it like skim milk.

Hindmilk. As the baby drains the first breast, the baby receives hindmilk. Hindmilk has less fluid and is more concentrated with fat and protein. It’s important for the baby to be allowed to finish nursing on the first breast before being switched to the next breast. You will know the baby is done when the baby pops off or begins falling asleep. Switching the baby too soon, such as on a set time-table, could mean that the baby receives too much low-calorie liquid and not enough fat. Excess foremilk intake, called a foremilk/hindmilk imbalance, can lead to slow weight gain, fussiness, gassiness and greenish frothy stool.  

Toddler milk. Misinformed people may try to convince a mother that her milk no longer has benefits for her baby after the baby reaches a certain age. In fact the milk continues to provide nutritional and immunological benefits as long as the child continues nursing. Toddler milk supplies protein, fat, vitamins and antibodies. some in even greater quantities during the second year and beyond. It’s interesting to note that the American Academy of Family Physicians cites an increased risk of illness for babies weaned before the age of two. (Breastfeeding Position Paper).

Supply and demand. In addition to its marvelous ability to change qualities, breast milk readily adapts to changing quantity needs. Breast milk production operates on the principle of supply and demand. The more milk the baby demands, the more milk the breasts produce. A mother may worry about her supply if the baby suddenly desires to nurse more often, but those additional nursing sessions will actually increase her supply to meet the baby’s needs. Similarly, a mother may worry if her breasts feel empty, yet the rate of milk production increases when the breasts are less full, and slows as the breasts refill.

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