Hi-
I am nursing my 2 1/2 year old usually only 1-3 times per day, the last three days I have been fasting all day and then eating one small keto meal at dinner. I’ve lost 3 lbs in the last week, which is pretty fast for me (and I am happy about it!). I feel great. Last night I nursed the boy to sleep and he woke up all night crying with stomach pains and wanting to nurse more for comfort. I can’t help but wonder if my fasting is causing toxins to get into my milk and hurting him, and then the more he nurses the sicker he might get. My diet has never been terrible, I tend to eat pretty healthy and we cook almost all of our own meals (we only eat out once a month or so), so I don’t think i have an unusual toxin load, though I am heavy (was 283 at my heaviest in July, now at 240). Of course it could be that he is sick with something else, but I remember before thanksgiving I did a 36 hour dry fast and he got sick that week as well. I am thinking maybe it’s time to wean him, but I don’t want to if it’s not necessary. Does anyone have any experience with this, fasting and weight loss, and kiddo sickness? I nursed my daughters till they were 4 1/2 and 3, so this feels early to stop but of course I know 2 1/2 is really ok. Part of it is I have been nursing since my oldest was born 8 1/2 years ago, so it’s been a long time. I am very motivated to get my health/weight under control and fasting seems to be the key for me. TIA!
Fasting and breastfeeding, time to wean?
It might be that your supply is drying up. Maybe increase your water intake. Fasting might need to wait until he is ready to wean. I nursed over 5 years so I know the commitment it takes to keep going but the reward of letting them choose when to wean is so worth it.
I agree with your supply being less due to your fasting. My daughter is breast-feeding and she’s eating like a horse and not gaining an ounce. She’s been doing it for 9 months now and still eats like she’s starving and is just a petite little thing.
Maybe try pumping to see how much you’re producing?
Sue
Thanks for the responses! He’s not really nursing for nutrition anymore, I don’t think he’s really getting much and I don’t think I would even get a let down for the pump at this point.
Wow, and wow. I thought that I nursed a long time with my son. He was 3 when I stopped and people thought I was a nutcase. But he was ready to stop. My daughter was 13 months and she was also ready. I applaud you, if only more people would breastfeed, the children of the world would be so much healthier.
Both times I breastfed I was unable to diet at all. Any time that I cut back on calories my milk would start drying up. Then I would have to eat and eat just to get the supply back to normal. And I was not keto back then. As soon as he stopped nursing I started dieting. At the time I was 40 to 50 pounds overweight and in the two years since then I have finally lost those 50 pounds.
So if you are fasting, especially dry fasting, I would expect your milk to dry up rapidly. It may be too late to get it flowing again.
I wouldn’t worry about toxins in the milk honestly, he probably gets more toxins by just eating his normal foods. Even organic food is full of toxins, don’t believe otherwise.
But if you are determined to lose weight right now, it is probably time to stop nursing.
I nursed both of my kids for an extended period, 4 years for my daughter and 3 years for my son. I was not doing keto or fasting at the time, but I can imagine that fasting during breastfeeding (with the understanding at this point it’s not his main source of nutrition) can affect the composition of whatever milk you’re producing. Definitely make sure you are taking in sufficient hydration. And I would even suggest that taking a break from fasting and eating a bit more would help with weight loss and resolving the issue with your milk if there is indeed one. I understand you feel you have adequate energy stores to support fasting but our brains still perceive nursing as a source of energy expenditure and that might mean your metabolism could slow. Just a thought! But whatever the case, yay for extended breastfeeding! I always feel like such a weirdo that I nursed my kids for so long. But they’re incredibly strong and healthy. I actually had a very hard time keeping weight on while nursing my second child and I was eating plenty. Women’s bodies react differently to nursing, even with different babies.
I breastfed my last kid for almost 3 years and while I was not keto or fasting at the time, I can not imagine doing it while breastfeeding. Part of me wishes I had known about keto and fasting back than as I remember being so upset that the fat would not leave. Doctors kept telling me I wasn’t losing my pregnancy because of the breastfeeding and it would drop when I stopped. So I weaned my little one and guess what…it didn’t come off. In fact, I was probably making it worse because I was exercising so much and eating too few calories!
