How is breast milk 'produced'?

In most cases, breast milk will be produced based on your baby's actual needs. The more often and effectively the baby feeds, the more milk the mother will produce.

1. Anatomy of the mammary gland

Breast structure consists of 3 main tissues: glandular, adipose and connective tissue. Mothers' mammary glands can be large and small depending on the composition of adipose and connective tissue. The number of mammary gland tissue is almost the same.

From the outside to the inside, the breast consists of 5 layers: skin, subcutaneous fat and connective organization, cooper's ligaments hanging the breast, glandular tissue and posterior glandular tissue. The glandular tissue is divided into 15 - 20 lobes, arranged in a spokes shape, focusing on the nipples. Each lobe consists of 38 to 80 lobes and each lobe has many milk follicles.

Anatomy of the mammary gland with basic components.

Milk will flow from the lobules into the collecting lobes in each lobe (about 2mm in diameter) and then to the sinuses containing milk under the areola (diameter 5 - 8mm). There are all 5 to 10 milk ducts that open in the nipple. Due to the special structure of the mammary gland, the condition can occur in one or more follicles, one or more lobules and one or more lobules.

2. Time to produce breast milk

During pregnancy, the mother's breasts are ready for milk production.Colostrum is produced by the mother's body from the second quarter of pregnancy until about 2-4 days after birth. Colostrum is characterized by yellow, sticky, very nutritious and antibodies. After the baby is born, the placenta has peeled off, the mother's body begins to produce more milk. After about 5 - 14 days from birth, the mother's body produces transitional milk. From day 14 onwards, the amount of milk the body will secrete will continue to increase, changing white and thinner, called mature milk .

The transition of colostrum production to mature milk.

3. How does the body produce breast milk?

The process of breast milk production is influenced by 4 hormones: estrogen, progesterone, prolactin and oxytocin.The body's milk production mechanism is to regulate the levels of these hormones to produce milk. Detail:

1. Estrogen and Progesterone help the breasts grow, getting ready for milk production. These two hormones are released by the placenta during pregnancy. Estrogen functions to increase the size and number of milk ducts, while progesterone helps develop follicles and milk ducts. High levels of estrogen and progesterone inhibit milk production when the fetus is still in the womb. When the baby is born, the placenta has flaked, the content of these hormones automatically decreases, telling the body it is time to make milk. Therefore, nursing mothers should not use birth control pills containing estrogen because it will reduce the amount of breast milk.
2. Prolactin helps produce milk. After the baby is born, the amount of progestin in the mother's body increases. Every time the mother breastfeeds or breastfeeds, the body releases prolactin. The produced milk will be stored in the milk follicles. If the progestin content in the body is too low, the source of breast milk will decrease. Therefore, mothers need to breastfeed or breastfeed immediately after birth and at regular intervals thereafter.

The content of milk production hormones is secreted by the body in each specific period.

1. Oxytocin releases milk from the breasts. The oxytocin hormone is released when the baby starts to pull the nipple and suck. Oxytocin shrinks the muscles around the follicles, pushes the milk out of the follicles, enters the milk ducts, moves to the nipple and flows into the baby's mouth. This process is called reflexing into milk or lactation. In addition to releasing milk from the breast, oxytocin also helps to contract uterine muscle during and after birth, helping the uterus shrink to its original size and limit postpartum hemorrhage. At the same time, prolactin and oxytocin also contribute to the desire of the mother to care for her children.

Reflection into milk or lactation is a conditioned reflex, pushing milk from the follicles, through the duct to the milk sinuses and nipples. This reflex begins seconds to minutes after the mother begins to breastfeed. Lactation may occur several times during each feed, and the mother may feel tingling, mild discomfort in her breasts or no other abnormal sensation. This reflex may also occur at the time the mother hears the baby crying or thinking about the baby.

4. How to get enough milk for your baby

When a baby breastfeeds, stimulation from the baby's sucking action helps the mother release more prolactin hormone to help the body produce more milk. This mechanism helps the mother always have enough milk for the baby to go to the next feed. Therefore, the more often a baby breastfeed properly , the more prolactin the mother has in her blood and the more milk she will produce.

According to doctors, women should breastfeed or breastfeed within 1 hour after birth, breastfeed every 2.5 to 3 hours.

Breastfeed your baby multiple times a day to stimulate the body to produce more milk.

Breast milk contains a special protein, called feedback inhibitor of lactation (FIL) . This protein determines how much milk each breast produces. If a mother breastfeeds her breasts frequently, the FIL content in the breast will be low. The low level of FIL stimulates the body to produce more milk. Therefore, you should breastfeed your baby each breast before changing sides.

FIL determines the amount of breast milk each breast is separate. That means one breast may have less milk but the other breast is sufficient. So even if a mother has blocked milk on one breast, she can still breastfeed on the other breast and twin mothers can breastfeed exclusively on breast milk.

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