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Do you know what is the major reason for mothers unable to breastfeed or quit breastfeeding early? It is because the mother was not prepared with plenty of breastfeeding-related info.
And then, the situation becomes even worse when a lot of close family and friends trying to give suggestions on what to do. Yet, they are conflicting each other. Which one to trust and which one to ignore, arrrrggh….. And the button gets pushed. I quit!
Do you know that some of the most common suggestions related to breastfeeding are merely myths. Yes, they are not facts, or let’s just say, it’s just an old saying without solid evidence. And these myths can lead you to traps that may disrupt your breastfeeding. You didn’t want that to happen, right?
So now, let’s arm your self with the true knowledge. Learn these top 10 breastfeeding myths and the facts. So the the next time you hear that very same advise, you know what to answer.
This post is part of BREASTFEEDING 101 series. Feel free to check other articles in this series:
- 5 Common Breastfeeding Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Milk Supply
- 5 Tips To Prepare for Breastfeeding
- 12 Actionable Tips for Preparing Breastfeeding During Pregnancy
- Should I Attend A Breastfeeding Class Before Birth? Is It Worth It?
- 10 Breastfeeding Myths and Facts That You Should Know
- How Do I Know If My Baby Is Getting Enough Breast Milk
- Weighted Feeding for Breastfed Babies | What It Is And How It Can Help You
- 10 Tips To Breastfeed in A Baby Carrier
- Best Baby Carrier for Breastfeeding
- Top 5 Breastfeeding Books for New Moms
- Postpartum Depression and Breastfeeding | Use These 7 Practical Tips
Myth #1: Baby nurses all the time means he does not get enough milk
The only accurate way to measure whether a baby gets enough milk is by monitoring his diaper output and weight gain (click here to read more details). If your baby nurses all the time and he has poor diaper output, that means he’s not getting enough milk. But if he has normal diaper output, then it is entirely normal and you should not worry about it.
There is a couple of reasons why your baby does this:
- Â Â Cluster feeding. A lot of babies like to do cluster feeding, where he would nurse almost non-stop for 2 to 3 hours. This is usually occurs in the evening, and it is a baby’s way to tank up on more milk so that he could sleep longer at night.
- Â Â Growth spurt period. This is a period whereby babies undergo rapid growth and suddenly appears to be hungry all the times and flock to your breast forever. Typically it occurs on certain time points, such as day 7, day 21, 3 months old, and 6 months old. And it can last for a few days up to one week. It is a mechanism to let your breast know that now the baby needs more milk. At the end of the growth spurt, your milk supply has adjusted to your baby’s higher demand and your baby will go back to his normal feeding behavior.
- Breast storage. Different mothers have different milk storage capacity. And NO, it is not dependent of breast size, learn more about it here. If you have small milk storage, then you have less milk that can be stored in your breast.
Let’s have some example. Imagine, there are two moms: mom A and mom B. Mom A has a milk storage of 100 ml while mom B has storage of 300 ml.  Assume they have babies with the same milk demand, 300 ml per 3 hour feeding.
Mom B can easily get away by nursing every 3 hours, because her breast can store up to 300 ml milk.
What about mom A?
Imagine, if we force mom A to nurse only every 3 hours. By the time her breast already produced 100 ml of milk, her breast stops the milk production because no more storage available. By the time 3 hour passes, she can only have 100 ml on her breast. But if she allows baby feeds more frequently, say 100 ml every hour, then her breast is trained to produce milk faster, and mom A can still meet the babies demand.
Myth #2: The amount of pumped milk shows how much milk you produced in your breast
Not true. Only babies can remove milk from breast most efficiently. Therefore to increase milk production, the most suggested method is to latch baby more frequently.
In fact, it is very common that the amount of pumped milk is only half or even third of amount of milk that baby gets with direct nursing. Read more details here.
SEE ALSO: The One-Stop Pumping 101 Guide to Help You Pump Breast Milk Effectively
Myths #3: Mother should space the feeding because breast need time to make milk
Not true. In fact, breast is producing milk all the time, depending on the stimulation that breast receives. If the breast is empty while the baby wants to nurse, breast will take it as an indicator to produce more milk and increase milk production. Remember the rule:
If a mom would wait until her breast feels full to nurse her baby, the breast may take it as a signal that less milk is needed and hence slow down its milk production, leading to less milk produced.
