Research
Energy balance
The additional energy requirement for exclusive breastfeeding is approximately 670 kcal/day, but allowing for gradual maternal weight loss reduces the net dietary increment needed to approximately 500 kcal/day.
To support milk production, aim to eat an extra 500 to 670 calories per day compared to your pre-pregnancy needs. This accounts for the energy in the milk and the energy your body provides by slowly losing pregnancy weight.
StrongSupportsVERY_HIGH confidence
Additional energy needs for an exclusively breastfeeding woman are approximately 670 kcal/day. If one allows for gradual weight loss, the net increment needed is about 500 kcal/day.
Why this rating
Based on factorial methods using large datasets of milk volume and energy density, supported by doubly labeled water studies.
Source
ENERGY AND PROTEIN REQUIREMENTS DURING LACTATION
Kathryn G. Dewey · Annual Review of Nutrition · 1997
DOI 10.1146/annurev.nutr.17.1.19
narrative_reviewCited 176×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
More from this paper
- Lactating women with adequate fat reserves can sustain milk volume and energy output despite moderate negative energy balance (gradual weight loss up to 0.5 kg/week) without adverse effects on lactation performance.Good
- The recommended protein increment during lactation should be approximately 20 g/day (rather than 15 g/day) when accounting for non-protein nitrogen in human milk, a value consistent with nitrogen balance studies.Good
Related findings · Energy balance
- Achieving a total body weight loss of 10-15% (or >10-15 kg) through Total Diet Replacement (TDR) induces remission of Type 2 Diabetes in individuals with short-duration disease.Strong
- Bariatric surgery is superior to medical management alone for inducing significant long-term weight loss, remission of type 2 diabetes, and reduction in mortality for patients with BMI ≥ 40 or ≥ 35 with comorbidities.Strong
- Achieving type 2 diabetes remission requires significant weight loss (≥15 kg) via major caloric restriction, independent of macronutrient composition.Strong
This is one finding among thousands. Every one is graded and traced to its source, so you can see what the evidence actually supports. Browse the research →