You may see an increase in your Mother’s Milk DHA level in as little as 2 weeks of maintaining a higher DHA intake.
Use the DHA estimate from the calculator to make a plan to increase your DHA intake. For example, if the calculator recommends you take 765 mg DHA per day, you may need to take 800 mg DHA per day because your supplements come in 200 mg DHA amounts. It is not necessary to match the calculated dose exactly.
While DHA intake is the primary driver of your Mother’s Milk DHA level, your genes and length of time you have been breastfeeding also affect your milk DHA level. Consuming the recommended amount of DHA may not result in meeting your target Mother’s Milk DHA level, and re-testing your breast milk is the only way to know if you have met your goal.
The calculator is based on results from a 3-month randomized, placebo-controlled DHA supplementation study in 52 healthy lactating women (Makrides M et al. EJCN 1996).