Myth #4:Â It is normal that breastfeeding hurts / breastfeeding should not hurt at all
It is normal in the early days to feel tenderness in nipple, but the pain feeling should subside as mother and baby master the nursing together.
If the pain feeling prolonged, typically it is due to poor latch. It is better for mom to see a lactation consultant to get her latching position evaluated.
When breastfeeding still hurts even though the latching position is correct (deep latch where baby not only takes nipple in, but also bigger part of the areola), then the baby should be assessed for possibility of tongue tie or other anatomical variation of your baby.
Do approach a lactation consultant and pediatrician to get suggestion and right treatment.
Myth #5: Never wake up a sleeping baby for breastfeeding
We believe on nursing baby based on baby’s cue. But in the early days, it is important to nurse baby at least 8 times every day and not letting the baby to skip feeding longer than 3 hours (except for night when baby may have a longer stretch of sleep). This is important so that the breast is getting regular stimulation to produce milk that baby needs.
It is also critical to know that some babies may be sleepy than other due to their medical condition (e.g. jaundice), and it is even more important to wake up this sleepy baby to nurse. They need enough fluid intake to flush bilirubin out of their body and if they’re allowed to sleep, they will sleep a lot despite their hunger.
Myth #6: Mother with small breast does not have enough milk for baby
Incorrect. The amount of milk produced by mother does not depend on breast size. Rather, it depends on the number of milk-making cells in the breast. Click here to read more details.
Myth #7: Baby should nurse from both side of breast for each feeding session
Not true. It is more important for a baby to finish one breast first so that he gets both foremilk (the more watery part which serves as thirst quencher) and hindmilk (the more fatty part). After he’s done with one breast, if he’s still hungry, then it is time to offer the other side.
But, if baby refuses to take the other side of breast, that is fine, too, and you can offer it the next feeding.
Switching breast too quickly (just for the sake that baby needs to nurse from both breasts) may lead to baby taking not enough hindmilk and slow weight gain.
Myth #8: If your breast feel soft and you got nothing when you squeeze your breast, there’s no more milk left in your breast
Totally wrong. As discussed in this post, to get the milk out of breast, we need to have let down stimulation. No matter how much milk you have inside your breast, if you don’t experience let down, milk won’t spray out of breast, and instead only comes out as drips (if any).
Additionally, soft breast is a good sign that your breast is emptied regularly, leading to faster milk production. But it does not mean there’s no milk left in the breast. In fact, your breast continuously produces milk based on demand it receives. Try to stimulate let-down and you’ll get more milk coming.
Myth #9: Breastfed baby needs to be given water occasionally
Not true. Exclusively breastfed baby does not need water, because 88% of breast milk is water and your baby will not be thirsty as long as he is allowed to nurse as needed. Click here for more guidelines on offering water to baby. Click here for more guidelines on offering water to baby.
Myth #10:Â Do not let baby uses breast as pacifier
First, some babies do need to be at breast not only for milk, but for seeking comfort. This is especially true for small babies, she trusts her mother a lot for providing him comfort. Seriously, what’s wrong with this? A baby trusts her mother for comfort, and the mother is responding to her cue.
But the more serious thing is, when this saying comes in the early days of breastfeeding, when baby is just a few days old.
Frequent nursing is often regarded as pacifying with breast.Â
But the truth is, as I said earlier, baby is telling mother’s breast to make more milk, adjusting to his gradual increase of milk demand.
And ultimately, mother does not make enough milk (due to baby is not given frequent time to be at breast), and baby will not gain weight. Click here to read more details.
More myths…
- If you like scientific-based evidence for each myth, head down to LLLI website, whereby Lisa Marasco explains each of myth in details with supporting scientific studies.
- And even more myths explained by Dr Jack Newman (total, there 54 myths, wow..!)
Have you been hearing one of these myths from your relatives or friends? Which one do you hear most frequently? Or do you have personal experience being told of these myths? Share with me in the comments!
