These amazing lactation cookies result in a tall glass of milk for baby!
By Vanessa Grant
Updated Oct 02, 2023Producing breast milk can burn as many calories as an hour-long HIIT workout meaning that you can feel very, very hungry. What better way to refuel than with foods that help increase your milk supply? And if you're gonna eat, why not cookies? Discover the best lactation cookies for snacking, dessert or even breakfast.
While brewer's yeast for lactation is a good option for adding to smoothies, grabbing a cookie or two is easy and can literally be done while nursing a baby—just brush those crumbs out of baby's hair when you're done.
The best lactation cookies are full of galactagogue—or milk-producing—ingredients like brewer's yeast or blessed thistle. They also contain other nutritious add-ins like flax seed and oats.
Before buying make sure that any dietary restrictions are covered and decide between pre-made cookies, bars or an easy-to-make mix. Do you want a quick snack or a mini meal? Do you want to mix up a batch yourself or have cookies at the ready? And make sure you add at least a few options to your newborn checklist—plentiful milk is as important as anything else.
It doesn't get much easier than this. Munchkin Milkmakers Lactation Cookie Bites come in little snack-size bags and each box has 10 servings. They're perfect for throwing in a diaper bag or grabbing any time you've got the munchies. They have 4.5 stars on Amazon and more than 30,000 ratings.
These cookies are made with lactation-increasing ingredients like brewer's yeast, oats, oat flour and flaxseed meal and come in flavors like oatmeal chocolate chip, chocolate salted caramel and oatmeal raisin. And there's a mouth-watering sampler pack, too.
Love fresh-from-the-oven baked goods? You can make your own lactation cookies at home—without having to google and buy the right ingredients. Each package of Mommy Knows Best mix makes about 20 cookies and you can choose from indulgent flavors like chocolate chip, cinnamon raisin, rainbow candy, salted caramel and white chocolate chip.
Because it's a mix rather than a ready-to-eat cookie, you'll need a mixing bowl, baking sheet and a few basic ingredients to whip these together. We love how versatile the mix is though. It's easy to customize each cookie to your taste with toppings like coconut sugar, coconut flakes, raisins or even goji berries.
Reviewers on Amazon love this mix. It has 4.5 stars and more than 8,000 ratings. In a review titled "Magic", verified shopper Johana says, "These cookies were delicious, and I noticed a difference in my milk supply within a few hours of eating them!"
These gluten-free, soy-free, fenugreek-free, non-GMO lactation cookies are also kosher and they come in five flavors: caramel crunch, chocolate chip, cowgal trail mix, oatmeal raisin and cocoa quinoa. Reviewers say that they are soft, chewy and most importantly, have increased their milk supply.
The cookies come in small packages of three and there are four packages per container. It's recommended that you eat between one and three cookies an hour or two before breastfeeding.
Specialized ingredients mean that the best lactation cookies aren't always the cheapest. But Bessie's Best Lactation Support Cookies are a good value when compared to other options. Plus, reviewers say that they're so filling that eating the recommended two or three cookies a day is a challenge.
We love that these are seasoned with all-natural ingredients and sea salt rather than heavy preservatives and chemicals we can't pronounce. Clever packaging makes them a great on-the-go snack with a cup of herbal tea or water bottle.
Verified Amazon purchaser S. Towns says, "I can say that these by far are the best lactation treats or product I’ve ever tried... These are working very well to boost milk production. I can see a big difference when I eat two a day."
These cookie bars include a range of superfood ingredients including moringa, turmeric and shatavari root, which has been shown to help balance hormones in women. They also include flax seeds, oats, cinnamon and coconut oil.
The people behind Boobie Bar suggest eating one bar a day. You and your baby should expect to see an increase in your supply within five days. We love how easy they are to throw in a diaper bag or purse and take on the go. And yes—they really do taste good.
The best time to eat lactation cookies is an hour or two before feeding your baby or pumping, but they can really be eaten any time and many moms love grabbing these as a quick and easy breakfast or a post-breastfeeding snack when they feel ravenous. No matter when you eat them, you're ingesting ingredients that will help your supply.
Brewer's yeast—a galactagogue ingredient in most lactation cookies—is said to take 24 hours to take effect but you will see the best results after about five days.
This article contains affiliate links, so we may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links on our site at no additional cost to you.
Keep up with your baby's development, get the latest parenting content and receive special offers from our partners