By Mashum Mollah
A lot of women suffer from mastitis during pregnancy. Since you have opened the clink to my blog, chances are you are a woman who is suffering from mastitis. If that is the case indeed then read the article to the end to find out some of the top natural home remedies for lessening and curing the same.
What does the term Mastitis mean?
Mastitis means the tissue of the breast is infectious that most regularly has an effect on women during their time of breastfeeding. Within these first few months it usually occurs after the delivery of a baby, but just sometime during breastfeeding time. When the milk duct is blocked, it will have remained in the breast so it may occur infection. Bacteria is one of the causes of infection when it entering the breast through a crack in the mom’s nipple. We may see also breast infection in women who have chronic mastics and inflammatory carcinoma.
Cause Of Mastitis
As I have told earlier that mastitis is enlargement, inflammation, or swelling of breasts, which can be caused due to several reasons. New mothers are more prone to mastitis. While breastfeeding the bacteria from the baby’s mouth enter the milk ducts through the fine cracks in the nipple. This develops an infection and causes mastitis. This is not that common and from 1% to 3% of new mothers suffer from mastitis.
In this scenario clogged milk ducts are responsible for mastitis. If a baby could not empty the breast in one feed, the milk gets accumulated in the breasts and causes mastitis. Regularly breastfeeding your baby may decrease the chances of developing mastitis here.
Symptoms of Mastitis
There are some common symptoms of mastitis that you can check yourself.
- The section that is pointing towards the nipple, may have a formation of a hard lump. This feels tender often. These are the most prominent symptoms that you can search for mastitis.
- You may feel achy and tired due to the lump in the breast.
- You may notice some symptoms similar to flu, like fever or chills. In this case, you may not be able to check for any other symptoms.
- Streaks of blood or white discharge also can be noticed if you develop mastitis.
- If any infection accompanies the mastitis, you may have a constant high fever and prolonged breast tenderness.
- One of the common symptoms is cracked nipples that bleed as well. If this is the symptom in your case, you may need to skip a feeding or take longer breaks between each feeding.
Top Natural Home Remedies for Mastitis
Doctors advise the mothers that it’s better that they should continue to feed milk to their newborns. The fact that it will give you more benefits thanks to clearing the infection in moms’ breasts. If you are too pain when breastfeeding, you should try milking by hand or pumping to avert the milk ducts to be blocked.
For breast infection, mastitis home remedy can help you in treating it and lower inconvenience. If this condition persists for a couple of weeks and makes your breastfeeding time painful, seek advice from your doctor.
Here are the best 10 natural cures for mastitis or natural home remedies for breast pain.
1. Massage
Massage has an effect on the breast if you’re in pain from mastitis. This will help reduce swelling and prevent blocked milk ducts. The best way is you massage it by applying pressure from outside to the nipple with small circles. For massage, you can use some essential oils for the same.
- Massage with essential oil for mastitis by mixing apricot and olive oil together in equal quantities. Then you apply it to the infected area. Do this 2 to 3 times each day.
- Another way is that you drop a few of camphor essential oil for mastitis into 2 soup spoons of olive oil and massage with this composite a few times a day
Note: Before feeding milk your baby, using warm water to clean your teat because those mastitis essential oils can harm your baby.
2. Hot and Cold Compresses
While considering mastitis remedies remember that hot and cold compression is advantageous for treating mastitis at home. Cold compression helps reduce tumefaction and lighten pain, while hot compress gives assistance to clear blocked milk ducts, helps milk flow more easily, and circulates blood.
- First, you cover a hot water bottle in a thin towel for hot compression and a few ice cubes in a thin towel too for cold compression
- Now you put the hot compression on the contaminated area for at least 15 minutes.
- Next, place the cold compression in 5 minutes.
- Do that rotation 2 or 3 times.
Note: You can do this remedy whenever you want.
3. Cabbage Leaves
Another remedy for this disease is using cabbage leaves. Its compounds including sulfur aid to release swelling and rawness. They may help mothers in breastfeeding time reduce engorgement and blocked milk ducts.
- Put a small amount of cabbage leaf in the refrigerator in half of an hour.
- Apply that cold cabbage leaves on the infected area.
- When the leaves are not cold anymore, take a new cold one to replace them.
- Do this a few times each day until you do away with the infection totally.
4. Garlic
Garlic is good for mastitis treatment to thank its natural antibiotic qualities. It comes to the aid of cleaning the bacteria which occur the infection. Thus, it advances the immune system, and boots rehabilitate quickly.
Eat a small spoon of garlic when your stomach is empty. You can eat more if you want within a day. If you do not like to eat garlic directly, drink eat with fruit juice or warm water. Do this daily for a week.
In addition, you should consult your doctor if you can use garlic supplements.
5. Echinacea
Echinacea Benefit is an increase in the immune system, which gives assistance to your body to beat off infections. The flavonoid in Echinacea offers antibiotic properties that are anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial.
Apply the fraction of echinacea root on the infected breast at least 4 times each day. Make sure to clean that area in detail with warm water before you feed milk your baby.
In addition, add 5 or 6 drops of tincture of echinacea radicle into the drinking glass. Drink it at least 3 times every day, but not more than 7 days.
Note: You should not use this herb in the long term.
6. Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is an outstanding method for mastitis treatment. Its compounds including anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties aid to treat infection and deter it from expansion. It also gives mothers additional energy.
Mix apple cider vinegar with warm water with 1-2 proportions. Apply this mixture to the infection area by using a cotton towel for 15 minutes, after that clean it with warm water. Do like that at least 2 times each day until get rid of the infection.
Prepare 1 soup spoon of apple cider vinegar without filtering and a little honey in a glass of water. Drink this glass 2 or 3 times daily in 1 to 2 weeks.
Final Tips
You can consider any one of the natural cures for mastitis that are mentioned above. But it has been seen that massaging with essential oils for mastitis is really helpful to ease the pain. You can use any of the mastitis essential oils at your convenience.
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