Confident breastfeeding: How breastfeeding works

How breastfeeding works: the essentials for practice

In this short video, Vicki Blackman, Registered Midwife and Breastfeeding Educator, explains how breastfeeding works and why milk production follows the principle of supply and demand. In just over two minutes, she covers the key points healthcare professionals can share with mothers in the first weeks after birth and beyond.

What you will learn

This resource helps you give clear, reassuring guidance on:

• How feeding frequency drives milk production
• Why babies should feed from both breasts in the early weeks
• Letting one breast fully empty before offering the other
• Why a breast preference is normal, and how one breast can meet the baby's needs
• How feeding patterns change at around three months
• Why breast asymmetry does not affect lactation
• How long breastfeeding can continue: up to two years and beyond

Watch and support mothers with confidence

Watch the full video to strengthen your breastfeeding counselling and help mothers avoid unnecessary worries. It is part of the Confident breastfeeding series on Danone Nutricia Campus. Explore the full resource for more practical insights, and discover further courses and materials on early life nutrition.