With that said - I am glad I took that time with my last kid to bond. I’m glad I didn’t know. The weight can wait because you know what? Years later, it did come off with keto and fasting. Instead, just eat keto. Get as much nutrition as you can and think of this time like you are building a solid foundation for your body! When you and your kid are ready to wean, than add fasting. Until than - don’t stress about it. Your body will thank you later!
Eh ?
Breastfeeding helps weight loss.
At 6 months the baby can consume 500 calories of your fat a day. of course that facilitates weight loss.
Yeah, that’s what everyone says, breastfeeding helps you lose weight. Well I’ve known quite a few females, including myself, who could not lose weight while breastfeeding. But in fact gained weight because our bodies would not produce enough milk to breastfeed exclusively without lots of calories. A woman’s body can only make plenty of milk if she has surplus calories as milk manufacturing is not a necessary bodily process, it is the first thing to stop or be cut back when the body is robbed of those “500 calories” that are supposed to facilitate weight loss.
It even relates to animals. In fact I have milk goats that will only produce milk when supplied with copious amounts of calories. Anyone who raises animals and milks them knows that they will stop producing milk if they are not properly supplemented. And that means copious amounts of grain added to their diet along with their normal rations of hay.
Sorry, but breastfeeding does not facilitate weight loss.
Breastfeeding cuts Diabetes risk
How long women breastfed also affected their chance of developing type 2 diabetes. Breastfeeding for longer than 2 months lowered the risk of type 2 diabetes by almost one half, the researchers calculated. Breastfeeding beyond 5 months lowered the risk by more than one half. Notably, differences in weight loss, which affects type 2 diabetes risk, didn’t account for these risk differences.
But it wasnt from weight loss ! Interesting.
I have also had a doctor mention that the hormones required for lactation to happen cause weight gain. He mentioned Estrogen, and I don’t know if that’s right, but it made some sense at the time. I know women who got really skinny breastfeeding and had to stop because of it, but most women I know have either stayed the same or gotten a bit heavier. There are so many good reasons to breastfeed for moms, in addition to the lower diabetes risk, it also lowers the risk of breast cancer the longer she nurses. It’s good all around!
Thanks for all the advice. I do appreciate this forum!
I have a 2.5 yo nursling, too, 
and accidentally fasted until dinner a couple days ago. (I was at work and didn’t notice I hadn’t eaten; by the time I got home and had dinner, it had been something like 23 hours between meals.) It didn’t affect my supply (not that I have a huge supply at this point), nor did we have any issues. The only thing I’d say is to keep up with hydration.
Also, I think the “breastfeeding helps you lose weight” mantra is simply an extension of the CICO belief. If you’re feeding someone 500 calories per day from your own body, you should lose a pound a week! 
Really, your appetite increases to match the expenditure, as we know from how CICO really (doesn’t) work. Also we know that you have to produce prolactin to make breastmilk and prolactin is directly tied to cortisol…
Extended breastfeeder here! Kid 1 until 2.5, kid 2 until 3.5, kid 3 going strong at 17 months! I’ve been pregnant/breastfeeding for almost six years and was willing to risk an extra toxin load in my milk in order to get healthy myself (I know, sounds pretty selfish but I am desperate). Now I’m thinking that might have been a bad idea because 24 hours after my first 23-hr fast, 17-month-old gets a fever. I’ve been fasting 16-20 hours each day since then (nothing crazy), and the fever is gone but he has a runny nose and little appetite for anything but BM. I know it could be coincidence, but could extra toxins being released from my body be the cause of his sickness? Milk volume has been completely unaffected, BTW.
my little one has just turned one, and I would love to do extended fasts for me, because I also gain weight while breastfeeding (I actually don’t know anyone who has lost weight while breastfeeding,… so sometimes I wonder if it’s just a popular mommy myth) SInce I pump at work I can keep track of my supply pretty well. I’ve managed to do a few 24 hour fasts without affecting my supply, but I am very reluctant to go longer than that because I’m not sure what that will do to my supply. I’d love to drop some of my weight, but my little one still needs breastmilk to avoid constipation issues he has. So for now I will just keep calm and keto on.
I’ve seen 2 main hypothesis with fasting though:
-possible toxin release from burning stored fat into the breastmilk
-drop in supply because of lower caloric intake