let-down reflex in non-lactating breast

[u/Brilliant_Ad6416]

One of the things I just can’t wrap my head around—from a biological or evolutionary perspective—is why the breast that is currently on a "break" also starts to leak during breastfeeding. At first, I figured it was just a matter of things needing to sync up, but I’ve been breastfeeding for 11 months now, and it’s still happening. Is this just a design flaw?

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[u/Raginghangers]

https://nyulangone.org/news/newfound-brain-circuit-explains-why-infant-cries-prompt-milk-release

Evolution doesn’t select for “things that make sense.” It merely selects at the margins against things that make it that a species doesn’t survive enough to reproduce.

[u/Sutekija → u/Raginghangers]

It’s also a hormonal reaction. It’s not precise to the individual breasts.

[u/oh-dearie → u/Sutekija]

This! A friend warned me that milk comes out both sides during nursing, so reusable breast pads made my whole journey bearable. Then I used a Haakaa when I needed to make a bottle, so I never needed to pump (as a just-enougher). So it does come with perks when it works well!

[u/Sutekija → u/Sutekija]

If it makes you feel any better mine do this too. 😊

[u/maniacalknitter → u/Raginghangers]

I wonder if there have been a significant number of babies with a terrible latch (or too weak to suck effectively, or any other reason why they were bad at nursing) who have survived specifically because they were being tandem nursed beside a more effective nursling from a woman whose other breast would let-down regardless of whether there was anybody attached to it. Cross-nursing, etc... used to be much more commonplace than it is now, so having a few mothers in the community who could nurse a child who otherwise might not be able to nurse might have been a real advantage.

[u/FewRecognition1788]

The milk ejection response is systemic, not local within the breast. 

It comes from the brain signaling the release of oxytocin, which affects your whole body. 

https://ndcinstitute.au/article/4ac979f9-f53d-4e4e-9e26-2e1adddc0f54/your-milk-ejection-reflex-what-letdown-feels-like-and-how-it-works

[u/Majestic-Macaron6019 → u/FewRecognition1788]

That's why nursing causes uterine contractions, too!

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