Can you do me a little favor? We want to spread the message, so that NO MOREÂ myths being told to breastfeeding mothers. Support us by sharing this article!
Kams says
What a beautiful and informative website Rina, thank you for this post. My breastfeeding experience unfortunately was a failure. With no access to lactation consultant I struggled to feed my baby for 6 weeks with extremely cracked and bleeding nipples until I developed an abscess and had to be operated. Awful experience. With my second one, after three days of BF I got cracked nipples and switched to formula straight away, I was so scared I would end up in hospital again. I regret it deeply, but I feel I’m not getting any support here to keep trying and it’s so difficult on my own. I’m still determined to BF my third, and I will use your website as a guide and get in touch if I’m in trouble.
Rina says
Dear Kams,
I fully understand how you are feeling by not being able to breastfeed due to cracked nipple and abscess, oh my goodness..). I haven’t experienced abcess personally, but here’s some article which may be useful for your own reading.
I am glad that despite of this bad experience, you are still determined to BF your third. I suggest that starting from now, try to find a solid support from your surroundings (get your husband to accompany you to breastfeeding course, get prepared with what if you get cracked nipple again so you are more prepared). Get in touch with lactation consultant when you are expecting, or at least get a breastfeeding councellor that you can trust, so that whenever you meet problem, you know whom to ask.
I hope these little tips can help you in preparing for your third breastfeeding journey. Good luck!
~rina
Melissa says
Hello
Thank you for such an amazing post! I wish I knew many of these facts/myths when I had my daughter 9 years ago! I was lucky to have help from a lactation consultant at the clinic. I ended up needing a nipple shield to help my baby latch properly, however nobody told me to stop using it! It did however lead to 8 months of solid breast feeding so I’m happy about that! I think you will help many new moms with your info!
Thanks!
Melissa
Rina says
Hi Melissa, congratulation for breastfeeding your baby up to 8 months, wow.., you rocks.
From what I know, nipple shield is usually used for cases with flat/inverted nipple, so baby had difficulty to latch properly. I am glad that nipple shield helps you to latch your baby directly. Yeah, technically you should slowly wean the baby from using nipple shield. But anyway, you made it work. Well done!
Angela says
Interesting! Some of these myths I had never heard of, some I had. Good to know fact from fiction.
I won’t be having any babies for at least a few more years, but I suppose it’s never too early to learn the basics. I definitely want to breastfeed all of my children. My mother breastfed me for a full year, and it gave me a very strong immune system. She was formula-fed and has suffered from terrible allergies all her life. I am not allergic to anything, and I rarely get sick.
I’m glad to know that breastfeeding is not painful. It’s understandable for there to be some initial tenderness, but it wouldn’t make sense for breastfeeding to genuinely hurt the mother.
Thanks for sharing this valuable information!
Rina says
Hi Angela, I’m glad that you want to breastfeed all of your children. And you’re right, it’s never too early to learn the basics. I’ve even heard one of my friend discussing about her wish to breastfeed her children to her boyfriend (yes, they were still dating back then!). And you know what, once they got married and had their first baby, that boyfriend-turned-to-be-husband has known a lot about breastfeeding and become the strongest supporter of his wife on her breastfeeding effort. How sweet!
Sheila says
Hi,
I just reviewed your website and it is very informational and easy to read and follow.
I personally did not breast feed my twins because I was not sure how to do that conveniently.
I have heard almost all the myths you brought up in the article and it is great to have a site to go to and get some clarification.
There are a few typographical errors, but nothing that will take away from the contents. You may want to read over it again and make corrections if you see them.
Thanks
Sheila
Rina says
Hi Sheila,
aww.. You have a twins. They must be very cute!
I haven’t had opportunities to breastfeed twin before, but I heard that some mom do tandem nursing, some nurse one after another, while some combine direct nursing and bottles-feeding with expressed milk.
Thanks for pointing out the typo .
-Rina
Jen says
These are great and informative! I tweeted and will share on my facebook page!
rina says
Hi Jen, I’m glad you like this article. Thanks a lot for sharing it in Twitter and Facebook. Really appreciate it!