Milk coming in | Chickpea Baby

For the first few days your breasts make colostrum, a small amount of thick, yellowish milk. It's all a healthy, full-term baby needs. Fuller milk arrives a few days later. Bodies and babies vary, so a day either way is common.

Colostrum

Thick and yellow or orange, full of nutrients and substances that help protect against infection.
Small amounts are normal and suit a newborn's small stomach.

Typical amounts per feed:

Baby's age	Colostrum per feed
First 24 hours	2–10 ml
24–48 hours	5–15 ml
48–72 hours	15–30 ml
72–96 hours	30–60 ml

When milk comes in

Around 2 to 4 days after birth your breasts may feel fuller. The AAP gives 2 to 5 days.
For most people it's in by about day 3, and it can take longer after a first baby.
The milk turns thinner, whiter and more plentiful.
Heavy, firm, warm breasts are common around now. See the engorgement guide.

What helps

Feed early and often. Newborns feed about 8 to 12 times in 24 hours, as often as every 1 to 3 hours in the first days. Frequent feeding helps build supply.
Skin to skin. It helps your baby find the breast and latch.
Wake a sleepy newborn for feeds if needed.
Hand expression. If your baby can't feed well yet, hand expression may get more colostrum than a pump in the first few days. Your own milk comes first if extra feeds are needed.

Signs it's going well

Days 1–2: 1 or 2 poops a day, black and tarry.
Days 3–4: at least 2 poops a day, turning green to yellow.
Day 5 on: at least 3 to 4 yellow, loose poops and 6 or more pee diapers a day, with pale pee. The NHS also says at least 6 heavy pee diapers a day from day 5.
Weight: losing up to 8 to 10% of birth weight in the first few days, then gaining again. Breastfed babies are back to birth weight at about 8 days on average, and 97.5% are by day 21.
First checkup: no more than 48 hours after leaving the hospital.

When milk is slow

Milk that still hasn't come in by day 3 to 5 (72 to 120 hours), with a baby who isn't getting enough, is a reason to add extra feeds, ideally your own expressed milk. Some things can slow or lower supply, like breast surgery, polycystic ovary syndrome, thyroid problems, heavy bleeding after birth or retained placenta. Keep feeding or expressing often and get help early.

When to call

Call your pediatrician, midwife or an IBCLC (lactation consultant) if:

There's no sign of fuller milk by day 3 to 5.
Fewer pee or poop diapers than above, or poop that's still black by day 4.
Your baby has lost more than 10% of birth weight, or is still losing after day 4.
Your baby feeds fewer than 8 times a day.
Yellow skin or eyes, dark yellow pee, or pale cream poop.
Anything worries you. Ask for help early.

Get urgent help: call 911 (999 in the UK) or go to the emergency department if your baby is very sleepy or hard to wake, isn't feeding, has had no pee for 12 hours, or has a temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or more.