Breastfeeding With Nipple Piercings

Breastfeeding is encouraged in the first months of an infant's life. But what if one has nipple piercings? Is breastfeeding still recommended?

Breastfeeding is still recommended but there are some things to consider. If you are pregnant or thinking of conceiving in the near future, you should just wait until the baby is here and has finished breast feeding. In fact, most tattoo artists and piercers will not work on a woman while pregnant. It is not a good idea to nurse the baby while the piercing is less than healed. There is a small but present risk of infection being passed to the baby.

Also, breast feeding can cause soreness without piercings. If you are already sore from a piercing this will be greatly exaggerated. It is nearly impossible to remove your piercings while they are still fresh and it is in the best interest of your infant that you remove the jewelry while nursing to avoid choking or discomfort. Even with well-healed piercings from which you can remove the jewelry you can cause irritation by constantly removing and reinserting. You may decide to do away with the jewelry until the baby has stopped breast feeding and have them pierced again if necessary.

If you have had your piercings for some time and now are expecting a baby there is no reason to expect anything less than success with nursing.

There are rumors that having your nipples pierced can make it difficult for the baby to "latch on", however, most of the comments I read in researching this article actually say the opposite. The piercings can make the nipple stand out more than usual which makes it easier for the baby to grasp the nipple and pull it to the back of the mouth. There is no problem with additional holes in the nipple. There are many milk ducts in the nipple.

If one becomes blocked by a piercing, there are plenty of others to get a sufficient amount of milk to the baby. On the flip side, if the milk should come out of the piercings, it is no cause for alarm. There should not be a significant amount of extra milk coming out to choke the baby. Mothers will find that the flow of their milk varies even without piercings. Babies are very good at learning to gauge their suckling so they can get more or less when needed.

If you already have piercings and are expecting, congratulations! Remove the jewelry and have the wonderful bonding experience of nursing your infant and enjoy knowing that you are doing the right thing to give your baby a healthy start.

If you want piercings but know that a baby is on the way, just wait. Nursing is the most wonderful thing you can do for your infant and has benefits for you as well. The piercings will wait.

If you are nursing now and have piercings, you may want to keep in mind that as your baby gets older, s/he may tug at your nipples. The mother's breast tends to become a plaything as well as a source of nutrition. It may be wise to keep the jewelry out until the baby stops nursing completely. If you sleep with your baby (which some doctors frown upon while others say it's okay) and s/he nurses during the night without waking you, definitely remove any jewelry before going to bed. You do not want to become a choking hazard for your child.

Bearing in mind all these things, enjoy your piercings. Enjoy your baby. Life is good.