How is breast milk produced?
After a baby’s birth, the placenta is expelled, which signals a drop in the hormones that maintained the pregnancy. The sudden drop in these hormones allows the hormone prolactin to begin working. Prolactin “tells” the breasts it is time to begin producing large amounts of milk. A mother feels the result of prolactin when her milk “comes in” at around three to five days postpartum. Increased milk production usually occurs at this time even if a baby is born extremely preterm. However, frequent milk removal sometimes speeds up the process of establishing increased milk production. Occasionally, a mother experiences a delay in the production of large amounts of milk.
