Effect of Chicken Extract on Breast Milk Production in Primiparous Mothers in Japan: A Randomized Clinical Trial

The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of chicken extract on breast milk production and fatigue in early postpartum women. The study is an open-label parallel-group randomized clinical trial involving 80 healthy primiparous women from Japan divided into two groups. The intervention group ingested chicken extract twice daily for more than two weeks and the control group ingested water. The effectiveness of chicken extract on breast milk production after delivery and quality of life before and after delivery was examined. The result showed that milk production in the chicken extract group (356±191mL) was higher than in the control group (279±142mL) at 96-120h, but not significantly different (P=0.071). Expressed milk production had increased significantly more at 96-120h in the chicken extract group (122.6±115.5mL) than in the control group (66.5±55.8mL) (P=0.017). Chicken extract significantly reduced fatigue at 38 weeks after gestation, as assessed by visual analog scale (P=0.006). The study concluded that milk production increased more in the intervention group. It is suggesting that the chicken extract may be effective in increasing breast milk production and reducing fatigue in later stage of gestation.