Effect of lactation massage on increasing breast milk production in postpartum mothers
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71357/hsij.v4i2.100Keywords:
Lactation massage, Breast milk production, Postpartum mothers, Complementary therapy, Non-pharmacological intervention, MidwiferyAbstract
Background: Insufficient breast milk production is a major obstacle to exclusive breastfeeding. Lactation massage is a potential complementary intervention to increase milk production, but requires stronger scientific evidence.
Objective: This study aimed to analyze the effect of lactation massage on increasing breast milk production in postpartum mothers.
Method: The research design used a pre-experimental one-group pretest-posttest. Participants consisted of 20 postpartum mothers in an independent midwifery practice area in Banjarmasin. Standardized lactation massage intervention was performed for 15 minutes, twice daily, for three consecutive days. Milk production was measured in milliliters (ml) using a manual breast pump before (first postpartum day) and after the intervention (third day). Data analysis used the Wilcoxon Signed-Rank test.
Results: There was a significant increase in breast milk production after the intervention (p < 0.001). The average milk volume increased from 188.5 ± 40.95 ml to 342.5 ± 69.04 ml. Before the intervention, 100% of respondents had insufficient milk production (<250 ml). After the intervention, the distribution changed to 65% sufficient (250-400 ml) and 25% more (>400 ml).
Conclusion: Lactation massage significantly increases breast milk production in postpartum mothers, thus it can be considered as a supportive intervention in postpartum care.
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