Breastfeeding Twins Series

The Principle of Supply and Demand

By Melissa Clark Vickers

Mother Nature is pretty smart. She equips our bodies with more than what we need them to do. Most of the time, humans have one baby at a time, and we come equipped with two straight-from-the-factory milk delivery sites. As it turns out, either of those "sites" is capable of providing enough milk to fully nourish a baby – and that means that Mother Nature has already covered the possibility that more than one baby might be breastfeeding at a time.

Milk supply is based on a wonderful supply and demand principle: The more milk that is removed from the breast, the more the breast will make. It stands to reason that if there are two babies removing that milk, then the breast will just respond by making twice as much milk. So, in theory at least, there's no reason that the mother of twins shouldn't be able to fully nourish two babies at the breast.

That's the theory. The big question is, though, is it practical? Can you breastfeed twins and still have a life? Can you do anything but nurse those babies – round the clock? Does sleep become a non-priority? How in the world can you manage all this, day in and day out?

The good news is that it is possible to breastfeed those two babies and still have a life. The keys to making it work are education, planning and prioritizing, support and flexibility.

Education

Want to see more?

• Breastfeeding Twins: Planning and Prioritizing
• Breastfeeding Twins: Support and Flexibility
• Breastfeeding Twins: Keeping Track of Who, What and When
• Breastfeeding Twins: Sleep and Supplements
• Talk about it!