Breastfeeding

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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here

Learn More

• Related Issues
• Specifics

See, Play and Learn

• Images
• Test Your Knowledge

Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

For You

• Men
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Breastfeeding offers many benefits to your baby. Breast milk contains the right balance of nutrients to help your infant grow into a strong and healthy toddler. Some of the nutrients in breast milk also help protect your infant against some common childhood illnesses and infections. It may also help your health. Certain types of cancer may occur less often in mothers who have breastfed their babies.

Women who don't have health problems should try to give their babies breast milk for at least the first six months of life. Most women with health problems can breastfeed. There are rare exceptions when women are advised not to breastfeed because they have certain illnesses. Some medicines, illegal drugs, and alcohol can also pass through the breast milk and cause harm to your baby. Check with your health care provider if you have concerns about whether you should breastfeed.

If you are having problems with breastfeeding, contact a lactation consultant.

NIH: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Start Here

• Breastfeed Your Baby (Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)
• Breastfeeding: Hints to Help You Get Off to a Good Start (American Academy of Family Physicians)

Related Issues

• Alcohol and Breast Milk (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Breastfeeding and Returning to Your Workplace (Department of Agriculture)
• COVID-19 and Breastfeeding (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Drugs and Lactation Database (LactMed) (National Library of Medicine)
• Induced Lactation: Breastfeeding for Adoptive Parents (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Sexually Transmitted Infections, Pregnancy, and Breastfeeding (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• Travel Recommendations for Nursing Mothers (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Vitamin D and Breastfeeding (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Weaning Your Child (Nemours Foundation)
• What to Know When Buying or Using a Breast Pump (Food and Drug Administration) Also in Spanish
• What You Should Know about Using Cannabis, Including CBD, When Pregnant or Breastfeeding (Food and Drug Administration) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• About Breastfeeding Special Circumstances (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Biology of Breast Milk: Getting a Good Start on Nutrition (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish
• Breast Milk Storage and Preparation (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Breastfeeding After Cesarean (C-Section) Delivery (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Breastfeeding Beyond the First Year (American Academy of Pediatrics)
• Breastfeeding FAQs: How Much and How Often (Nemours Foundation)
• Breastfeeding FAQs: Pumping (Nemours Foundation)
• Colostrum: Your Baby's First Meal (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• Common Breastfeeding Challenges (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health)
• Low Milk Supply (Department of Agriculture)
• Mastitis (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Nipple Dermatitis (VisualDX)
• Pregnancy, Breastfeeding, and Bone Health (National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases) Also in Spanish
• Pregnant and Considering Breastfeeding? (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Warning Signs of Breastfeeding Problems (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
• When Breastfeeding, How Many Calories Should Moms and Babies Consume? (Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Images

• Nursing Positions (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Test Your Knowledge

• Breastfeeding Benefits Quiz (Department of Agriculture)
• Understanding Baby Hunger Cues Quiz (Department of Agriculture)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Breast Feeding (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Effectiveness of structured lactation support and human donor milk banking in...
• Article: CanDo (Canadian Donor Milk) randomised controlled trial: pasteurised human donor milk...
• Article: Effect of antenatal milk expression on prenatal breastfeeding self-efficacy, lactogenesis onset,...
• Breastfeeding -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Also in Spanish
• Find a Midwife Practice (American College of Nurse-Midwives)

Men

• Dads (WIC Breastfeeding Support) (Department of Agriculture)

Patient Handouts

• Breastfeeding vs. formula feeding (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Overcoming breastfeeding problems (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Tips for Breastfeeding Moms (Making Healthy Food Choices) (Food and Nutrition Administration) - PDF
• Tongue-Tie (Ankyloglossia) (American Academy of Pediatrics) - PDF