| Letter to Editor
In the last centuries, Iranian physicians such as Abu Bakr Mohammad Ibn Zakariya Razi (9th-10th century AD) in book of “Man La Yahzoroh al-Tabib” [1], Avicenna (10th-11th century AD) in “Al-Qanun fi al-Tibb, third book” [2] and Seyyed Mohammd Hossein Aghili Khorasani-e Shirazi (17th-18th century AD) in “Makhzan ol-Advieh” [3], wrote approximately similar instructions to increase (Table 1) or decrease the amount of milk in lactating mothers. The most important ones are as following:
Table 1: Instruction to increase the amount of milk in mothers who have low milk In a mother who feeds her baby and the amount of milk in the breast exceeds the normal. The over-production of the milk may lead to some complications in the breast. Even in some cases, milk flow spontaneously from the breast, unassociated with childbirth or nursing, Galactorrhea [4]. To solve the problem, materials such as Lactuca sativa seeds, Vitex agnus-castus seeds, Caraway (Carum carvi) and Lens culinaris can be helpful. Another way is to mix Caraway (Carum carvi) with vinegar and rub on the breast.
Note: Caraway (Carum carvi) is a material (as topical) which has been mentioned in other Iranian ancient medical sources such as Tohfat al-Mumenin (17th century AD) [5] in this regard.
Considering the nature of these materials may open a new window for researchers in this field. |