Throughout human history there have been infants who have been nursed by surrogate mothers. Pregnancy is not necessary for breastfeeding. Prolactin (a hormone) is. Pregnancy does change the breast tissue so helps but is not necessary. Many adoptive moms who have never been pregnant have produced 30-100% of the breast milk their child needs. Pumping, sucking, herbs and drugs all help raise the prolactin level.

If you wanna be such mom and want to adopt the natural way of induced lactation, then start taking herbs: 9 Fenugreek, 6 Blessed Thistle (NOT Milk Thistle), 6 Marshmallow Root (make the milk thicker and higher in calorie). Also drink Mothers Milk Tea (if you can get that) and lots of water. Eating oatmeal. pineapple, and Henry Weinhart's Rootbeer will also help.

Basically, it is important to remember that prolactin and oxytocin, the hormones which govern lactation, are pituitary, not ovarian hormones. Therefore, even if a woman has had a hysterectomy, she may lactate, providing her over-all health is good. (Estrogen, in the form of birth control pills or for replacement therapy, is a lactation suppressant.) Both prolactin, the milk-making hormone, and oxytocin, the milk-releasing hormone, are produced in response to nipple stimulation. While there are now several regimens which use hormone therapy to assist in bringing in milk, many women have induced lactation with only mechanical stimulation. This consists of breast massage, nipple manipulation, and sucking -- either by a baby or a hospital grade electric breast pump. Some adopting mothers rent a breast pump in anticipation of the infant; other mothers simply put the adopted infant to breast.

Hormonal therapy to induce lactation generally consists of administration of estrogen to simulate the high-estrogen state of pregnancy. The estrogen is then abruptly withdrawn to mimic the rapid hormonal changes following delivery. A course of a prolactin-enhancing drug such as metaclopromide (Reglan.) is then instituted. Sucking stimulation (with a pump or by baby) is begun at this point.?

Milk production typically begins between 1-4 weeks after initiating mechanical stimulation. This is similar to case reports of inductions using only nipple stimulation. At first, the mother may see only drops. During the time that milk production is building, women may notice changes in the color of the nipples and areolar tissue. Breasts may become tender and fuller. Once the milk supply is established it works on a “supply and demand” basis under the baby’s control if the mother is breastfeeding and under the mother’s control if she is pumping. The more often and the more efficiently the baby withdraws milk from the breast (or the mother pumps), the more milk will be produced by the breast. As the baby suckles at the breast (or the suction from the pump begins), a signal is sent to the brain from the breast that causes the release of oxytocin initiating the milk ejection or let down reflex (MER) causing the milk to flow. The release of oxytocin coupled with the draining of milk from the breast, causes the breast to produce more milk 3. This is one of the reasons for the use of the hospital grade double electric breast pump during the protocols. Stimulation by the double pump further increases prolactin and oxytocin levels, thus increasing milk supply. Some women report increased thirst, and changes in their menstrual cycle or libido.

Is human milk produced by induced lactation adequate for infant growth?

Till date the answer is yes. The studies done on this show that the mean protein concentration in the induced lactating women was identical to that of transitional milk of biological mothers. The induced lactation however skips the colostral(the liquid that comes before the milk supply starts coming in biological mothers) phase.

If a mother is committed breastfeeding her adopted baby or her baby born via surrogacy, she can do it. Any amount of breastmilk she is able to provide for her baby is a precious gift. Many women have induced lactation. In fact, in some traditional cultures, the baby's grandmother induced lactation routinely in case the mother experienced problems. So go ahead and make yourself proud.